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By Lisa Larson-Kelley

So, we’ve all been there. You’re two paragraphs into a blog post. The headline was catchy enough, the intro kind of made sense, and now your eyes are glazing over. You read over a word, a blurb, a sentence that sounds vaguely all-too-familiar and now you’re wondering, “Wait…did a human even write this?”

Odds are, you’re not imagining it. AI-generated content is everywhere. It is impossible to escape. While it’s efficient, especially for meeting summaries and article recaps, you and I know the best content is the content that feels particularly human. When you spend your days working with AI (and creating comprehensive AI training for your team), you quickly start seeing how it’s beginning to give itself away.

Here’s how to spot AI writing before you waste another five minutes of your life reading machine-generated clickbait.

1. It reads like someone trying to win an argument at a networking event.

If every paragraph feels like it’s trying to make a strong point without actually saying anything meaningful, you’re probably in AI territory. Look out for generic phrases like “in today’s fast-paced world” or “leveraging innovative strategies.”

I’ve read these phrases so often that it occasionally feels right to use them as filler, like an SAT tutor that teaches your kid three big, impressive terms to use to crush the written portion of the test. Ultimately, this is the biggest red flag that you’re reading AI-generated content.

2. There’s 0% personality and 100% too much structure.

AI content often follows a painfully clean format: intro, subheads, conclusion. The content might include some big words, but it’s not fooling anyone. It reads like it went to school and graduated with honours, but never worked a day in the real world. Great for a college essay, not so realistic (nor creative) beyond that. There’s no strong voice, no edge—just perfectly average takes.

On this note, I’m seriously considering creating a support group for copywriters and marketers who embraced the em dash long before AI came around. While it’s become popularized as an AI “tell” of a blog post or article, too often it’s a case of mistaken identity. Tread carefully.

3. It’s bland, not very controversial.

This flag can be a difficult one to spot in the moment, as it’s important to consider varying perspectives and points of view. AI doesn’t like to ruffle feathers, so you’ll often find it hedging every single opinion. It’ll say one thing, then immediately say the opposite to keep the peace. Look out for something along the lines of, “While X has benefits, it’s important to consider the potential downsides of Y.”

Let’s keep writing about things that may be controversial, with strong opinions and hot takes. When creatives are writing about a particular topic, and aiming to prove a point, it doesn’t seem appropriate for them to include the counterargument. Right? You’re reading to gain insight and perspective about whatever topic is at hand, not ride the see-saw.

4. The conclusion is weirdly robotic pep talk.

If the article wraps with something like, “As we move into the future, embracing innovation will be key,” congrats, you’ve hit AI bingo. These vague, motivational endings are a dead giveaway. The conclusion usually feels abrupt, as if AI knows it’s necessary for sentence structure but is not willing to spend the time on making it truly meaningful. I rarely see a real person sign off their blogs, newsletters, or other content with such blatant corporate optimism.

5. Your brain feels…untouched.

Maybe the biggest tell is how it makes you feel (or not feel). Great writing sticks with you. Even a short blog post can inspire, surprise, or challenge you. But AI-written content, on the other hand, is like a lukewarm shower. Technically fine. Emotionally forgettable.

I wouldn’t go so far as to claim that specific words, “key,” “crucial,” “robust,” or “comprehensive” are always AI indicators, but it is true that most writing tools can’t resist overusing their favourite buzzwords. Even ChatGPT refers to these words as its “greatest hits list,” so it’s no wonder that my mind is exhausted from seeing them in other’s writing.

I use AI daily to optimize my workstreams, beat creative blocks, and sharpen my emails. And if I don’t pay attention and refine my prompts, my results will be rampant with these “tells.” Don’t believe me? Test it out using ChatGPT. With a little practice, you’ll soon be able to spot an AI-generated story from a mile away.

I’m not an AI-hater by any measure, but it’s been exhausting to find that every third article I read is missing that imperfect-but-human spark. If it feels too clean, too cautious, or like it was written in under 30 seconds, it probably was.

Feature image credit: Getty Images

By Lisa Larson-Kelley

Lisa Larson-Kelley is founder and CEO of Quantious.

Sourced from FastCompany

By Tamilore Oladipo

YouTube Shorts are YouTube’s answer to short-form content. The vertical video format. If you want to get your head around YouTube Shorts and possibly incorporate it into your strategy, then this article is for you.

Vertical, short-form, mobile — these three words describe the video format popularized by TikTok that every social platform is looking to co-opt, and YouTube is no different. Although the platform is known for its longer-form video content, it added a new feature in September 2020: YouTube Shorts.

This addition should come as no surprise, as YouTube is all about video, and increasingly, users prefer short videos to any other format when consuming content. This report shows that 73 percent of people prefer to watch a short video when learning about a new product or service. The same report also shows that people watch about 19 hours of online video per week. Essentially, the more content you can fit into that time span, the more you can communicate to your audience.

If you want to get your head around YouTube Shorts and possibly incorporate it into your strategy, then this article is for you.

What are YouTube Shorts?

YouTube Shorts are a new vertical video format optimized for mobile – YouTube’s answer to short-form content. If you already create short-form video content on TikTok and Instagram, then getting started with Shorts should be easy. It’s a great place to get started, as you can repurpose existing content and crosspost across platforms you’re already active on.

While YouTube Shorts may seem like yet another platform on your full plate, but it has its perks. Some benefits of creating on the platform include:

  • Shorts get an average of 15 billion views per day across the world
  • A new channel for your audience to discover your content
  • If you’re looking to become a creator on the platform, it can ease you into YouTube and help build an audience while you figure out your strategy for long-form video
  • It’s another place to distribute video content you may have created elsewhere (TikTok, Reels)

Does this sound appealing (and relevant) for you or your brand? Jump in and upload your first Short using the steps outlined below.

How to make and upload YouTube Shorts

There is no separate app for YouTube Shorts — it lives in your existing account. You can either create a new video within the YouTube app or upload an existing or edited video. The latter is especially ideal if you’re repurposing TikToks, Instagram Reels, or longer YouTube videos. To create new Shorts natively in YouTube:

  • Step 1: Open the YouTube mobile app, select the plus sign at the bottom of the screen and click ‘Create a Short’ from the list of options.
what is youtube shorts
  • Step 2: Start recording by tapping (not holding) the red button. You can choose the length of time you want to record for between 15 or 60 seconds at the top right side of your screen. To record different video sections, click the record button to pause recording, then again to resume recording for your next section.
  • Step 3: If you’re satisfied with your video, tap the checkmark in the bottom right of the screen. You can preview, edit, add music, voiceover, text, and filters to your video. Once you’re done, tap Next in the top right.
  • Step 4: Add a caption, set visibility, schedule, select an audience, then tap Upload Short. Treat this step like you would a regular YouTube video by optimizing the caption so it’s visible for the right search terms.

Alternatively, if you want to upload an existing video, you can follow these steps:

  • Step 1: Click the plus sign.
  • Step 2: Select Upload a video which will take you to your camera roll.
how to upload youtube shorts
  • Step 3: Select a video under 60 seconds.
  • Step 4: Fill in the relevant details and hit publish.

Finally, you can also upload a Short from your desktop. YouTube can tell what type of video you’re uploading by its length and orientation, so if you’re uploading a square or vertical video that is less than 60 seconds, it is identified as a Short. To upload a Short from your desktop:

  • Step 1: Head to the YouTube website or YouTube Studio.
  • Step 2: Click Create in the top right side of the page.
youtube shorts
  • Step 3: Upload your YouTube Short.
  • Step 4: Fill in the relevant details and publish.

How to monetize YouTube Shorts

YouTube launched the Shorts Fund in August 2021, which is dedicated to paying out creators that generate large audiences for their Shorts. To qualify, creators must fit the following criteria:

Creators don’t have to apply – YouTube will notify you if you’re qualified during the first week of each month via email and your account that you will be receiving money from the Fund.

7 tips for making the most of YouTube Shorts

Before you start publishing, here are some best practices that will help you achieve good results off the beat from this new channel.

  • Don’t treat it like an afterthought: Develop a proper strategy to start uploading by creating relevant content, posting consistently and seeking audience feedback to make improvements.
  • Repurpose existing content: If you’re having difficulty figuring out what to post, adopt a repurposing strategy where you take the content you create for other short video formats and upload it as a Short. You can then tweak and make improvements to your videos based on reception.
  • Use a great hook: Much like other social video platforms, user attention is highly valuable. State the value proposition of your video upfront “Come along a day in my life as X” or “Let me teach you how to do Y” so people know why they should stick around.
  • Keep an eye on top trends, sounds and hashtags: If you want to reach more people, you need to stay ahead of the trends. Monitor popular sounds, hashtags, and topics to see what’s hot right now. But remember that trends should only inform your strategy and not influence it.
  • Engage with viewers: Use the comment section and YouTube’s Community feature to engage with viewers beyond uploads and build a loyal following. You can also use it to get their feedback on your content and improve.
  • Analyse your performance: It’s essential to track what’s working and what isn’t so you can make better decisions for future content. Keep a watchful eye on these metrics and use them to inform your strategy moving forward.

YouTube Shorts is a great channel to adopt into your content creation process

With Shorts, you can dip your toes in the YouTube pool and start growing equity on the platform without having to create long-form content. Consider adopting it into your existing content creation to take advantage of the new audience on the growing channel.

Feature image credit: Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash

By Tamilore Oladipo

Sourced from Buffer

 

By Forrester

B2B marketing leaders face a harsh reality: Buyers aren’t searching for information the way they used to, but most marketing teams are optimizing as if they are.

Even as organic traffic declines, many teams continue to rely on outdated digital marketing playbooks to plan, publish, and measure content. These habits are hard to break. They’re reinforced by legacy KPIs, familiar workflows, and pressure to show immediate results. Marketers still chase keyword rankings, obsess about page views, and anchor reporting in click-based behaviours, even as genAI redefines how search works and how buyers discover and trust information.

Your Buyers’ Search Behaviour Has Changed

Search used to be straightforward: A buyer typed in a query, scanned a results page, and clicked through to vendor content. But that linear search-to-click path is done. Today, buyers ask questions in natural language and get instant, AI-curated answers. According to Forrester’s Buyers’ Journey Survey, 2024, 89% of B2B buyers say they’re using genAI tools at every stage of the purchase process. They consult genAI tools such as Perplexity, ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, often on mobile devices or embedded in enterprise software, to accelerate how they learn and evaluate solutions. They gather insights from multiple self-guided sources, including genAI tools, vendor websites, social media platforms, user review websites, industry events, and industry or business association websites.

The Risks Of Sticking With An Outdated Content Strategy

Holding on to yesterday’s content strategy doesn’t just slow you down. It actively undermines your visibility, credibility, and influence with modern B2B buyers because even high-quality content is getting filtered, summarized, or skipped entirely. Here’s what’s at stake:

  • You’ll lose visibility where it matters most. Search is no longer about pages and rankings. Instead, it requires presence in AI-curated responses. If your content isn’t crawlable or structured in a way that AI systems can interpret, you’re not in the conversation. Outdated SEO tactics such as keyword stuffing, backlink chasing, or producing thin “thought leadership” don’t work when large language models and AI search tools prioritize content that’s well structured, contextually relevant, and authoritative.
  • You’ll miss the chance to demonstrate expertise. If your content lacks depth, nuance, or proof of expertise, it gets filtered out or flattened into generic responses. That means your unique point of view gets lost, a missed opportunity to educate buyers, differentiate your brand, and establish credibility.
  • You’ll stay out of sync with buyer expectations. Today’s buyers are more informed and sceptical than ever. They expect content that helps them understand complex problems, compare solutions, and build internal consensus. A content strategy built only to support lead capture and gated assets is out of step with how modern buyers evaluate solutions. It creates friction in the buying process, costing you visibility, slowing pipeline, and putting revenue at risk.

Content Visibility Has New Rules And Higher Stakes

Today’s buyers are gathering insights in more places before they reach your site. To stay visible and credible, your content must meet them where they are, earn their trust quickly, and reflect the depth of expertise that they expect. This means moving beyond keywords and building content around buyer intent, clear answers, and proof of authority. Every asset should reinforce your relevance and readiness — because if your content isn’t built to be recognized by AI and respected by buyers, it won’t show up where decisions are made.

Feature image credit: Forrester

This post was written by Principal Analyst Lisa Gately and it originally appeared here.

By Forrester

Sourced from Forbes

Acquia DAM (Widen) Open Mic article

Your e-commerce content strategy needs to include a great deal of rich media production to meet the rise in demand for digital content

It’s not just a nice to have, either. According to Forrester, nearly one in five (18%) US online adults returned an item bought online because the description was inaccurate.

That means your rich media has to be integrated with accurate product information or it’s going to cost you. For B2C retailers, Forrester reports that each return averages $10 and for B2B sellers, the expense and logistics of returns can be overwhelming. To avoid these costs and deliver relevant product content at scale, you need an integrated approach to product information management (PIM) and digital asset management (DAM).

With the right PIM and DAM software implementation, you can lower the cost of content delivery and eliminate many highly-manual and ineffective processes. This Forrester report walks you through how an integrated PIM+DAM strategy can help you use rich media and product content to create engaging commerce experiences: “PIM And DAM Are The Power Couple For Your Content Strategy”.

Read on for highlights and download your full Forrester report at the end.

Digital channels demand rich media content

Traditional product information doesn’t cut it anymore. Customers expect product videos, product spins, and highly-relevant product content to help them make their purchasing decisions. If you’re a product marketer, that means you need a wide range of rich media to stand out on the digital shelf.

High-resolution images, lifestyle photography, and realistic 3D overlays are some other forms of expected content these days. The more complicated and expensive the product, the richer the content needs to be. And, you need to think outside of your product detail page and produce rich media for all your touchpoints.

Storing and managing such a large amount of content that’s labelled and contextualised for your whole customer journey is no easy task. But, with the right DAM solution in place and organised metadata you’ve got the foundation to create relevant customer experiences and drive higher growth.

Now, you just need to find a way to connect your rich media with all your other product content and data.

Don’t let roles and silos get in the way

Do you organise your product attributes, images, copy, and rich media assets in separate tools? If you said yes, you’re not alone. Many companies manage these across many tools, and that’s OK. The goal isn’t to use one system for everything, it’s to minimise complexity and harmonise your data across teams and systems.

At the minimum, you’re going to need PIM and DAM solutions to layer your rich media with the right product data. DAM systems typically fall in the domain of the marketing team while PIM platforms are managed by digital, commerce, or IT teams. You’ll also have to consider and differentiate between content management systems (CMS), order management systems, and master data management (MDM) tools.

All of that gets confusing quickly, so it’s important to clearly define who owns your PIM platform, what data it’s responsible for, and how it interfaces with your DAM system. That way you control what product data gets matched with your rich media and made available to your customers.

With your PIM tool clearly defined and working together with your DAM system, you can start to create the kinds of content-rich experiences your customers expect.

PIM and DAM are better together

If you want your products to stand out on digital shelves, you’ve got to outline an integrated PIM and DAM approach. Make sure to put the key moments in your customer journey at the centre of your strategy. From there, you can determine the kind of rich media you need to deliver for the customer experience.

Do you need more videos? Do your most expensive products need more high-resolution photos? Whatever your content strategy calls for, there’s an integrated approach to PIM and DAM that can support it. Some DAM tools provide a few PIM features and vice versa so you’ll need to spend some time finding the right combination.

With the right tools, you’ll be able to streamline your content creation process, bolster content reuse across channels, and deliver content-rich experiences that drive conversions. Read this Forrester report to learn how an integrated PIM and DAM strategy can help you use rich media and product information to create engaging commerce experiences: “PIM And DAM Are The Power Couple For Your Content Strategy”.

Sourced from The Drum

By Ian Shepherd,

The idea of content creators launching consumer products has become one of the hottest trends in the modern economy. But despite the surge of creator-founded brands, many fall flat. Some creators with millions of followers can’t sell five T-shirts, while others with niche audiences launch million-dollar brands. What separates the standouts from the stalled? Through conversations with some of the top operators in creator commerce, here are the key steps to doing it right and the common traps to avoid.

1. It’s Not About Audience Size, It’s About Audience Fit

As Charles Haynes, founder of Ziggurat, puts it, “If someone can’t convert their audience to an ad or to a live event, it’s unlikely that a product is going to fix that.” He adds, “If they have a very diverse demographic… they’re likely to find it more difficult to sell a product.”

Miles Sellyn of Rare Days echoes this: “The smaller the niche, the smaller the audience needs to be. We’ve worked with creators who have a hundred thousand followers who have built $10 million businesses.”

2. The Product Must Be the Right Product, Not Just a Product

The creators who succeed often start from a clear point of view. Haynes shares, “The best creators are those that have a really strong vision… When someone comes saying ‘I want to do a product, I don’t know what,’ that’s normally a poor indication.”

Product ideas shouldn’t just be imposed from the outside. At Warren James, Saurabh Shah and his team help creators dive deep into their own communities. “We’ll use AI to understand what themes people are picking up on,” he says. “We want each collection to tell some kind of story and be connected to the content.”

3. Validate Early and Often

Charles Haynes advises starting small: “If you have not produced a product before and you are a relatively small creator, then pre-order or a Kickstarter style project is probably the most sensible.”

“We’ll create surveys or smaller focus groups,” explains Sellyn. “Particularly for more software-oriented products, we create what we call ‘feature vignettes’—low-fidelity visualizations to test interest.”

4. Deeply Involve the Creator

The best launches have creators who are part of the process from day one. With 1UP Candy, co-founder Michael Schenker recalls, “We brought about 30 different types of innovations… and we all sat down with Brian (FaZe Rug). From day one, he was very involved.”

Chris Koch adds, “We expect our co-founder talent to join buyer meetings, attend retail locations and develop content around product drops. It’s a mixture of social and real-world engagement.”

5. Plan the Launch Like a Campaign

Warren James takes go-to-market seriously. Shah describes, “We’ll lay out the two weeks leading up to the launch, during the launch, and after. We coordinate emails, SMS, website experience and viral moments.”

This is a far cry from the old model of “drop a merch link and hope.” Today, creators who win are executing full brand strategies.

6. Secure the Brand Experience

One of the subtler signals that sets serious product launches apart is brand consistency, especially when it comes to where and how you’re selling. Choosing a dedicated, relevant domain name helps set the tone.

Using a domain like a .store extension, for example, can immediately communicate to audiences that this is a place to shop. It tells your community: “This is where my products live. This is where you can support me.”

It’s a small detail, but like great packaging or naming, it reinforces the message that this is a legitimate business.

The Future Belongs to Thoughtful Builders

What separates a creator-led brand that scales from one that stumbles? Intentionality, audience fit, product-market resonance, deep involvement and infrastructure that signals ownership.

As Charles Haynes reminds us, “No one’s a gatekeeper to these products being launched.” The tools are there. The question is: will creators treat this like a business, or just a side hustle?

The ones who do it right already know the answer.

Feature image credit: Getty

By Ian Shepherd,

Find Ian Shepherd on LinkedIn and X. Visit Ian’s website.

Sourced from Forbes

Sourced from Earth’s Attractions

I am a travel blogger, but my background is public relations and communications and I can say, without a doubt, that email marketing is one of the most effective ways to connect with your audience, build relationships, and increase engagement on your blog/business.

In fact, email marketing can have a major impact on your blog’s growth – you may increase your traffic and make more money using it. So this article will be focused more on the business and marketing side of a travel blog.

Here are five ways email marketing can transform your travel blog – and some tips from my business experience that can help make this process seamless and effective.

1. Building a Stronger Relationship with Your Audience

What I love most about email marketing is that it is one of the best ways to build deeper connections with your readers. Instead of relying solely on social media or blog posts, email allows you to communicate directly with your audience.

With personalized content and tailored offers, you can make your readers feel special and appreciated. By regularly sending out newsletters with curated travel tips, destination guides, or exclusive deals, you’re fostering loyalty and encouraging return visits to your blog.

I remember that the scariest thing for me, when thinking of launching my first newsletter, for another site I have, was to design it. It was indeed far more complicated back in the day! Now, platforms like Mailrelay offer an intuitive editor with artificial intelligence capabilities that help you craft the perfect email. Moreover, whether you’re writing about your latest adventure or offering travel discounts, Mailrelay ensures that your emails are not only eye-catching but also that they have a great deliverability.

Another issue I had when I launched my first newsletter was the cost-related one. I was looking for a free option – to be able to increase my site views and to make money so I could start investing. Mailrelay has the best option for a free account, as you can send up to 80 000 emails monthly to maximum 20 000 subscribers. And they support this community-building effort by providing 100% expert support for all accounts, including free ones. This ensures that your email campaigns run smoothly, allowing you to focus on what matters most, and that is connecting with your readers.

2. Boosting Traffic with Targeted Campaigns

When you create an email list, you’re building an audience of people who are already interested in your content.

You might tell me that a travel blogger is a travel blogger – and I would add that some visit museums while others do not; some travel with a family, while others travel solo or with a pet; some go to big cities, while others prefer beaches or remote destinations. And the list of differences between travel bloggers can go on and on.

So as each travel blogger is different, people – the readers – have also different preferences. So you will attract the people who resonate with you and your traveling style.

But maybe, like me, you address different people. I travelled with our dog, while she was with us. I travelled a bit solo. I travelled with my husband, and now we travel as a family with our (now) teenage son.

I love visiting famous attractions – but I go a bit off-the-beaten-path too. We love amusement parks and I love museums and palaces! And I share it all on my blog.

But I know I have some readers who are interested in only some destinations or type of traveling that I am doing and sharing. And I know that with newsletters, I can use segmentations and create different newsletters, tailored to different preferences – at least Mailrelay has this option of segmentation available. And with the complete email analytics, you can see exactly which emails are more successful, which links are clicked, and what articles and topics are preferred by the readers.

3. Monetizing Your Blog through Email Campaigns

Monetization is a key goal for many bloggers – it was and is for me too -, and email marketing is an excellent tool to help you achieve that. Whether you’re promoting affiliate products, selling your own travel guides, or offering paid partnerships with travel brands, email campaigns allow you to directly reach your audience with personalized offers.

Since email marketing delivers a high return on investment (ROI), it’s a great way to start earning from your travel blog. For instance, Mailrelay’s robust tools for email marketing also include API integration and SMTP services, allowing you to manage large-scale email campaigns without any technical headaches. This is especially useful if you plan to scale your efforts and want to ensure your email campaigns reach as many readers as possible while tracking their performance through detailed analytics.

4. Building a Loyal Community of Readers

In the world of blogging, building a community of loyal followers is key to long-term success. With email marketing, you have a direct line to your readers. Sending regular updates, helpful tips, or even behind-the-scenes content can make your readers feel like they’re part of your journey. This sense of community is what keeps people coming back to your blog time and time again.

5. Increasing Your Email Deliverability and Engagement

No matter how well-crafted your email is, if it doesn’t reach your audience, it’s all for nothing. Fortunately, with email marketing, you can ensure that your emails actually land in your readers’ inboxes. You have to choose a platform that offers great deliverability and does not let your emails get into spam. (I had this issue in the past with a platform I used.)

My conclusion

I’ve used email marketing for this blog too. But when I had a personal health issue, I stopped sending emails. And yes, I saw the downsides in traffic and earnings.

I should correct this because I know I have a lot of great content that is slipping through the cracks and is not getting the views it deserves.

Even if I did not send an email in a while, I still recommend this tactic as being one of the best to increase traffic, generate loyal readers, and to make money. Make sure to use a tool that offers an easy-to-use platform, AI-powered features, and strong deliverability – Mailrelay is a great option. By using the right tools and crafting engaging campaigns, I’ve been able to take my travel blog to the next level, and I plan to do it again!

Photo source: https://www.pexels.com/ro-ro/fotografie/persoana-om-femeie-laptop-4458329/

Sourced from Earth’s Attractions

By 

I write about AI for a living — here’s 4 questions I ask ChatGPT after every prompt

As we collectively get better at creating prompts for ChatGPT, knowing what kind of follow-up questions we should be asking is another skill that comes in handy.

During intense debates I’ve had with ChatGPT, there are four questions I keep finding myself asking as I try to wrestle the truth out of the chatbot. They work great during deep-dive discussions, but they’re also easy to reformulate on the fly to pair with shorter prompts.

In this article, I’ll walk through those four questions, explain why I use them, and show how they can help you get more thoughtful, accurate answers from ChatGPT.

Why I use these questions

I like this set of four questions because they cover different bases. That includes making sure all the information discussed is accurate, and that both ChatGPT and I have considered other possible approaches to tackle the issue at hand.

The first question is very easy to remember — it’s just three words long — but the rest aren’t too hard to grasp either. All are equally helpful, as they consider different aspects of your prompts, so it’s worth trying them all.

1. Double-checking

If I’m completing a particularly important task or if my gut feeling tells me that something about ChatGPT’s answer might be off, I simply ask it if it’s sure about its response.

As tools like ChatGPT keep on improving every week, it becomes less and less likely to make an error that should have been easily avoidable. But it’s self-corrected itself often enough for me to keep this question ready in my back pocket.

Even if ChatGPT’s original answer was correct in the first place, asking for its work to be rechecked often leads the chatbot to reformulate its response in a way that may help you understand it better.

The three magic words I ask ChatGPT after my prompts are: Are you sure?

2. The missing link

Since ChatGPT became so efficient at replying to our questions, it’s easy to stick to the first answer you get and skip having deeper conversations about the topic you’re interested in. It’s hard to know what you don’t know, but this is where ChatGPT can come in.

Aside from helping us discover our blind spots in general, ChatGPT can also help us see whether there’s anything we’re missing in the prompts we’re producing.

In your next conversation with ChatGPT, try asking: Is there something about this topic that I’m not considering or is there a key element that I’m missing?

3. What do you need?

This question flips the perspective of the one before it. While we can ask ChatGPT to help us consider views we may have been overlooking, we can also ask whether there’s any information we can provide from our end to help it form a more complete picture of the problem we’re trying to solve.

Maybe there’s a manual we can upload or a recent scientific breakthrough with implications for our field – if it’s not widely known, there’s a chance ChatGPT may not have picked it up.

An easy way to solve this, after you’ve presented your main question to ChatGPT, is to ask: Is there any additional information or context I can provide which can help to enhance your response?

4. Who else believes this?

I write about AI for a living and am a big believer of the value it can bring. Still, I do appreciate and respect ChatGPT’s advice even more if I know it’s based on a solid source. As AI slop on the internet becomes harder to wade through, information that’s demonstrably helpful in real life becomes more precious.

Let’s say you’re asking ChatGPT for help to create a business plan for your side-hustle. Left to its own devices I’m sure it will come up with intriguing thoughts. But wouldn’t you be curious to know which of the strategies were ones successful entrepreneurs supported?

After you’ve received advice from ChatGPT, find out if there’s any real-world truth to it. I would use the prompt: Which world leader, notable figure, or CEO gave similar advice or would support such a plan?

So if you’ve been asking ChatGPT for help to run your lemonade stand, this extra question (which you’re free to steal) could help you discover what someone like Mark Cuban believes about starting small.

Feature image credit: Shutterstock

By 

Sourced from tom’s guide

By Chris Bayer

Smarter TV operating systems bring added convenience, but they also raise fresh privacy concerns – especially when it comes to automatic content recognition (ACR).

Did you know that whenever you turn on your smart TV, you invite an unseen guest to watch it with you?

These days, most popular TV models utilize automatic content recognition (ACR), a form of ad surveillance technology that gathers information about everything you watch and transmits it to a centralized database. Manufacturers then use your data to identify your viewing preferences, enabling them to deliver highly targeted ads.

What’s the incentive behind this invasive technology? According to market research firm eMarketer, in 2022, advertisers spent an estimated $18.6 billion on smart TV ads, and those numbers are only going up.

To understand how ACR works, imagine a constant, real-time Shazam-like service running in the background while your TV is on. It identifies content displayed on your screen, including programs from cable TV boxes, streaming services, or gaming consoles. ACR does this by capturing continuous screenshots and cross-referencing them with a vast database of media content and advertisements.

According to The Markup, ACR can capture and identify up to 7,200 images per hour, or approximately two images every second. This extensive tracking offers money-making insights for marketers and content distributors because it can reveal connections between viewers’ personal information and their preferred content. By “personal information,” I mean email addresses, IP addresses — and even your physical street address.

By understanding what viewers watch and engage with, marketers can make decisions on content recommendations to create bespoke advertising placements. They can also track advertisements that lead to purchases.

But the most disturbing part is the potential for exploitation. In the wrong hands, sensitive information gathered through ACR could be exploited or misused, which may result in security risks or, at worst, identity theft.

Because ACR operates clandestinely in the background, many of us aren’t even aware of its active presence each time we’re enjoying our favourite shows. Opting out of using ACR is complex and sometimes challenging. Navigating through your TV settings might take several dozen clicks to protect your privacy better.

If you, like me, perceive this feature to be intrusive or unsettling, there’s a way to dismiss this data collection feature on your smart TV. It might take some patience, but below is a How-To list for five major brands demonstrating how to turn off ACR.

  1. Press the Home button on your remote control.
  2. Navigate to the left to access the sidebar menu.
  3. In the sidebar menu, choose the Privacy Choices option.
  4. Select the Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy option.
  5. Ensure that the checkbox for Viewing Information Services is unchecked. This will turn off ACR and any associated ad targeting.
  6. Select the OK option at the bottom of the screen to confirm your changes.
  1. Press the Home button on your remote control to access the home screen.
  2. Press the Settings button on your remote.
  3. In the settings side menu, select the Settings option.
  4. Navigate to and select the General option.
  5. In the General menu, choose System.
  6. Select Additional Settings.
  7. In Additional Settings, locate and toggle off the Live Plus option.

LG further allows you to limit ad tracking, which can be found in Additional Settings.

  1. In the Additional Settings menu, select Advertisement.
  2. Toggle on the Limit AD Tracking option.

You can also turn off home promotions and content recommendations:

  1. In the Additional Settings menu, select Home Settings.
  2. Uncheck the Home Promotion option.
  3. Uncheck the Content Recommendation option.
  1. Press the Home button on your remote control to access the main menu.
  2. Navigate to and select Settings.
  3. Choose Initial Setup.
  4. Scroll down and select Samba Interactive TV.
  5. Select Disable to turn off Samba TV, which is Sony’s ACR technology.

Sony also allows for enhanced privacy by disabling ad personalization:

  1. Go to Settings.
  2. Select About.
  3. Choose Ads.
  4. Turn off Ads Personalization.

As an extra step, you can entirely disable the Samba Services Manager, which is embedded in the firmware of certain Sony Bravia TVs as a third-party interactive app.

  1. Go to Settings.
  2. Select Apps.
  3. Select Samba Services Manager.
  4. Choose Clear Cache.
  5. Select Force Stop.
  6. Finally, select Disable.

If your Sony TV uses Android TV, you should also turn off data collection for Chromecast:

  1. Open the Google Home app on your smartphone.
  2. Tap the Menu icon.
  3. Select your TV from the list of devices.
  4. Tap the three dots in the upper right corner.
  5. Choose Settings.
  6. Turn off Send Chromecast device usage data and crash reports.
  1. Press the Home button on your remote control to access the main menu.
  2. Navigate to and select Settings.
  3. Choose System.
  4. Select Privacy.
  5. Look for an option called Smart TV ExperienceViewing Information Services, or something similar.
  6. Toggle this option off to disable ACR.

To disable personalized ads and opt out of content recommendations:

  1. In the Privacy menu, look for an option like Ad Tracking or Interest-Based Ads.
  2. Turn this option off.
  3. Look for options related to content recommendations or personalized content.
  4. Disable these features if you don’t want the TV to suggest content based on your viewing habits.
  1. Press the Home button on your TCL TV remote control.
  2. Navigate to and select Settings in the main menu.
  3. Scroll down and select the Privacy option.
  4. Look for Smart TV Experience and select it.
  5. Uncheck or toggle off the option labeled Use Info from TV Inputs.

For extra privacy, TCL TVs offer a few more options, all of which can be found in the Privacy menu:

  1. Select Advertising.
  2. Choose Limit ad tracking.
  3. Again, select Advertising.
  4. Uncheck Personalized ads.
  5. Now, still in the Privacy menu, select Microphone.
  6. Adjust Channel Microphone Access and Channel Permissions as desired.

Remember that while these steps will significantly reduce data collection, they may also limit some smart features of your TV. Also, it’s a good idea to periodically check these settings to ensure they remain as you’ve set them. Especially after software updates, your revised settings may sometimes revert to their default state.

The driving force behind targeted advertisements on smart TVs is ACR technology, and its inclusion speaks volumes about manufacturers’ focus on monetizing user data rather than prioritizing consumer interests.

For most of us, ACR offers few tangible benefits, while the real-time sharing of our viewing habits and preferences exposes us to potential privacy risks. By disabling ACR, you can help keep your data to yourself, and enjoy viewing with some peace of mind.

Feature image credit: Kerry Wan/ZDNET

By Chris Bayer

Sourced from ZDNET

By 

The best celebrity brands aren’t just a cheap cash-in; they’re world-conquering businesses that have a lot to teach anyone working in branding and design.

Remember when celebrity endorsements meant awkward TV ads with stars clutching products they’d probably never use? Those days are long gone.

Today’s star entrepreneurs aren’t just lending their names to existing products; they’re building real brands from scratch, and some are absolutely smashing it (in line with the best rebrands).

Feature Image Credit: Honest

By 

Tom May is an award-winning journalist and author specialising in design, photography and technology. His latest book, The 50th Greatest Designers, was released in June 2025. He’s also author of the Amazon #1 bestseller Great TED Talks: Creativity, published by Pavilion Books, Tom was previously editor of Professional Photography magazine, associate editor at Creative Bloq, and deputy editor at net magazine.

Sourced from CREATIVE BLOQ

By Jodie Cook,

Your biggest failure is sitting there, waiting to become your greatest asset. Most people let setbacks crush them, replaying the pain on repeat while missing the hidden power of learning from them. They stay stuck in yesterday’s story when tomorrow’s breakthrough is one decision away. What if that failure was exactly what you needed to reach your next level?

Transform every setback into rocket fuel for your comeback. Quit playing small. Copy, paste and edit the square brackets in ChatGPT, and keep the same chat window open so the context carries through.

Turn setbacks into comebacks: ChatGPT prompts for growth

Find peace with what happened

Fighting reality is exhausting. And pointless. You can’t change what already happened, but you can change what it means. Peace comes from looking at the facts without the drama. See your role in the failure without any shame. Accept the lesson without creating a narrative, at least at first. Resistance keeps you stuck, acceptance sets you free. This is where your comeback begins.

“Based on what you know about me and my recent challenges [describe], help me find peace with what happened. Ask me three specific questions about the situation to understand it better. Then guide me through separating facts from emotions. Create a brief acceptance statement I can use when my mind starts replaying the failure. End with one action I can take today to move from resistance to acceptance.”

Be open to the possibility for growth

Every setback carries hints of something better. But only if you look. When you’re drowning in loss, you miss the lessons. When shame runs the show, you can’t see the strength you’re building. Flip the script. What skills did this teach you? What resilience are you developing? Your comeback requires you to get curious about what’s possible now.

“I want to see growth opportunities in my recent setback. Based on our previous discussions, identify three potential areas where this experience could lead to unexpected growth. For each area, ask me a question that helps me see possibilities I might be missing. Then suggest one small experiment I could try this week to explore each growth area.”

Find the story

You’re not a victim who life happens to. You’re the hero of your own life. Every comeback story worth telling has the same arc. You faced the dragon and lost. But you survived. You learned its secrets. You came back stronger and slayed it. This narrative becomes your superpower. Own it and you inspire others. Share it and you heal yourself. Make your mess your message in a tasteful way.

“Help me find the powerful story within my setback. Based on what you know about my situation, guide me through crafting my comeback narrative. Ask me about the moment I decided to fight back, the first small win I achieved, and who I’m becoming through this process. Then help me write a compelling three-sentence version of my story that I could share when asked about this experience.”

Write up the lessons

Your brain wants to forget pain. But lessons vanish if you don’t capture them. Don’t erase the wisdom. Document failures like a scientist studying breakthrough data. What worked? What didn’t? What would you do differently? These insights become your playbook for future success.

“Based on our conversation about my setback, help me extract and document the key lessons. Ask me what I learned about myself, about others, and about the situation. Then create a ‘lessons learned’ document with five specific insights I can apply going forward. For each lesson, include a concrete action or decision rule to prevent similar issues. Ask for more detail if required.”

Plan your comeback

Most people wait for motivation that never arrives. They think time heals everything. Wrong. Comebacks happen through calculated moves. Small wins build momentum. Clear goals create direction. New daily habits build your new identity. Stop waiting for perfect conditions. Don’t hope without a strategy. Start building your empire from the ashes.

“Now that we’ve processed my setback and found the lessons, help me create a comeback plan. Based on everything you know about my situation and goals, design a 90-day comeback strategy. Include three specific milestones, five daily actions that rebuild my confidence, and one bold move I should make in the next 30 days. Make it ambitious but achievable.”

Transform every failure into fuel for your success with ChatGPT

Setbacks don’t define you. Comebacks do. Find peace with reality and open your mind to hidden opportunities. Discover the hero story waiting inside your struggle. Capture every lesson before it disappears. Build your comeback strategy starting now. Your biggest failure holds the blueprint for your greatest success, and you know it’s true. Your future self will be grateful it happened.

Feature Image Credit: Getty

By Jodie Cook,

Find Jodie Cook on LinkedIn. Visit Jodie’s website.

Sourced from Forbes