Like many of you, I recently enjoyed reading The Financial Brand’s “Why authenticity in bank marketing beats empty polish in 2026.” A key insight from the article? “Consumers have grown exhausted with AI-generated content that lacks soul. Online mentions of “slop”, describing lazy, generic marketing, surged 200% in 2025 as audiences rejected anything that felt synthetic. The upshot? Bank marketers must now compete in an environment where brand success hinges not on polish but on authenticity.”
I thought, what would AI say in its defense? So I asked. Here’s what he/she said:
“First, AI improves relevance. It can help marketers identify patterns and insights that would be difficult to uncover manually—such as when a customer might be considering a mortgage, preparing for retirement, or managing rising debt. These insights enable banks to deliver messaging that aligns with real financial moments, rather than relying on one-size-fits-all campaigns.
Second, AI increases speed and consistency. Marketing teams can use AI to draft emails, social posts, landing page copy, or FAQs faster, allowing them to respond more quickly to market changes, rate updates, or customer concerns.
Third, AI helps reduce internal strain. By automating first drafts and content variations, AI frees marketing teams to focus on strategy, storytelling, and relationship-building—the areas where human expertise matters most.”
Well, all of that is true, I think. So, just for fun I went back to the “key insight” of the article, that “consumers have grown exhausted with AI-generated content that lacks soul. Online mentions of “slop”, describing lazy, generic marketing, surged 200% in 2025 as audiences rejected anything that felt synthetic.”
How can consumers tell the difference, I wondered. Can they, really? Again, I asked AI what he/she thought on the matter with this prompt: “How can a reader tell the difference between content created by a human being and AI generated content?” Here’s what I got, and while it’s a bit lengthy (ChatGPT loves to chat!?), I found it worth the read:
“Great question — and a very timely one. Short answer: you usually can’t tell with certainty, but there are strong signals that often give AI-generated content away. The real difference shows up less in grammar and more in judgment, specificity, and humanity.
1. Specificity vs. Generalization
Human-written content tends to: Reference specific experiences, places, people, or decisions, include nuanced examples that feel lived-in, make selective choices about what not to say
AI-generated content often: Stays high-level and broadly applicable, uses examples that feel interchangeable, avoids sharp opinions or concrete stakes
If you think, “This could apply to literally any bank, any industry, any year” — that’s a red flag.
2. Point of View and Judgment
Humans: Take a stance, acknowledge tradeoffs, show imperfect reasoning or tension (“This works, but only if…”)
AI content often: Sounds confident but neutral, rarely admits uncertainty unless prompted, lists pros and cons without prioritizing or committing
Strong human writing makes decisions. AI writing often summarizes possibilities.
3. Voice Consistency and Personality
Human content usually has: A consistent tone (warm, skeptical, dry, opinionated), subtle humor, irony, or cultural awareness, language that sounds like someone you could picture talking
AI content often: Uses polished but generic phrasing, overuses transitions (“Additionally,” “Moreover,” “In conclusion”), sounds smooth but emotionally flat
If the voice feels pleasant but anonymous, it may be AI-assisted.
4. Emotional Truth
Humans write from emotional context: Frustration, pride, concern, excitement, empathy grounded in real situations, imperfect phrasing that feels honest
AI can simulate emotion, but it often: Names emotions instead of expressing them, feels performative (“Consumers are increasingly concerned…”), lacks emotional risk
Real emotion has edges. AI emotion is rounded off.
5. Original Insight vs. Pattern Recognition
AI excels at: Synthesizing existing ideas, repeating industry tropes, reflecting consensus thinking
Humans contribute: Unexpected angles, contrarian views, fresh metaphors rooted in lived experience
If the content sounds like the average of everything you’ve already read, that’s likely AI.
6. Structural “Tells”
AI writing often shows: Perfectly balanced paragraphs, predictable formatting, repetitive sentence structures
Human writing is messier: Uneven pacing, strategic emphasis, occasional rule-breaking for effect
Perfection can be a clue. (PS: this is your human writer again. I found this just a bit insulting. We humans can be perfect now and then!)
7. The “So What?” Test
Ask yourself: Does this change how I think or what I would do next?
Human content often: Pushes the reader toward a decision, offers insight you didn’t expect, feels like advice from experience
AI content often: Informs without transforming, educates without challenging, ends cleanly but safely”
The critical difference? Humans create meaning.
Is AI-generated content, whether for insights or ideation, of tremendous value to a community bank marketer? Absolutely. Does it, and will it ever, answer the consumer’s question “what’s in it for me”?
Can AI-assisted content truly strike a chord and make that emotional connection that lis so essential to effective marketing? Not at the moment, but when it comes to Artificial Intelligence, we don’t know what the future holds, do we? Then again, maybe AI can tell us!
Bank Marketing Center
We’re Bank Marketing Center, the leading subscription-based, automated marketing platform designed especially for community banks. We are presently helping the marketers at over 300 financial institutions craft and distribute topical, compelling marketing communication that builds trust in their brand, deepen customer relationships, and grow revenue.
We do this by automating the essential marketing functions banks rely upon; content creation, social media scheduling and monitoring, digital asset management, compliance routing, and more.
We also believe in sharing what we know and learn. Whether it’s insights on the latest AI tools, tips for attracting and retaining top talent, a webinar on operational efficiency, or what experts are saying about the future of banking, we’re committed to helping community banks thrive.
Want to learn more about what we do for bank marketers to help them succeed? You can start by visiting bankmarketingcenter.com. Then, feel free to contact me directly by phone at 678-528-6688 or via email at nreynolds@bankmarketingcenter.com. As always, I welcome your thoughts.