Quick Take: AI was supposed to make content creation easier. Instead, it’s created an ocean of sameness where perfectly polished posts get zero engagement. The mortgage professionals winning in 2026 won’t be the ones with the best AI prompts; they’ll be the ones showing up in real rooms with real people.
I Teach This Stuff, and Even I’m Stuck.
I’ve been in a content slump lately. And yes, I realize the irony. I’m Katie Shive, and I teach AI and content strategy for a living. I help mortgage professionals build personal brands that cut through the noise. I created the Brand Builder framework specifically to solve this problem.
So you can imagine the internal struggle when my own content feels flat.
I spent hours this weekend working on my content strategy. You know what I ended up doing? I slammed my laptop shut because nothing felt inspiring.
Here’s what I know about myself after doing this work for over a decade: I hate creating content just to create content. If you’re going to spend your time engaging with something I put out there, it needs to be worth your time.
But something shifted last week that changed how I’m thinking about all of this.
The Zoom Call That Fired Me Up
Last week I taught inside Geoff Zimpfer’s My Agent Classes community. They use his system to host in-person agent classes with done-for-you content so loan officers can show up and teach face-to-face.
We were on Zoom. I had my slides prepared and the standard teaching setup. But here’s what struck me about that entire experience.
When people started unmuting and asking real questions, when the conversation went off script and we ended up talking through things I hadn’t prepared for, that felt more alive than anything I’d created content-wise at my desk all week.
If teaching on Zoom felt that energizing, imagine what happens when you’re actually in the same room with people. Real conversations about what’s working and what’s not. Talking through pain points and overwhelm together instead of through a screen. That’s when it hit me.
The Problem Everyone’s Ignoring
There’s so much hype around AI right now. People are either obsessed with it or pretending it doesn’t exist.
Spoiler alert: it’s not going anywhere. You might as well figure out how to use it sooner rather than later.
But here’s what nobody’s talking about when they’re hyping up all these efficiency gains. AI comes with serious drawbacks that are starting to show up in ways we didn’t anticipate. Everyone suddenly thinks they’re a great copywriter.
People are even opting out of photographers or videographers because AI can generate decent images. Instagram grids are filled with gorgeous aesthetics and perfectly curated captions.
And audiences are scrolling right past all of it without stopping.
What Was Supposed to Help Is Actually Hurting
What was supposed to be this great tool to help us create content has actually turned into everyone having access to the exact same tools. Which means everyone’s creating really similar outputs.
Now we’re all dealing with an over-stimulated, completely tuned-out audience whose attention spans are somehow getting even shorter.
It reminds me of when MySpace got that upgrade where you could suddenly customize your profile with background images and auto-play music. You’d land on someone’s page and there were all these bells and whistles and flashing graphics and glitter text, and you had absolutely no idea what to focus on first.
So you just left. That’s exactly where we are right now with AI content.
What Good Content Actually Means
When I say good content, I’m not talking about beautifully written captions and AI-generated images that look professional. I’m talking about content where people can feel whether you were even involved beyond hitting copy and paste.
Those dead giveaways are everywhere if you know what to look for. The prolific use of em dashes in places they don’t belong. Those “it’s not this, it’s actually that” framework structures every AI model loves. Cliche jargon you would never say in real life.
So what does all this perfectly polished AI content actually do for your engagement and your business? It erodes trust. The exact opposite of what you’re trying to build.
Why People Follow You in the First Place
One of the biggest reasons people follow you in the first place is because there’s something special and unique about you as a person. People want to connect with your quirks and your vulnerable moments.
Of course you’re not going to appeal to everyone. The effort to try to be everything to everyone is absolutely exhausting and ultimately pointless. But you should be appealing to the audience you’re uniquely positioned and so desire to serve.
This is the foundation of what I teach in my Brand Builder framework. Your story is the one thing AI can’t copy. Your lived experience in the mortgage industry is your competitive advantage. But you have to actually show up with it.
The Solution No One Wants to Hear
What’s the solution? I believe it’s ‘AND’, not or.
Quality long-form content is essential for education and AI visibility. That’s why I created the GEO Visibility Flywheel to help mortgage professionals show up in AI search tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity.
However, nothing replaces the power of you in action. So create good content AND get in rooms with more people. No big deal, right? Let me be clear about what I mean.
Your 2026 Competitive Advantage
If I were a loan officer today, or in any kind of coaching, consulting or sales, I would be doubling down on in-person events as much as I could. Not webinars. Not Zoom calls. And certainly not perfectly curated Instagram stories. I’m talking actual rooms with real people having toe-to-toe conversations.
Because here’s the truth: while everyone else is hiding behind AI-generated content, you can be the one showing up in real life, building trust face-to-face, having conversations that don’t fit into a template.
That’s your competitive advantage heading into 2026.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Here’s what I want you to do this quarter: Host one in-person event. Realtor breakfast. Buyer workshop. Financial wellness seminar. Coffee meetup with your top 20 referral partners. Think outside the box.
And if you don’t know what to talk about? Connect with Geoff Zimpfer on his done-for-you agent classes. They’re a goldmine of ideas.
And if you want to zero in on helping more first-time homebuyers, book a demo call with FirstHome IQ. Kristin Messerli and her team also offer a full suite of done-for-you resources that make plug-and-play presentations a no-brainer.
Both resources have incredible communities backed with amazing support. Choose one (or both) and start filling rooms.
The Content You Still Need
Does this mean you should stop creating content online? Absolutely not. You need both. Quality content for AI visibility and education, and In-person events for trust and relationship building. But the content you create needs to sound like you, not like everyone else’s AI assistant.
This is where having a solid brand foundation matters. When you know your story, your messaging, and your voice, AI becomes a tool that amplifies you instead of replacing you.
That’s what I help mortgage professionals build through Brand Builder. Not templates, or cookie-cutter frameworks. Your authentic voice trained into AI systems so you can create content efficiently without losing yourself in the process.
Watch the Full Episode
I dive deeper into this topic on this week’s AI After Hours podcast. One trick, tip, or idea each week on how to use AI without losing your humanity.
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🎧 Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform
The Bottom Line
AI isn’t going anywhere, but neither is the human need for real connection. The mortgage professionals who win in 2026 will be the ones who use AI strategically for efficiency while doubling down on in-person relationship building.
Quality content AND face-to-face conversations. Not one or the other.
Ready to build a content system that doesn’t sound like everyone else? Explore Brand Builder or reach out directly. Because the best way to stand out in an AI-saturated market is better content paired with real human connection.
Prefer to learn on the go? Subscribe to AI After Hours for weekly insights on using AI without losing your humanity.
About Katie Shive
Katie Shive is a personal branding strategist and AI consultant specializing in helping mortgage professionals build authentic, differentiated messaging. Creator of the Brand Builder framework and the GEO Visibility Flywheel, Katie helps loan officers and mortgage industry leaders build powerful personal brands that show up in AI search tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity. With over 8 years in the mortgage industry and 15 years in marketing—including 6 years at Guild Mortgage supporting top producers—Katie brings deep industry expertise to her coaching and consulting practice. She is the founder of KS Marketing, host of the AI After Hours podcast and LinkedIn newsletter, and co-host of the Redeeming Her podcast. Based in Kalispell, Montana, Katie teaches mortgage professionals to use AI strategically while maintaining human-centered content that builds trust and drives revenue.
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