AI is here. Whether we like it or not.
The war between AI companies is running rampant during high-stakes Superbowl commercial breaks. People are turning to AI to solve their problems instead of talking to a therapist leading to worsening mental health crises. The “content deluge” of AI-written content is at an all time high.
While AI can be a great tool to save time and increase knowledge, there are a lot of drawbacks as well. There are worries about privacy and data breaches, environmental concerns with water usage, and the violation of intellectual property of all art forms.
The balance of the pros and cons of AI as the technology continues to grow faster than we can conceptualize is a delicate line to walk. That’s why I wanted to sit down to give full transparency on how we at Tracy Mak Studio believe AI should be used for websites, branding, and SEO. I’m not here to dictate how AI should be used for everyone but this is a guide on what I think is an ethical balance for AI use.
What We Believe
AI is a tool, not a replacement for human expertise or creativity
"Imitation is the highest form of flattery”... unless you’re talking about AI using the massive amount of collected data to generate an image based on someone else’s creativity. Our lived experience is what makes us stand out from the crowd. To only rely on AI to generate blog posts, social media posts, images, and websites is going to make the output look similar to everyone else’s. However, there are definitely ways to utilize AI as a tool to speed up the creativity process. Brainstorming, outlining, refining, and editing are all things AI can do to help you speed up your processes.
You deserve to be uniquely you
Your branding shouldn’t be a copy of someone else’s logo and colors. We want your branding to fit who you are and where your practice wants to go. Your brand colors should be backed by color psychology and mindful positioning in the market. Your logo shouldn’t be a regurgitation of everyone else’s in your industry. Your website’s copy should sound like you, not like someone’s poor imitation of you.
Understanding matters more than a quick fix
AI generated content is only as good as the prompt you give it. For example, technical areas like SEO require foundational knowledge. Without understanding search intent, keyword placement, character limits, and SEO best practices, the results will be inconsistent or ineffective.
AI supports expertise, it does not create it. The real value lies in knowing what to ask, what to ignore or push back on, and how to evaluate results.
Scare tactics do not have a home here
“If you don’t use AI, your practice is not going to survive”
“Using AI is a death sentence for the environment”
All or nothing mentality and fear tactics are a sign of the speaker’s insecurities. Moderation is key to junk food and life. Utilizing AI as a tool and not a lifeline is the happy medium we strive for. Picking and choosing strategic ways to use AI and not rely on it for every single aspect of your online marketing is the best way to get the most out of it.
Efficiency and automation is the cornerstone to sustainable growth
AI truly shines when it:
- Saves time on mundane tasks
- Streamlines SEO workflows
- Improves consistency
- Frees up your energy for strategy and creativity
Collaboration builds strong brands
Using AI as a bridge to easily access knowledge from experts is one of its strongest attributes. An AI output is only as good as the prompt you give it. If you don’t have the knowledge to know how to effectively prompt AI, your output won’t be as good. Leaning on real world experts for education before using AI as a tool is the best way to get the results you want.
How This Shows Up in Practice
That’s great and all, but how do all of those beliefs work in real life? At Tracy Mak Studio, these are the ways we use AI to give you the best information, websites, logos, and guidance without violating our beliefs.
Brainstorming & Idea Generation
We use AI to brainstorm blog topics, imagery, and mood boards. This allows us to find angles we wouldn’t have thought of ourselves. Our clients benefit from this by knowing the articles and visual branding ideas we create have been vetted from every possible angle.
SEO Support Tasks
Mundane tasks that use little to no creativity get the AI treatment. SEO titles and descriptions that are simply a summary of the blog that we already wrote? That gets the AI treatment. Rewriting a heading to include a variation of the focus keyphrase? Off to prompt AI.
Blog Workflow Support
At Tracy Mak Studio, we believe that the information we pass along is just as important as the creative work we do. We may use AI to outline blog posts, identify subtopics and sources, or draft keyword-rich headlines, but then our drafts are written by our copywriter, Jessica. All reviewing and editing are done by a human.
If we aren’t willing to put time and effort into producing written content, how can we expect people to use their scarce time to read it? As our copywriter always says, “If a human didn’t write it, don’t expect a human to read it.” Plus, Google’s E-E-A-T framework rewards experience and expertise. You can’t expect AI to know all of your lived experiences.
What I Do Not Use AI For
No Final Drafts Without Human Review
It is important to us that the information we publish on social media and our website are accurate, engaging, and up-to-date. We may use AI to generate ideas, find sources, or create an outline. But the final draft will always be written and reviewed by a human.
No Brand-Critical Assets
It’s important to us that your brand stands out from the crowd. AI generates visuals based on other people’s work and what is trending now. We want your website, logo, and brand identity to stand the test of time and authentically represent your practice.
To be honest, our favorite brand identity projects are the ones with symbolism and hidden messages embedded into their logos (check out Together We Thrive Wellness or Sandy Speaks Therapy). Without getting to know the heart of their practice, we couldn’t have created a logo with true meaning, let alone know how to prompt AI to create something truly unique.
No Blind Trust
AI can be a helpful tool in the creative and writing process, but it should never replace human oversight, judgment, or responsibility. Every link is double-checked, claims and information are carefully reviewed, and all tone, messaging, and accuracy are refined by a real person before anything is published. The goal is not to automate authenticity, but to support thoughtful and intentional work.
Why These Boundaries Matter
A website is often the first impression of a private practice or business. People are not just looking for information, they are looking for connection, trust, and a sense of who they are reaching out to.
Private practice branding requires more than efficiency and automation. It requires thoughtfulness, emotional awareness, and genuine human involvement.
Responsible AI use helps protect both the integrity of the business and the experience of the people reading the content. Thoughtful oversight ensures that the final product still feels human, accurate, and aligned with the values behind the work.
Tools I Created for Practice Owners
Our mission is to educate practice owners with as little friction as possible while saving them time. Because of the above principles and our core mission, I created a few custom AI Assistants to help practice owners easily boost their SEO with meta titles and meta descriptions and help craft blog post content.
These Assistants are programmed:
- With years of on-the-ground experience in website design and SEO to guide it
- To pull information from reputable sources in the SEO industry
- For ease of use. So you can have a conversation instead of worrying about perfecting your prompts.
- To analyze existing content to match your unique brand voice
It is our hope that by giving practice owners more tools that teach while effectively saving time, we can help you reach your ideal clients and heal more people.
My Commitment Going Forward
I will continue to follow these principles, even as technology evolves faster than we can wrap our minds around.
If our mission and these principles resonate with you, here are a list of services that focuses on humanity-first principles:
