Does ChatGPT-Generated Text Hurt Your SEO?

AI-generated content is revolutionizing digital marketing—but could it be doing more harm than good when it comes to your site’s SEO?

At Joyce Voice, we believe AI is a powerful tool—but like any good tool, it is only helpful when used correctly. While ChatGPT can help businesses scale content production, blindly relying on AI-generated text could put not only your post’s rankings at risk, but also the rankings of all of your current and future website content if you’re not careful.

In this post, we’ll debunk the myths, explain the risks, and show you how to use AI for SEO without getting penalized.

Understanding ChatGPT-Generated Content

ChatGPT and other AI models generate text using vast datasets. Businesses may use AI for:

✔ Blog posts & SEO content
✔ Product descriptions
✔ Social media captions
✔ Email marketing copy

But while AI can mimic human writing, it doesn’t always understand context, originality, or user intent—three critical factors for ranking well on Google.

Does Google Penalize ChatGPT Content?

Google’s official stance: AI-generated content isn’t penalized if it provides value. This can be a bit more difficult to do than you may think. After all, the internet is already a vast wealth of information. Finding something new to say can be difficult and finding a way to speak to something in an original manner with AI is an even greater challenge. Because AI pulls its information from other websites- particularly those which already rank very well in terms of SEO- you may find it difficult to outrank with content that is generated. Inexperienced SEOs may see that their content immediately ranks well but then drops, or that it fails to rank entirely, or does well. Of course, there’s never a guarantee that a piece will rank well but putting out purely generated content can put your content at a disadvantage from the start if it does not provide value to the reader.

Google’s ranking system is built around E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness). If AI-generated content lacks original insights or credibility, it won’t rank well.

What Google does penalize:
– Low-quality, unhelpful content
– Keyword stuffing & over-optimization (this can be done far too often in human-written content too!)
– Misinformation or AI-generated errors

Takeaway: AI by itself won’t hurt your SEO—but bad AI content will.

When ChatGPT-Generated Text Hurts SEO

AI-generated content can backfire if used incorrectly. Here are the biggest SEO mistakes businesses make with ChatGPT:

1. Thin, Low-Quality Content

Google prioritizes valuable, in-depth content. AI often produces generic or shallow text that lacks the depth needed to rank.

Example of bad AI-generated content:
“ChatGPT is an AI tool that helps businesses. Many companies use AI for marketing. AI can be useful in many ways.”

Why it’s bad:

• Repetitive & vague
• No unique insights
• Fails to answer the reader’s real question

Fix: Edit AI content to add depth, insights, and real-world examples. As an expert in your website’s field, you should be able to unique insights that AI and other websites are unable to provide. This is why we focus on voice at Joyce Voice. If you need help finding your voice and sharing it with the world, apply to join our cohort.

2. AI Doesn’t Create Original Thought

Google favors fresh perspectives, research, and expert opinions—AI just repackages what’s already online.

Example of AI’s originality problem:
A study by Originality.ai found that 100% AI-generated blogs had a 34% lower engagement rate than human-edited content.

Solution: Blend AI with your own expertise, case studies, and data.

3. Keyword Overuse or Underuse

AI can over-optimize (keyword stuffing) or miss key ranking opportunities. While it is easy to show an example of keyword stuffing (see below), ranking opportunities won’t be obvious. An experienced Search Engine Optimist (like the the ones on our team!) can help identify opportunities that AI would likely miss.

Example of keyword stuffing:
“Does ChatGPT-generated text hurt your SEO? AI-generated text can hurt your SEO if AI-generated text is not optimized correctly. AI-generated text should be written to boost your SEO.”

Why it’s bad:

• Reads unnaturally
• Google may flag it as spam
• Hurts user experience

Solution: Use natural, intent-driven SEO strategies and consult with an SEO who is up to date on the latest industry changes.

4. AI Doesn’t Fact-Check

AI can make up information—and if you don’t fact-check, you could be publishing inaccurate or outdated content.

Example of AI misinformation:
You may have heard of the case where a lawyer using ChatGPT cited fake legal cases in court because AI hallucinated case law that didn’t exist. If it can happen in court, it can happen to you.

Solution: Always verify AI-generated claims before publishing. Share your sources so that readers can verify the information on their own as well.

Tip: Use AI for content structure—but optimize manually for engagement and search intent.

Final Verdict: Does ChatGPT Hurt SEO?

Google doesn’t penalize AI content, but it does penalize low-quality content. Businesses that blend AI efficiency with human creativity and SEO best practices can rank higher, engage better, and convert more customers than those who post low quality generated content.

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Want SEO-Optimized Content That Reflects Your Voice?

At Joyce Voice, we create content that shares your unique voice with the world and then optimize it to ranks, engage, and convert.

Need help optimizing your content? Apply to join our marketing cohort for exclusive insights into the SEO world!