AI marketing tools divide Sarpy County businesses and designers

Small businesses in Nebraska’s Sarpy County are turning to generative AI for advertisements, logos, labels and menus, creating tension between entrepreneurs seeking affordable marketing and designers who depend on that work. Omaha-area graphic designer Lenda Brewer says the technology is reducing opportunities for human creatives and diminishing their ownership of projects.

Brewer, whose experience includes film sets, television productions and business advertising, says creatives are taking restaurant and bartending jobs while looking for work. She also warns that AI-generated promotions can overlook copyrighted material or misrepresent products and people. She wants regulations that protect human artists as the technology develops.

Amber Younger, who runs a cookie business from her Bellevue home, uses ChatGPT to help create labels, menus and a business mascot called Mr. Chip. She has previously hired graphic designers and still values their work, but says she spends more on her business than she takes home, making inexpensive tools appealing.

In Ralston, Hearthside Candles and Curios owner Alex Fernandez favors human-created work, saying its quality stands apart from AI-generated material. The contrasting views highlight a local trade-off: lower creative costs for small businesses can mean fewer paid projects for artists.