As marketers, we have long understood and embraced the pleasant virtues of new technology.

Be it the beginnings of the Internet, email, social media, you name it, we love riding the next new tech wave to simplify and streamline our lives and discover new ways of bringing our business’s message to the masses. 

Enter Artificial Intelligence.

AI, in its current state, is already a quantum leap forward in harnessing the power of tech to help business owners and workers accomplish more with less – less time spent, less money spent and less stress.

Using AI tools for business, you truly can work much smarter and not harder. This then allows executives and workers to more thoroughly focus on building our brand in a way that minimizes the grind of doing everything manually. 

As a business owner, I understand that time spent working ON the business rather than time spent working IN the business is a major key to growth.

With the rise of AI, businesses now have access to powerful tools that can optimize our websites with unprecedented precision. And embracing AI now in its infancy will only help keep you ahead of the curve. Because, believe me, your competitors will quickly pass you by if learning to master the machines doesn’t become a priority right now. 

The good news is that even the most refined AI tools will always require a human element to create concepts and craft proper road maps to drive and refine the results.

We’ve previously discussed how AI helps to produce compelling articles. In future articles, we’ll do deeper dives into areas like AI email marketing tools, the best AI video tools and AI tools for ecommerce.

For now, let’s explore a broader overview of some of our current favorite AI tools that we use with our clients to help build their websites better with greater focus and user engagement for improved SEO.

This includes using AI for:

• Keyword Research
• Writing
• Content Optimization
• Image Creation and Visual Content
• Video Creation
• Podcasts 

Best Free AI SEO Tools for Keyword Research

Keyword research is the cornerstone of any effective SEO strategy. 

Usually it’s the biggest reason clients hire a digital marketing analytics agency like Avita Group in the first place: to improve their organic search engine rankings and create new business from high-profile search results. 

Now, if you do want to take the DIY approach, know that traditional methods of keyword analysis can be time-consuming, but AI tools have streamlined the process.

Top Tools to Use:

• Semrush: Semrush AI SEO uses an AI-powered database to recognize keyword difficulty and competitor analysis, Semrush can help you find long-tail keywords with lower competition and higher conversion rates.

 

• Surfer SEO: This AI-driven platform integrates with content management systems to suggest keywords in real-time as you write your content.

We suggest using these tools in combination. For example, start with Semrush for comprehensive keyword research, then refine your strategy with Surfer SEO’s content suggestions.

And speaking of content….

AI Lead Generation Tools: Content Creation and Optimization

Content is still king. Creating high-quality material that shows off your EEAT is essential for improving your SEO conversion rate.

What is EEAT?

• Experience
• Expertise
• Authoritativeness
• Trustworthiness

Establishing EEAT is one of the top ways to improve a website’s conversion rate. 

That means every article you write – even if it starts with an AI author – needs to contain personal aspects of your experience with the product, your expertise in the space which instills your authority and trustworthiness in what you’re writing or talking about.

In short, it’s the authenticity of EEAT that proves to Google that AI could never have written these words. As only you would know these things about you.

To that end, using AI as a launch pad for the concept or topic will save you time and get you going. Here are some helpers in the most important content creation categories.

 

Best Free AI Writing Tools

When it comes to the best AI tools for writers, several can assist you in generating compelling blog posts, product descriptions, and social media content that are SEO-friendly.

Experiment with different approaches to the subject matter. In fact, when we craft blogs for our clients, we first ask these tools for a variety of blog topic ideas.

One of our biggest clients is a Los Angeles-based divorce family lawyer and having worked with him for many years we found ourselves rehashing some divorce topics before AI came along. Now, as part of our family law digital marketing strategy, when we feed a general term like “aspects of divorce” into the tools, we get a variety of out-of-the-box ideas that spur new articles that our competition may not be covering.

That sets us apart and also provides new search ranking opportunities on aspects of divorce we may not have thought someone would search for.

Here are our current go-to AI writing tools.

ChatGPT (OpenAI)

Strength: Powerful natural language processing with broad knowledge and adaptable response generation.

Best for: Content creation, coding assistance, research summaries, and interactive problem-solving across multiple domains.

Unique feature: Advanced contextual understanding and ability to maintain coherent conversations across complex topics.

Learning curve: Relatively low, with intuitive interface and straightforward prompt-based interaction.

Limitation: Potential for generating inaccurate information, lack of real-time data, and occasional inconsistent or biased responses.

 

Claude AI

Strength: Advanced reasoning capabilities with nuanced, contextually-aware and ethically-grounded responses.

Best for: Complex problem-solving, detailed writing tasks, technical analysis, and in-depth research assistance.

Unique feature: Strong commitment to factual accuracy, transparent communication, and robust ethical guidelines.

Learning curve: Easy to use with intuitive interaction, adaptable to various user skill levels.

Limitation: Inability to access real-time internet data, learn from ongoing conversations, or perform live external actions.

 

Jasper AI

Strength: Specialized AI writing tool with powerful content generation and marketing-focused features.

Best for: Marketing content creation, blog posts, ad copy, and social media content generation.

Unique feature: Industry-specific templates and brand voice customization for consistent content.

Learning curve: Moderate, with intuitive interface and AI-guided content creation tools.

Limitation: Higher cost compared to general-purpose AI writing tools, potential for generic content without careful prompting.

Of the three, we find ChatGPT to offer the most in-depth articles that actually read at a college level. The GPT articles tend to have more depth of content as well.

Claude, on the other hand, is a little more surface subject matter unless you tell it to drill down specifically on a topic mentioned in the article.

Of course any text writer requires human overseeing, not just for SEO optimization, but for accuracy and outright lies.

And, again, the inclusion of your personal EEAT.

 

AI Content Optimization Tool

So now you have all this terrific written content. 

But how to optimize it?

Obviously plugging in keywords that you found using the keyword research tools is the first (and most important step).

But now let’s make it even better with this optimization tool. 

Grammarly Business

Grammarly Business uses AI technology to suggest improvements in grammar, spelling, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery. The AI can detect subtle language nuances and suggest more appropriate word and tonality choices for business contexts.

Best AI Tools for Image Creation and Visual Content

A picture is worth 1,000 words as the saying goes, but not if your image is the same one that your competition is pulling from the usual stock photo houses like Canva, Adobe or iStock.

What is the best AI image creator?

Depends on your needs, but experimenting with the vast variety of visual AI tools will really set your content apart and make you stand out from the crowd.

Midjourney

Midjourney still remains the pallbearer when it comes to creating an incredibly diverse variety of images with the most obtuse or specific input details. 

Strength: Exceptional AI image generation with stunningly detailed and artistic visual outputs.

Best for: Creative digital art, concept design, illustration, and visual content creation.

Unique feature: Advanced text-to-image generation with sophisticated artistic interpretation and style transfer.

Learning curve: Steeper than other AI image tools, requiring specific prompt engineering skills.

Limitation: Requires Discord platform for interaction, can be expensive, and has complex subscription tiers.

 

DALL-E 3

Developed by OpenAI, Dall-E 3 which is available with your Chat GPT subscription, represents a significant advancement in AI image generation technology, balancing impressive creative capabilities with ongoing technological challenges.

Strength: Advanced AI image generation with seamless integration of text and visual elements.

Best for: Creative design, illustration, marketing visuals, and conceptual artwork.

Unique feature: Highly precise text rendering within images and nuanced interpretation of complex prompts.

Learning curve: Relatively easy, with intuitive interface through ChatGPT and direct text prompt interactions.

Limitation: Restricted access through OpenAI platforms, potential for copyright and ethical concerns in generated imagery.

 

Best AI Video Tools

There seems to be a hundred new AI video creation tools coming to market every week. These are amazing ways of making your message visual and interactive.

Video, more than any other medium, is what will grab your user’s attention and keep them engaged with your content. And it’s precisely that engagement that Google loves when it decides to rank your web pages over a competitor who only offers written content.

Synthesia

Strength: Professional avatar-based video creation.

Best for: Training content, product demos, and multilingual presentations.

Unique feature: Diverse avatar selection and language options. A vast catalogue of licensed images and background video.

Learning curve: Low – template-based approach. But editing requires a lot of trial-and-error.

Limitation: Limited emotional range in avatars.

 

D-ID

Strength: Realistic talking head videos from still images.

Best for: Personalized video messages and corporate communications.

Unique feature: Can animate any photo with natural movements.

Learning curve: Medium – requires careful script preparation.

Limitation: Limited to talking head format.

 

Hey Gen

Strength: Advanced AI voice cloning and synthetic speech generation with high-quality audio outputs.

Best for: Creating voiceovers, multilingual content, personalized audio content, and multimedia production.

Unique feature: Rapid voice cloning and natural-sounding text-to-speech across multiple languages and voices.

Learning curve: User-friendly interface with straightforward voice generation and editing tools.

Limitation: Potential uncanny Valley Girl (or Guy) effect in some synthetic voices, and ethical concerns around voice impersonation.

 

Best Podcast AI Tools 

You also want to mix up the content format. So while videos made from blogs will certainly help engagement, creating an audio narration or even an AI podcast from the written material will also be a useful tool.

Google’s new Notebook LM creates an amazingly real and conversational podcast out of any blog. The only drawback (for now) is that it utilizes the same two male and female co-hosts for every output.

Surely this will change and more options for vocal output will be offered (it probably already has by the time you’re reading this). 

But for now, here are our favorite text-to-audio AI tools.

 

Murf.ai

Strength: Professional-grade AI voice synthesis with extensive voice customization and multi-language support.

Best for: E-learning, explainer videos, voiceovers, audiobook production, and professional voice content.

Unique feature: Highly natural-sounding AI voices with precise accent and emotion control.

Learning curve: Intuitive platform with easy-to-use voice generation and editing tools.

Limitation: You only get ten free minutes of sample time. If you try to test it using a script or text longer than that, you have to pay. Subscription-based pricing can be expensive for individual creators, and some voices may sound slightly synthetic.

 

PlayHT

Strength: Advanced AI text-to-speech platform with extensive voice variety and high-quality audio generation.

Best for: Podcasting, audiobook production, e-learning content, and professional voiceover projects.

Unique feature: Real-time voice cloning and highly customizable voice synthesis across multiple languages.

Learning curve: Straightforward interface with intuitive voice generation and editing tools.

Limitation: Premium features require higher-tier subscriptions, and some generated voices may lack perfect naturalness.

 

ElevenLabs

Strength: AI voice cloning and text-to-speech technology that produces highly natural and customizable synthetic voices with remarkable audio quality.

Best for: Content creators, podcasters, game developers, and professionals needing realistic voice generation with extensive customization options.

Unique feature: Ability to clone and recreate individual voices with remarkable accuracy using minimal training data.

Learning curve: Moderate, with intuitive interface but requiring some technical understanding for advanced voice customization.

Limitation: It’s not the most intuitive tool and, oddly, they don’t offer any kind of video tutorial. I guess that’s what YouTube is for.

The nice thing about these is that each offers a limited free trial, so you can test drive each one before committing to a payment.

 

Future Considerations of Free AI Tools for Digital Marketing

The AI content creation landscape is rapidly evolving. Keep an eye on:

• Emerging tools with multimodal capabilities (text, image, and video in one platform)
• Improvements in personalization and audience targeting
• Enhanced integration capabilities between different tools
• Advanced analytics for content performance prediction

Remember that while these tools are powerful, they’re most effective when guided by human expertise and creative direction. 

The key is finding the right balance between AI efficiency and human creativity to produce truly engaging content that resonates with your target audience.

***

The integration of AI tools into your digital marketing strategy can significantly enhance your website’s SEO performance. 

From keyword research to content creation, AI-powered solutions can help streamline your SEO efforts and website presentation. 

If you’re unsure where to start or want professional guidance on integrating AI tools into your SEO strategy, reach out to our digital agency in California. 

We specialize in leveraging cutting-edge technologies to help our clients achieve their goals.

By harnessing the power of AI, you can stay ahead of the competition and ensure your website is fully optimized for search engines and users alike.

 

Avita Group – Digital Marketing Agency in California

Avita Group is one of the longest-tenured, five-star rated digital marketing agencies in California. Our clients often have had previous agency experiences and ultimately find a long-term home with Avita Group.

We offer fractional CMO services to boost your brand and your business by maximizing your SEO and PPC management, Online Reputation Management (ORM), and ways to become a LinkedIn ads expert to boost your business.

The Avita Group team boasts a collective experience of over 30 years in the industry led by Founder and CEO, Brad Weber, and has worked with a variety of multi-million dollar companies to help them improve their ROI, build better brand awareness, and mitigate negative online reviews.

Contact us for a free consultation to evaluate how we can transform and elevate your business.