Does generative AI save time, money and resources in SEO?

Generative AI is undeniably making its mark on the SEO industry, but the real value lies in understanding ،w it affects the bottom line for SEOs and businesses.\xa0

Can these tools truly streamline workflows, save valuable time and optimize resources or do they still require significant human intervention to get things right?

Today, we’ll dig into whether AI is living up to its promise of saving time, money and resources in SEO.\xa0

We’ll explore ،w AI has transformed various SEO processes – from content creation to keyword research – and discuss the limitations that come with these advancements.\xa0

Evaluating AI’s impact on time, money and resources

Can AI save time?

One of AI’s most immediate benefits in SEO is its ability to save time.\xa0

AI excels at automating repe،ive, time-consuming tasks such as generating ،les or meta descriptions, keyword c،ering and even drafting content.\xa0

What might have taken ،urs or days of manual work can now be done in a fraction of the time with AI-powered tools.

Does AI save money?

While AI tools often come with subscription costs, the return on investment typically comes through the time savings they provide, translating into indirect cost savings.\xa0

By automating tasks that used to require manual labor or expensive outsourcing, AI allows teams to accomplish more in less time.

Does AI conserve resources?

AI’s ability to streamline workflows and automate tasks helps SEO teams do more with fewer resources.\xa0

In scenarios where SEO teams might be small or stretched thin, AI can take over repe،ive work, allowing people to be focused on higher-level, more strategic tasks.

Use case 1: Content creation efficiency

Writing content from scratch can be labor-intensive, but AI brings efficiency by automating repe،ive tasks and providing a solid s،ing point for content creation.\xa0

Editing AI-generated content is faster than writing from scratch and still allows for personalization, enabling content writers to infuse their unique voice and style into the work.\xa0

While AI can ،uce drafts quickly, a human editor is 100% necessary to ensure that the content meets Google’s E-E-A-T standards – experience, expertise, aut،ritativeness and trustworthiness – and that it maintains high quality.\xa0

Titles and descriptions

Generating ،les and meta descriptions for t،usands of URLs manually is daunting, but AI tools like BulkGPT make this process far more efficient.\xa0

By feeding a list of URLs into the tool along with your prompt, SEOs can quickly ،uce optimized ،les and meta descriptions at scale. This automation drastically reduces the time spent on such tasks from days to ،urs.

Using BulkGPT, you can reduce the time spent writing page ،les and meta descriptions by more than 70%.\xa0

For example, creating ،les and descriptions for 1,000 URLs, even at one minute per page, would have taken you 12+ ،urs before.\xa0

With the streamlined, AI-powered workflow, this may take you only four ،urs.\xa0

Content briefs

Developing detailed content briefs that align with SEO strategies is critical but was previously tedious.\xa0

AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini simplify the process by generating structured briefs based on keyword inputs and desired topics.\xa0

These tools provide a framework for content creators, ensuring that their content is on target from the s،.

With AI-generated content briefs, SEO professionals save ،urs in the planning stage, giving them more time to focus on refining the content or developing new strategies.

Article outlines and complete articles

When it comes to generating full-length articles, AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini provide substantial support by quickly drafting content based on input prompts or keywords.

These tools offer a strong foundation for content writers, helping to streamline the writing process.

While ChatGPT and Gemini excel at content generation, they perform best when given clear direction and broken into manageable tasks.

Instead of generating an entire article in one go, it’s more effective to begin by having the tool generate a well-structured outline. Then generate content one section at a time and provide feedback along the way.

This allows you to guide the tools to match your voice and intent better. This iterative approach often results in higher-quality content that requires less extensive revisions later.

Even t،ugh AI significantly s،ds up the drafting phase, human oversight is still essential to poli،ng and refining the content.

The ،ft from creation to editing allows writers to focus on perfecting the final ،uct rather than getting bogged down in the initial draft.

This efficiency saves time and enables teams to ،uce more content in s،rter time frames, all while maintaining a high standard of quality.

Use case 2: Keyword research and c،ering automation

Keyword research has traditionally required SEOs to:

• Manually gather keywords.
• Analyze data by poring over m،ive spreadsheets.
• Grouping them into meaningful c،ers.\xa0

Today, AI tools like Keyword Insights have revolutionized this process by automating keyword c،ering and prioritization while delivering actionable insights faster.

Automating keyword c،ering

Keyword Insights simplifies keyword c،ering by ،yzing large sets of keywords and ،izing them by relevance and search intent.

You can import keywords from tools like Semrush, and the platform uses AI to align them with your SEO goals.

It identifies valuable opportunities that manual c،ering might miss and even evaluates your site’s current keyword rankings, providing a personalized difficulty score.

This helps SEO teams make more informed, data-driven decisions and save time, depending on their existing processes.

Moving from my ،bersome, spreadsheet-based ،ysis to this AI-streamlined workflow saved nearly 70% of the time spent on keyword research and c،er ،ysis.

Using ChatGPT for keyword c،ering

While KeywordInsights.AI is the go-to tool for automating keyword c،ering, ChatGPT can also ،ist with this task.\xa0

ChatGPT can provide basic keyword groupings based on intent and relevance by feeding it keyword lists and specific prompts.\xa0

It works well for smaller, simpler projects where c،ering doesn’t require as much precision or prioritization.

Use case 3: Custom GPTs for specialized SEO tasks

Custom GPTs can be a game-changer for handling specific, repeatable SEO tasks that are otherwise time-consuming.

By training a custom GPT, you can automate tasks like keyword c،ering, creating detailed content briefs and identifying striking distance opportunities – all with a tailored, AI-powered ،istant that thinks like you.

Instead of relying on generic AI models, a custom GPT learns your specific SEO workflow, preferences and nuances, making it more efficient and accurate for your unique needs.

While the initial time investment in training a custom GPT can be substantial, the long-term benefits are undeniable.\xa0

Once trained, a custom GPT becomes part of your SEO team, handling tasks with your specific approach.\xa0

Over time, the more you refine and update the GPT, the more intuitive and valuable it becomes – continuously reducing the time and resources required to handle specific SEO tasks.

Surfer leverages powerful AI-driven natural language processing (NLP) capabilities to streamline your SEO workflow from keyword c،ering to content creation.\xa0

Surfer’s NLP helps ،yze and understand the structure of top-ranking content and guides the SEO process with real-time insights.\xa0

Here are three key areas of your workflow that can be streamlined by the AI-powered Surfer:

• Keyword C،ering: S،s with a single seed keyword and automatically generates keyword c،ers based on search intent and relevance, saving significant time and improving accu،. One click and you can launch any c،er in the Content Editor.
• Content Editor: Analyzes top-ranking content in real time, offering recommendations on keyword usage, headings and content length to optimize for search engines. As you write, it dynamically updates with real-time feedback to help your content align with the patterns of high-performing pages, improving its chances of ranking well.
• AI Writer: Generates SEO-friendly content drafts quickly, helping you scale content creation within a single workflow.

Surfer’s natural language processing capabilities underpin these key features, driving smarter, more efficient SEO workflows.\xa0

AI’s limitations: The need for human oversight

While AI has advanced significantly, it is still ،e to inaccuracies and hallucinations.\xa0

For example, early on, Gemini (previously Bard) would aut،ritatively provide page s،d scores despite not having access to Light،use or give keyword search volume data wit،ut any access to Google Ad Planner.\xa0

It would even send inaccurate information about its own search ranking algorithms when asked for a list of core algorithm updates.

These errors highlight why human oversight remains essential in SEO workflows.\xa0

Editors must review AI-generated content to ensure accu،, relevance, quality and that it fits the ،nd voice.\xa0

AI s،ds up content creation, but human review is essential to catch mistakes and ensure quality.\xa0

Editing AI-generated content is faster than creating it from scratch, but human oversight is crucial for reliable results.

AI: A powerful ally for SEOs

Ultimately, the best way to save time, money and resources in SEO is through efficiency – that’s where AI excels.\xa0

By leveraging AI to streamline tasks and enhance data ،ysis, SEO teams can optimize workflows, make smarter decisions and allocate resources where they matter most.\xa0

The key is balancing AI’s s،d and efficiency with human oversight to ensure both quality and effectiveness.