How to talk to freelance clients about AI
Be the calm, honest voice of reason when clients worry about AI detection and originality
Last week, an author whose first book I helped publish reached out to me in a semi-panic. A friend had read his book and suggested that “using em dashes will make people think it was written by AI.” My author was seriously considering re-editing the book and uploading new files.
Mind you, two days before, he’d been thrilled at how many people had said “It sounds just like you!” (Which it does.) But one comment from one friend was enough to make him question everything, even though he knew it was his own original work.
That’s precisely the kind of AI anxiety a lot of our clients are experiencing right now. And because we’re often more familiar with AI tools than our clients are, it’s a great opportunity to be the calm, rational voice in the conversation.
Be the Voice of Reason
In this author’s case, I emailed him back to the effect of:
I understand your concern. Em dashes being a red flag for AI has floated around since the early days of AI—because em dashes have been used forever by skilled writers, and AI trained on that data.
Search any phrase like “does em dash mean ai,” you'll see how it's been debunked.
The important thing is that this book sounds like you, and all the early feedback confirms that.
He immediately replied with relief and appreciation. (And as for me, I was relieved that we didn’t need to rework the manuscript to avoid the AI boogeyman.)
When Clients Believe AI Is Just as Good
A new referral client came to me frustrated with an ongoing project: generating 400-word blog posts from tedious 10-page reports. He’d been using AI, but was annoyed by the quality and the amount of editing required, so he hired me to take on the process. For every client who sees the wisdom in that, however, there are many who don’t recognize the difference, don’t understand that AI has accuracy issues, or who think Grammarly can substitute for a professional copyeditor or proofreader.
In such cases, you can try some version of: “I’ve seen AI generate decent first drafts, but you really need significant human editing to reach professional quality. That’s why you hired me, because I can refine everything with your unique voice and strategy.” If a prospect isn’t persuadable on this point, they may not be a good fit for your business.
When Clients Believe They Need to Outsmart AI
I’ve also seen clients become obsessed with avoiding AI detection, which feels similar to the old days of keyword-stuffing for SEO, except in reverse: “We need to make sure our text doesn’t get flagged as AI, so don’t use em dashes or any of the words in the following list.” The most reliable route here is—surprise—have a human (i.e., you) write it. Even so, AI detectors are notorious for false positives, and you should be prepared for that conversation too.
Be Transparent about How You’re Using AI
No need to volunteer this preemptively or to be defensive, but you should be ready if a client asks. “I lean on AI for brainstorming and background research, and also for automated transcription. But when it comes to the writing, everything I produce for you is original, based on your goals and our discussions.”
Final Thoughts on AI Anxiety
Right now, some people will believe writing is AI generated, even if it isn’t. Conversely, lots of people get fooled into thinking AI-generated text was written by a human.
As individual writers and creatives, we can’t fix either issue. To me, the best approach is a personal one: Talk to your clients honestly, and create for them with your authentic, real-live-person talents. AI ain’t there yet.
In the comments:
What’s the most common AI-related question or concern you hear from clients?