Google’s experimental conversational AI, Bard, didn’t run smoothly. The astronomical hype surrounding Open AI’s ChatGPT has undoubtedly created a sense of urgency on Google to bring its alternative to market. However, the promotional video for Bard contained misinformation that could be quickly and easily disproved.
Consumers and stakeholders were unfazed, and the blunder caused a $100 billion loss in market value for Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company.
First impressions aside, content marketers need to stay current on how Google Bard is affecting human authors — and how it could be used in marketing and SEO in the near future.
In this article, you’ll learn what Google Bard is, how it works, how it differs from other conversational AIs (ChatGPT in particular), and what Bard means for the future of content marketing.
What is Google Bard?
Google Bard is the artificial intelligence search giant’s experimental conversational service, built on its large language model LaMDA and connected to the live web.
Bard is an experimental conversational AI service powered by LaMDA. It is based on our large language models and relies on information from the Internet. It serves as a starting point for curiosity and can help simplify complex topics
Google Bard integrates Natural Language Processing (NLP) and machine learning. By understanding conversational language user queries, Google Bard can generate unique and usually accurate results. It can help users by answering questions using information from the Internet.
It’s important to note that Bard is not a search engine, nor is it intended to replace Google search. It is a feature that can improve the search experience. CNBC reported a wide-ranging meeting at Google in early March, where employees questioned the connection between Bard and Search.
Jack Krawczyk, Bard’s product manager, said, “I just want to be very clear: Bard is not a quest. It’s an experiment, which is a collaborative AI service that we talked about. The magic we discover when using the product is to be a creative companion, helping you to spark your imagination, unleash your curiosity, etc.”
Google has integrated other major language models into search, including BERT and MUM.
When first released in February 2023, Bard ran on a lightweight version of LaMDA, which according to Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, “requires significantly less processing power, which allows us to scale to more users, which allows for more feedback.” Bard is located clearly in an experimental phase and Google wants to use its extensive user and knowledge base to improve this product.
For security reasons, Bard is only available to people over the age of 18 and you need a Google account. Bard is only available in US English, but Google promises it will work in other languages too.
Google Bard vs ChatGPT
The biggest difference between Google Bard and ChatGPT is that Bard has access to all current information on the web, while ChatGPT trains on a data set up to a certain point in 2021.
Bard tells you right away that it makes mistakes. The top of the page reads, “I’m Bard, your creative and supportive collaborator. I have limitations and I don’t always manage to do everything right, but your feedback will help me to improve.” By putting this message first, users aren’t given the wrong impression that this application alone is unlimited can generate accurate data.
OpenAI’s “What is ChatGPT?” resource states, “ChatGPT is not connected to the internet and can occasionally provide incorrect answers. It has limited knowledge of the world and events after 2021 and may also occasionally produce harmful instructional or biased content.”
ChatGPT is great for developing different spellings, while Bard is specifically designed for natural language search. Bard’s AI is trained to understand conversation requests and provide relevant context in their responses. It even helps with follow-up questions.
Bard is more cautious than ChatGPT. Eli Collins, Google’s vice president of research, told the New York Times that the bot often refused to respond about certain people because it could potentially generate false information about them — a phenomenon AI researchers call “hallucination.”
Mr Collins said Google Bard also avoids offering medical, legal or financial advice because it could lead to incorrect information. This is in line with Google’s enhanced quality checks for YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) content.
Google Bard Considerations for Content Marketers
Google Bard can generate ideas for your content strategy. It can answer questions with facts or opinions. Bard generates new text every time you type a command prompt. It may even be that the same question is answered in different ways. But it alone can’t produce unique content for brands that doesn’t violate Google’s AI use policies.
According to Google, Bard can do the following:
“You can use Bard to advance your ideas. With a little help from Bard you can do things like:
- Brainstorm ideas, develop a plan, or find different ways to get things done
- Get a quick, easy-to-understand summary of more complex topics
- Create first draft sketches, emails, blog posts, poems and more.”
With this information, Google clearly defines how content marketers can use Bard. However, letting the chatbot do the creation of your content is not ideal. For example, according to Google, it can be flagged as spam because content marketers can’t alone take AI-generated content and share it online.
Content marketers must continue to fact-check, watch for bias, and carefully edit and tailor content for their unique audience. You must use these tools carefully, bearing in mind that they do not replace human intelligence or human perspective. Brands and marketers still need a robust editorial process with quality checks prior to publication.
Google Bard in practical example
Content marketers can also use Google Bard to explore and better understand the connections between topics and concepts. For example, Prabhakar Raghavan, Head of Google Search, shared some examples of how Bard could be used.
“Let’s say you’re looking for a new car that will go well with your family,” Raghavan said. “Bard can help you take into account different aspects from budget to safety and more and simplify and understand them.” For example, Bard could create a list of pros and cons of electric cars.
This is a great opportunity for content marketers to investigate what new search results and follow-ups it could generate for their audience. In Raghavan’s example of electric cars, Bard produced several electric car “pros”. These include:
- “Electric cars produce no emissions while driving, which is better for the environment than a petrol-powered car. Gasoline cars produce emissions that contribute to climate change.”
- “The operation is usually cheaper.”
- “They don’t require oil changes or maintenance and have fewer moving parts, so there’s less chance of failure.”
This gives smart content writers multiple topics to explore further with keyword research and other SEO and content planning tools. It can also help marketers identify pain points and common questions searchers might face to ensure they have content on the site that meets those needs.
Google’s take on “responsible AI”
Google strives to develop AI responsibly and for the benefit of all. The company has clear policies that govern its approach to AI. There is an emphasis on uniqueness, transparency and accuracy while respecting user privacy.
Google’s approach to responsible AI also includes initiatives like the People + AI Research (PAIR) initiative, which focuses on understanding how humans interact with machines and ensuring technology is designed to benefit everyone.
This commitment goes beyond mere products and services to include research projects and an open-source framework for developers and data scientists that enables anyone to build ethical AI applications.
Google wants to mitigate risk and harness the power of AI to advance research and help people. They understand that there are privacy concerns about integrating AI technology, and Google is focused on addressing them.
Google has evolved its practices by conducting industry-leading research into risk management and the overall impact of AI. In addition, they evaluate proposals for new AI research and applications to ensure alignment with their principles.
In addition, Google has published nearly 200 articles to adopt and expand on industry norms. They regularly review methods to build accountability and safety into their work and regularly publish their progress.
With these steps, Google demonstrates its commitment to developing technologies that have a positive impact on society and help us build a brighter future.
The central theses
Keep these points in mind as you brainstorm and plan ways to use Google Bard in your content research and planning processes:
- By using natural language processing, Google Bard can understand conversational language and provide more relevant results. This ensures an improved user experience that benefits businesses and consumers alike.
- Google recognizes that it has a responsibility to take security measures and continue to research its AI technology to ensure it is safe and accurate for users.
- Google Bard is not a replacement for human authors and the editorial process required to create quality content. Google prefers marketers to use Bard for research, content ideas and drafts, not final content.
- Bard can help content creators anticipate consumer needs, create FAQs, understand the customer journey through a topic, and identify new content opportunities.
- Creating relevant, informative and useful content is the ultimate goal to provide the best possible customer experience.