Navigating The AI Revolution: What You Need To Know If Your Marketing Agency Uses AI – Above the Law

Ed
note: This
article
first
appeared
in
Strategies
&
Voices,
a
publication
of
the
Legal
Marketing
Association.

In
an
era
where
artificial
intelligence’s
(AI)
influence
is
proliferating,
many
have
proclaimed
the
obsolescence
of
marketing
agencies
—
or,
at
the
very
least,
the
death
of
certain
marketing
functions.
Can
we
do
away
with
copywriters
now
that
ChatGPT
can
automate
copy?
What
about
graphic
designers
now
that
Canva
has
Magic
Design,
an
AI
design
generator?

But
how
much
more
efficient
and
effective
does
AI
actually
make
marketing
agencies?
What
should
clients
expect?
And
should
clients
be
concerned
about
how
their
agencies
are
using
AI?

AI
Isn’t
a
New
Concept
for
Marketing
Agencies

If
we
were
to
play
a
word
association
game
with
“AI,”
most
of
us
would
immediately
think
of
ChatGPT
or
another
popular
large
language
model
(LLM),
but
these
aren’t
the
first
AI
tools
to
affect
the
marketing
industry.
This
technology
might
feel
shiny
and
new
due
to
recent
dramatic
jumps
in
its
progress,
but
it’s
been
slowly
permeating
our
workflows
for
years.

It’s
likely
that
your
marketing
agency
is
already
using
AI
and
has
been
for
some
time.
At
the
very
least,
it’s
probably
using
Grammarly
— the
trusty
digital
writing
assistant that
combs
through
your
copy
to
detect
errors
and
plagiarism,
suggest
changes
or
spot
gaps
in
writing.

The
case
for
implementing
AI
into
legal
marketing
is
familiar
by
now:
These
tools
are
multitasking
powerhouses
that
reduce
time
spent
on
routine,
mundane
tasks
so
marketers
can
devote
more
energy
to
high-level,
strategic
work
and
people
management.

HubSpot’s
2023
report
on
the
state
of
AI
in
marketing found
that
the
most
common
uses
across
all
industries
are:

1. Content
   creation
   (48%)
2. Analyzing
   or
   reporting
   on
   data
   (45%)
3. Learning
   how
   to
   do
   things
   (45%)
4. Conducting
   research
   (32%)

In-house
marketers
should
expect
AI
and
automation
to
increase
their
agencies’
efficiency
(HubSpot’s
report
found
it
can
free
up
almost
a
month
of
additional
work
time
per
year).
But,
as
ever
when
operating
in
the
legal
industry,
extreme
caution
is
paramount.
Below
is
a
breakdown
of
why
generative
AI
requires
careful
implementation
and
oversight,
and
isn’t
always
your
best
bet
for
a
first
draft.

Where
Generative
AI
Fails
—
and
How
to
Bridge
the
Gap

For
the
more
left-brained
humans
among
us,
it’s
the
dream:
a
writing
robot
that
systematizes
content
creation
and
pumps
out
copy
in
mere
seconds.
Much
like
the
trusty
calculator
did
for
math,
generative
AI
could
revolutionize
how
we
write.
(Yes,
William
Shakespeare,
Emily
Dickinson,
et
al.
are
definitely
turning
in
their
graves).

But
hold
up:
there
are
multiple
reasons
why
agencies
—
especially
those
serving
law
firms
—
should
not
use
AI
for
pure
content
creation.

1.
Effective
Law
Firm
Marketing
Depends
on
Building
Authority
and
Credibility

In
a
crowded
market,
leveraging
a
law
firm’s
reputation
and
subject
matter
experience
can
set
it
apart
from
competitors.
If
your
marketing
materials
provide
reliable
information
and
valuable
insights,
readers
will
seek
it
out.
The
problem
is
that
purely
AI-generated
content
is
the
opposite
of
this;
it
lacks
authenticity
and
genuine
expertise.
And
because
AI
pulls
from
existing
resources,
your
content
might
inadvertently
include
previously
used,
published
or
trademarked
material.

To
avoid
this
issue, use
human
insights
to
inform
your
content
and
guide
overall
strategy
and
messaging
rather
than
relying
solely
on
AI.
Implement
redundancy
and
plagiarism-spotting
tools
to
augment
your
AI
use.

2.
Using
AI
for
Pure
Content
Creation
Will
Give
You
Low-Quality,
Uncopyrightable
Content

Everyone
loves
an
accent,
except
when
it
comes
to
AI-generated
content.
Text
generated
by
tools
such
as
Anthropic,
ChatGPT
and
Perplexity
have
a
certain
cadence
that
sets
them
apart
from
human-written
content.
But
unlike
the
soothing
tones
of
Morgan
Freeman’s
narration
or
the
warm
hug
of
Dolly
Parton’s
Southern
twang, this
telltale
“accent” is
neither
charming
nor
unique.
That’s
because
the
database
of
content
it’s
relying
on
is
based
on
existing
information.
This
can
negatively
impact
SEO,
as
search
engines
prioritize
unique
and
valuable
content
that
meets
users’
needs.
What’s
more,
the
U.S.
Copyright
Office’s
current
position
is
that
a
work’s
author
must
be
human,
not
AI,
and
it’s
unclear
how
much
human
involvement
is
necessary
for
copyright
to
apply.

To
avoid
this
issue, use
human
editors
to
draft
and
refine
content,
supplement
their
work
with
AI
and
regularly
evaluate
its
efficacy.

3.
Current
AI
Tools
Have
a
Hallucination
Problem

Sure,
humans
might
get
the
odd
stress
headache,
but
generative
AI
is
prone
to
frequent
hallucinations
(so
frequent,
in
fact,
that a
Stanford
University
study
found generative
AI
tools
designed
for
the
legal
industry
produce
false
or
misleading
information
between
17%
and
33%
of
the
time).
That’s
because
this
technology
was
designed
to
predict
the
next
word
in
a
sequence,
and
what
the
AI
predicts
should
come
next
based
on
learned
patterns
isn’t
necessarily
what should come
next.
This
can
lead
to
misrepresentations
about
a
lawyer,
firm
or
legal
matter
in
marketing
copy
—
and
for
a
notoriously
risk-averse
industry,
that’s
a
big
deal. Just
look
at
what
happened
to
Air
Canada when
their
chatbot
gave
inaccurate
information
to
a
customer.

To
avoid
this
issue, have
human
editors
copyedit
and
fact-check
all
AI-generated
content.
Use
AI
to
synthesize
blocks
of
text
into
quick
bullet
points
rather
than
relying
on
it
for
market-ready
messaging.

4.
AI
Platforms
Are
a
Data
Privacy
and
Security
Minefield

Anything
you
put
into
an
AI
platform
could
be
used
to
generate
copy
and
content
for
other
users.
Take ChatGPT’s
terms
of
use,
which
say
it
can
use
inputs
and
outputs
“to
provide,
maintain,
develop
and
improve
our
services.”
Similarly,
text-to-image
generator Midjourney’s
terms
of
use say
it
has
a
perpetual
license
“to
reproduce,
prepare
derivative
works
of,
publicly
display,
publicly
perform,
sublicense
and
distribute
text
and
image
prompts
you
input
into
the
services,
as
well
as
any
assets
produced
by
you
through
the
service.”

To
avoid
this
issue, never
enter
confidential
information
into
a
third-party,
public
AI
tool,
review
all
terms
and
conditions
and
train
your
staff
on
the
associated
data
privacy
and
security
concerns.
Look
to
technology
such
as Meta’s
Llama or
any LM
Studio model
for
housing
confidential
data
as
they
run
locally
on
your
computer.

5.
Algorithmic
Biases
Lurk
Within
the
System

Depending
on
the
data
used
to
train
its
algorithms,
AI
platforms
can
unintentionally
perpetuate
biases
by
reinforcing
stereotypes,
encouraging
unfair
treatment
and
even
discriminating
against
certain
groups
of
people.

To
avoid
this
issue, don’t
rely
on
AI
to
make
decisions
or
lead
initiatives.
Look
to
platforms
that
use
diverse
data
sets,
conduct
regular
audits
and
involve
human
oversight
to
spot
and
rectify
potential
issues.

Recommendations
for
In-House
Marketers

Armed
with
these
cautionary
tales,
there
are
several
steps
you
can
take
to
evaluate
and
optimize
your
marketing
agency’s
use
of
AI.
This
involves
gaining
a
clear
understanding
of
how
AI
is
being
used
and
what
that
means
for
your
firm,
reviewing
contracts
and
ensuring
your
agency
is
following
best
practices.

Here
are
some
considerations
for
discussing
AI
with
your
firm’s
agency:

1. Ask
   your
   firm’s
   agency
   what
   tools
   they’re
   already
   using
   and
   what
   they’re
   using
   them
   for.
2. Discuss
   what
   you’re
   comfortable
   and
   uncomfortable
   with,
   and
   why.
3. Inquire
   about
   the
   tools
   your
   agency
   is
   considering
   using,
   along
   with
   the
   pros
   and
   cons
   of
   implementing
   them.
4. Consider
   reviewing
   your
   contract
   to
   ensure
   it
   aligns
   with
   your
   expectations
   and
   adheres
   to
   your
   boundaries.
   If
   there’s
   currently
   no
   mention
   of
   AI
   use,
   consider
   adding
   clauses
   to
   address
   how
   it
   should
   or
   shouldn’t
   be
   implemented.

If
your
firm’s
agency
is
following
best
practices
for
implementing
AI,
you
should
be
able
to
answer
“yes”
to
the
following
questions:

1. Does
   the
   agency
   disclose
   its
   AI
   use
   to
   clients
   for
   transparency?
2. Does
   it
   remove
   all
   personal
   identifiers
   to
   anonymize
   data?
3. Does
   it
   make
   sure
   no
   sensitive
   data
   is
   ever
   fed
   into
   an
   AI
   platform?
4. Do
   humans
   review
   all
   the
   agency’s
   output
   before
   clients
   receive
   it?

Your
Agency
Still
Needs
Humans

As
a
human
myself,
I’m
thrilled
to
write
the
above
heading.
And
it’s
true:
AI
won’t
replace
your
marketing
agency,
but
it
can
level
up
your
agency’s
operations
and
content
if
implemented
strategically.

While
AI
excels
at
analyzing
vast
amounts
of
data
and
automating
time-consuming
tasks,
it
needs
the
contextual
understanding
and
creative
intuition
of
human
marketers.
Effective
legal
marketing
requires
a
deep
understanding
of
market
dynamics,
relationship
building,
client
preferences,
cultural
nuances
and
brand
development.
With
these
skills,
we
can
interpret
AI-generated
insights
in
a
meaningful
way.

As
with
any
great
hire
assigned
to
a
new
role,
allow
AI
to
explore
its
most
enjoyable
strengths
(which
happen
to
be
completing
your
most
tedious,
routine
and
time-consuming
tasks)
and
rely
on
its
human
colleagues
for
strategic
direction,
critical
oversight
and
creative
innovation.