Ai suggestions help social media creators reply faster but need careful checking
The Impact of Personalized AI Response Suggestions on Content Creators' Direct Messaging
Human-Computer InteractionArtificial Intelligence
Summary
Social media creators often get many private messages from fans but feel tired trying to respond in a way that fits their style and image. The authors talked to these creators and then built an AI system that suggests replies that match each creator’s usual way of writing. Creators said the AI helped make messages sound nicer and expected they would reply more, but they also had to spend extra time checking if the AI’s replies really matched what they wanted to say. The study shows AI can make replying quicker but may also shift effort toward making sure the AI stays accurate and authentic.
What this means in practice
- •For social media managers: Integrate AI reply suggestions personalized to individual creators’ styles to improve efficiency in follower engagement.
- •For customer service teams: Use personalized AI-generated responses to maintain brand voice while managing large volumes of direct messages.
Authors
Eun Jeong Kang, Jingruo Chen, Jadon Geathers, Susan Fussell
Abstract
Direct messaging is often employed by social media content creators to directly interact with followers. Those creators attempt to engage with followers in private communication, but they often encounter a large volume of messages. Through formative interviews with 15 creators, we found that creators frequently experience fatigue from writing suitable content, as they moderate audience expectations while concurrently integrating their media personas into responses. To explore how AI can address these challenges, we designed a system providing personalized, AI-generated response suggestions tailored to creators' writing styles to maintain their media personas. In a comparison study with 13 creators that examines how the system affects response behaviors, creators valued the system's ability to soften potential impoliteness and anticipated higher response rates, helping them maintain a professional image. However, creators reported additional labor in verifying the authenticity of AI outputs to mitigate risks caused by AI misalignment. Our results indicate that while AI suggestions enhance efficiency, they can undermine a creator's engagement in communication by shifting their attention toward monitoring AI.