Google’s experimental conversational AI, Bard, didn’t have a seamless launch. The astronomical excitement 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 gaff resulted in 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 search giant’s experimental artificial intelligence conversational service powered by its large language model LaMDA and connected to the live web.

Bard is an experimental conversational AI service operated by LaMDA. It was built using our large language models and relies on information from the web. It’s a starting point for curiosity and can help simplify complex issues → https://t.co/fSp531xKy3 pic.twitter.com/JecHXVmt8l

– Google Google) February 6, 2023

Google Bard includes 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’s a feature that can improve the search experience. CNBC reported on an all-hands 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 find in using the product is really being that creative companion that helps you spark your imagination, explore your curiosity, etc.

Google has integrated other major language models into search, including BERT and MUM.

When it was 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, allowing us to scale to more users and get more feedback.” Bard is clearly in an experimental phase and Google wants to use its huge user and knowledge base to improve this product.

For security reasons, Bard is only available to those over 18 and requires a Google account. Bard is only available in US English, but Google promises it’s working on other languages.

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 trained on a data set up to a certain point in 2021.

Bard tells you right away that it makes mistakes. At the top of the page is a message: “I’m Bard, your creative and supportive collaborator. I have limitations and won’t always get it right, but your feedback will help me improve.” By putting this message first, it doesn’t lull users into a false sense of reality that this application alone can produce infinitely accurate data .

Screenshot of bard

“What is ChatGPT?” from OpenAI Resource says, “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 instructions or biased content.”

Screenshot of ChatGPT

ChatGPT is great for developing different types of writing, while Bard is specifically designed for natural language search. Bard’s AI is trained to understand conversational questions and provide relevant context in their answers. It even helps with follow-up questions.

Bard is more cautious than ChatGPT. Eli Collins, vice president of research at Google, told the New York Times that the bot often refused to respond about certain people because it could generate false information about them — a phenomenon AI researchers call “hallucination.”

Mr Collins said Google Bard also avoids giving medical, legal or financial advice as it could lead to incorrect information. This conforms to Google’s advanced 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 can even answer the same question in different ways. But it alone can’t produce unique content for brands that doesn’t violate Google’s guidelines on the use of AI.

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 drafts of outlines, emails, blog posts, poetry, and more.”

With this information, Google clearly defines how content marketers can use Bard. However, letting the chatbot do your content creation is not ideal. For example, according to Google, it can be flagged as spam because content marketers cannot use AI-generated content alone and share it online.

Content marketers still need to fact-check, watch for bias, and carefully edit and tailor content for their unique audience. You must use these tools carefully and remember that they do not replace human intelligence or perspective. Brands and marketers still need a robust editorial process with quality checks before publishing.

Google Bard in practical example

Content marketers can also use Google Bard to explore and better understand the associations between topics and concepts. For example, Prabhakar Raghavan, Head of Search at Google, 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 think through different angles, from budget to safety and more, and simplify and understand them.” For example, Bard could create a list of pros and cons for 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 electric car example, Bard has generated several electric car “pros”. These include:

• “Electric cars drive zero emissions, which is better for the environment than a petrol car. Gas cars cause emissions that contribute to climate change.”
• “They are usually cheaper to run.”
• “They don’t require oil changes or adjustments and have fewer moving parts, so there’s less that can go wrong.”

This gives astute content writers multiple topics to explore further using keyword research and other SEO and content planning tools. It can also help marketers identify pain points and common questions searchers may have to ensure they have content that meets those needs on the site.

Example of a bard search

Google’s stance on “responsible AI”

Google is committed to developing AI responsibly and for the benefit of all. The company has a clear set of principles that govern its approach to AI, which emphasizes uniqueness, transparency and accuracy while respecting user privacy.

Google’s commitment 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 just products and services, including research projects and an open-source framework for developers and data scientists that enables anyone to build ethical AI applications.

Google aims 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 consistently review methods to build accountability and security into their work and regularly publish their progress.

By taking these steps, Google demonstrates its commitment to developing technologies that have a positive impact on society and help us achieve a better future.

The central theses

Consider these points 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 provides an enhanced user experience that benefits businesses and consumers alike.
• Google recognizes its responsibility to provide security measures and to continue researching 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.