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AI content that doesn't sound like AI: 9 anti-patterns to remove

AI content
Brand voice
Copywriting

AI-generated social copy fails for one reason: it sounds like AI. Not because of any single word, but because of a recognizable pattern of hedging, list-of-three structures, and abstract nouns. Here are the nine patterns to strip out of every prompt.

The nine anti-patterns

Every generation should be filtered against these. If two or more appear, regenerate.

  • Opening with "In today's fast-paced world" or any variant
  • The phrase "let's dive in" or "dive deeper"
  • "Not just X, but Y" constructions
  • The word "leverage" as a verb
  • "Game-changer", "unlock", "harness the power of"
  • Three-item bullet lists where every item starts with the same verb
  • Em dashes used to hedge — like this — three times per post
  • Rhetorical questions in the opener ("Ever wondered…?")
  • Closing with "The future is [noun]"

Replace patterns with specifics

The fix isn't better vocabulary — it's concrete details. A number, a name, a specific tool, a timestamp. AI defaults to abstraction; strong social copy is specific.