AI-generated avatars

No. Don’t make a video avatar of yourself. Seriously. Just don’t.

Here’s why I’m shouting about this (and no, I’m not being dramatic).

AI-generated avatars are being sold as the next shiny thing in marketing, with the global market projected to reach over $527 million by 2030 according to MarketsandMarkets … “save time, scale your content, look perfect 24/7!” The problem? They don’t just shave a few minutes off your to-do list. They shave off your humanity. And worse, they open the door to a future where anyone can manufacture “proof” of anything.

So before you let a digital twin take over your socials, here’s what you need to know.

Deepfakes aren’t harmless fun: They’re a weapon

Let’s start with the obvious: deepfakes aren’t a quirky tech trend we can all giggle at and move on. They’re a tool for liars, scammers, and anyone who enjoys chaos for sport.

We’ve already seen AI-generated voices trick people into transferring money to “their boss.” Politicians are getting edited into speeches they never gave. Celebrities are finding their faces dropped into videos they never filmed. If this is what’s happening now, imagine what’s next when flawless fake videos of everyday people become normal.

Once video evidence stops being trustworthy, everything becomes debatable. Was that really you in that Zoom call? Did your CEO really say that? Did that influencer really endorse that product? The result isn’t innovation…it’s confusion. A headache for democracy, for businesses, and for your future self when someone decides to edit you into an argument you never had.

The more we normalise fakes, the easier we make it for the bad actors to slip through unnoticed. And small business owners like you don’t need another reputational landmine waiting to go off.

Why your face beats pixels every time

People don’t buy from avatars, they buy from people. From your quirks, your laugh, your messy behind-the-scenes moments. Trust is built in the pauses, the stumbles, and the unscripted bits that prove you’re human.

Sure, an avatar can be polished until it looks trustworthy… but it will never feel trustworthy. And research backs this up – studies on consumer behaviour show audiences rate authentic, imperfect communication as more believable than slick, overly produced content. In other words: your blooper reel does more heavy lifting for your brand than your AI twin ever could.

For small business owners, this matters even more. Your audience isn’t choosing you because you look like a flawless product demo. They’re choosing you because they feel like they know you. Strip away the human touch, and you strip away the trust that keeps customers coming back.

So, before you hand your marketing over to a virtual clone, remember: the shaky iPhone video of you laughing at your own joke will win more business than the avatar that never blinks.

The cost of chasing perfection – For you and the next generation

I’ve got two daughters, and I’ll be damned if they grow up thinking perfection equals replaceability. These flawless, airbrushed AI twins don’t inspire confidence, they teach kids to edit themselves out of existence. To become brandable, zero-fault products rather than people with edges and stories.

And that’s not a future I want for them, or for anyone else raising the next generation of leaders, creatives, and business owners.

When we model constant polish, we send the message that being human isn’t good enough. That real laughs, real wrinkles, real stories need to be replaced with something cleaner, sharper, safer. But perfection doesn’t connect. Perfection isolates. It sets an impossible bar that nobody can reach without scrubbing out their humanity along the way.

So the cost isn’t just your audience’s trust, it’s the culture we hand over to our kids. Do we want them to believe their worth lies in looking like a flawless avatar? Or do we want them to know that their quirks and edges are what make them unforgettable?

So what should you do instead?

Here’s the mindset shift that actually matters: stop trying to build an AI version of yourself so you don’t have to show up. Work on the mindset of showing up instead.

Showing up doesn’t mean being perfect – it means being consistent. It means letting people see you on the days you’re sharp and on the days you’re tired. It means sharing stories, not scripts. And it means remembering that your audience wants you, not your algorithmically airbrushed twin.

Use AI, yes – but use it for the grunt work, not the human work. Let it speed up your outlines, polish your captions, tidy up your transcripts. But when it comes to the face and voice of your brand? That’s yours. Messy edges, quirks, and all.

The more you practice showing up as yourself, the easier it becomes. And the more your audience will thank you for it. Because authenticity sells. Clones don’t.