Artificial intelligence is evolving fast, but so is the myth that it can do everything. In marketing, new AI tools keep popping up promising endless output: more blogs, more captions, more emails, and most importantly, more efficiency. But more doesn’t always mean better.
At Tansley, we’ve seen the drawbacks of over-reliance on AI. While it can help support great work and productivity, it can’t replace the human insight needed to build a lasting brand. Below, we explain how we use AI as a tool but not a crutch, and why emotional intelligence and lived experience remain at the heart of everything we create.
You Can’t Automate Meaning
AI can generate words, but it can’t generate wisdom. It can’t ask the right questions in a discovery call or sense the hesitations in a founder’s voice. And it can’t spot the powerful details that will bring someone to tears. That’s the difference between content that just fills space versus content that resonates.
“AI is an inevitable force reshaping business productivity and management right now,” says David Gascon, Tansley’s Chief Creative Director and Co-Founder. “However, I can’t imagine a world where AI generates everything I read. I trust that humans will always prioritize human relationships and authentic interactions.”
David points out that while AI can help polish syntax or structure ideas, people still want to know there’s a real person behind the message: “We’re betting that people will always prefer to feel there’s someone genuine behind the content – someone with their own story who genuinely cares about their relationship with customers or their fan base.”
“Choosing your story and maintaining it is like putting on a nice piece of clothing in the morning,” he continues. Selecting the right fabric for the season. Choosing the pattern that will change how you feel about your day. Going full AI is like staying in your pajamas all day.”
Research supports this. A Salesforce study found that 66% of consumers expect businesses to understand their wants and needs, and their content must clearly reflect this information. Similarly, Edelman’s Trust Barometer reports that businesses are more trusted when their communication feels genuine rather than just efficient.
How We Use AI (And Where We Don’t)
At Tansley, we use AI to support human insight, not to replace it. We use tools to test headlines, identify language patterns, and improve speed and formatting, as needed. But we always ensure the direction and tone are coming from real people who understand the brand.
As Mathieu Guérin, Tansley’s Strategy Director and Co-Founder, puts it: “AI helps validate or improve the strategy developed for the client.” For us, AI is an assistant, not a strategist.
We find this balance especially helpful during execution-heavy parts of a campaign, like when refining SEO, managing content queues, or automating repetitive tasks. But when it comes to discovering what makes a client unique – that substance lying beneath the surface – that still requires listening and trust, which AI can’t replicate.
The Risk of Going Too Far
For brands that rely too heavily on AI, the risk isn’t just bad copy but also a loss of ingenuity. “AI often delivers imprecise, generic, and impersonal results,” Mathieu explains. “It doesn’t always target the right customers.” AI can’t read the room, so it can’t distinguish between what’s technically correct and what actually resonates with a specific audience at a given moment.
In brand strategy, context is everything. The best strategies don’t just answer what a brand should say, but also why and to whom. Moreover, it also answers how they want the audience to feel. That’s the part AI can’t deliver —at least not yet, and maybe not ever.
What Human-First Strategy Really Looks Like
What does it mean to lead with a human-first approach? For our team, it means asking better questions, understanding a brand’s fears beyond its goals, and seeing the people behind the numbers.
We like to think of ourselves as life coaches for brands because we have a listen-first approach. It’s also similar to a private chef. We don’t simply serve a menu; we create something intentional and nourishing. And like architects, we built with foresight and adapted to the client’s environment and long-term vision to create something lasting.
Emotional intelligence isn’t a soft skill; it’s a strategic one. We’ve helped clients shape their voice through vulnerable moments —think a personal coming-out story, a founder’s quiet determination, or the intimate trust between business partners. These important details are not information that an algorithm can guess or replicate. A meaningful conversation reveals the information after a human relationship forms between the client and service provider.
Human-First, Tech-Supported
With the world moving faster and growing louder, it’s tempting to produce more. But we believe what brands really need is to connect more, and that only happens when strategy is rooted in real, human understanding. There will always be companies that auto-generate everything in pursuit of leads. But that’s not who we are, and it’s not who we work with.
“We believe content featuring interviews with real people will have an edge over AI-generated material. It creates meaningful conversations, not noise,” David says. “This is the kind of client Tansley has today – owners who believe they still have an authentic voice and want their company presented in the best possible light.” The future may be AI-assisted, but if brands are remembered and built to last, they need to feel human. And we’re here to help make that happen.
