How to Stand Out in a Crowd that All Looks the Same | Creativity in the Age of AI
Walking down Newbury Street, I noticed that the AI I can’t seem to escape on the internet has found its way offline as well. Nearly every storefront + restaurant had a poster generated by Artificial Intelligence by the street in front of their business + they all looked the same. Regardless of products, services, food offerings, or general vibes of the establishments, each poster I came across looked nearly identical the one I’d just walked by.
You have a certain style in mind just from the words “AI poster,” so I don’t even have to say it, but… The fonts. The paint-slashy lines. The underlines. The little three dashes around a random word or icon. The people with smiles on their faces but dull eyes that lack emotion.
It’s not just Newbury Street either. These posters are everywhere. That’s the worst part.
Most people who choose to have AI generate their posters do it because it’s fast, easy for them, and they think no one will notice and/or care (they certainly don’t care themselves). Well, I’m not the designer on this team, but I am certainly noticing + caring. Quite frankly, I don’t even think they look good. In fact, they often actively look bad.
Plus, even people who aren’t against businesses using generative AI are starting to see the overwhelming sameness that’s taking over, leading them to question if businesses are losing their individuality. Ultimately, it goes back to why businesses make brands that stand out in the first place. They want a brand that feels authentically like them, helps them stand out + be remembered, and speaks to the uniqueness of their establishment. (i.e. what makes you different and why would someone do business with you instead of your competition.)
Trust between business + customer is paramount. When you put out content – posters, graphics, social posts, etc. – that doesn’t feel authentic to the brand your customers know + have an existing connection with, that trust is broken. People are always more likely to engage with businesses that feel genuine + consistent than brands that feel phony + unreliable.
So why are people still using AI to generate their graphics + how can you stand out from the homogenous crowd?
It’s actually simpler than you might think. Do the opposite of what everyone else is doing. Invest time + effort into your posters. If every other business’s posters are looking the same because they come from generative AI, make yours yourself. Or have another *person* make them for you.
First Turn Media writes, “AI is doing the opposite of what many people fear. Rather than making creativity less valuable, it’s making it more valuable than ever. If everybody can generate a decent looking poster in thirty seconds, then looking “decent” is no longer enough. The businesses that stand out will be the ones brave enough to stop looking like everybody else.”
If you want the background to be a picture, use real photography. Lean heavily on your branding + all the visual elements that make your brand recognizable + that you’ve been using since you got started. People like the familiarity of knowing what to expect from you and your visual identity.
Even if you want to continue using AI for ideas or research, plopping in a prompt + going with the first thing it spits out is not a smart way to use AI. AI can’t replace creative strategy. AI can’t replace human creativity. Artificial intelligence certainly doesn’t know + understand your brand as well as you do.
Personally, I know for a fact that I’ve made better graphics than AI with a free AdobeExpress account + a dream. But if you’re on my level of graphic design + want designs made by someone with *a bit* more experience than me, get in touch with our creative director, Meg. She’s made a ton of cool stuff, all of it wholly unlike the AI slop that makes a piece of her soul wither up each time she sees it.
