The short answer
To make social media posts with AI, write a short voice brief and start from one real idea, such as a result, a lesson or a customer question. Ask Claude or ChatGPT, both free, for platform-specific versions, then design visuals in Canva, whose free plan includes 1.6 million templates and limited AI tools such as Magic Write, or create images in Gemini, whose free app includes the Nano Banana 2 image model. Edit every post so it sounds like you before it goes out.
What you need before you start
- A voice brief. Five lines: who you are writing for, how you sound (for example "plain, warm, a bit dry"), words you never use, what you want people to do (save, comment, click), and two posts of yours that did well. You paste this into every chat.
- Raw material. Ideas come from real things: a client question you answered this week, a number from a project, a mistake you learned from, an event you went to. Keep a running list.
- A writing assistant. Claude Free or ChatGPT Free is enough for text.
- A design tool. Canva Free includes more than 1.6 million templates, 5 GB of storage, one Brand Kit with three colours and limited access to its Standard and Premium AI tools. Canva Pro gives 10 times the free AI allowance and five Brand Kits. For images, Gemini's free app includes Nano Banana 2.
- Permission for anything about other people. Client names, colleague photos and customer stories need consent before they go public.
How to make social media posts with AI, step by step
- Load your voice. Start a chat in Claude or ChatGPT and paste your voice brief. In Claude you can attach your two best posts as files with the + button in the lower left of the chat box, then Add files or photos, or just paste them.
- Give it one idea and the proof. For example: "We cut our onboarding call from 60 to 25 minutes by sending a two-minute video first. Three clients said it was the best onboarding they had had."
- Ask for hooks first. Ask for ten opening lines and pick the one you would actually stop scrolling for. The first line decides whether anyone reads the rest.
- Ask for platform versions. One idea, written separately for each platform you use: a longer post for LinkedIn, a caption and slide text for an Instagram carousel, a short post for X or Threads. Say the length and format for each.
- Design the visual. In Canva, start from a template, use Magic Write for on-image text if you need it, and Magic Resize to turn one design into the sizes for each platform; both are Standard AI tools that do not count against the shared AI allowance on most paid plans. For a custom image, describe it to Gemini or use Canva's Dream Lab, which got Canva's own image model, Canva Craft, for all users on 22 October 2026.
- Edit like a human. Read each post aloud. Replace one generic sentence with a specific detail. Delete hashtags that no one searches for and emojis you would not use.
- Plan the week. Ask for a simple calendar: which idea goes out on which day and platform. Canva says Canva AI can run scheduled tasks in the background, such as a weekly batch of social posts.
- Review the results. After a week, paste in what did well and badly and ask what the strong posts have in common. Add that to your voice brief.
A worked example: one idea, three platforms
Aisha runs a small HR consultancy. Her idea: a client cut new-starter drop-out in the first 90 days after she replaced a 40-page handbook with a one-page "first week" checklist.
- She pastes her voice brief into Claude: readers are founders of companies with 10 to 100 staff; tone is practical and warm; never use "synergy" or "thought leader"; goal is saves and comments.
- She asks for ten hooks. She picks: "The 40-page handbook was the problem. Here is what we gave new starters instead."
- For LinkedIn she gets about 180 words with the story, the three items on the checklist and a question at the end. For Instagram she asks for a five-slide carousel: hook, problem, the checklist in three slides, and a final slide asking people to save it. For Threads, a three-line version.
- The draft says drop-out "fell dramatically". She does not have the client's exact figure cleared for publication, so she rewrites it as "fell noticeably over the next two intakes, according to the client" and asks the client to approve the wording.
- In Canva she picks a carousel template, puts the slide text in, applies her Brand Kit colours and uses Magic Resize for a LinkedIn document version.
- She posts the LinkedIn version on Tuesday and the carousel on Thursday, and logs which got more saves.
Common mistakes and how to fix them
- Starting from "write a post about leadership". You get the post everyone else got. Fix: start from a specific event, number or lesson of your own.
- The same text on every platform. Fix: ask for separate versions with the length and format each platform rewards.
- Invented results. AI will round "some improvement" up to "40% more". Fix: give it the real number or tell it there is none.
- Tell-tale AI phrasing. Fix: list banned words in your voice brief and edit every post aloud.
- Text-heavy images. Fix: keep on-image text to a headline; the detail goes in the caption.
- Publishing other people's details. Fix: get consent for names, photos and stories.
- Brand content in tools that train on it. Fix: check privacy settings. Canva uses content to improve AI only if your Privacy Settings allow it (canva.com/settings/privacy-preferences); Business and Enterprise content is excluded. In ChatGPT switch off Improve the model for everyone under Settings, then Data controls; in Claude, Help Improve our AI models under Settings, then Privacy.
Which AI tool to use for social media posts
| Job | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hooks, captions, platform versions | Claude or ChatGPT | Both free, both follow a voice brief well |
| Templates, carousels, resizing | Canva | Huge template library, Magic Resize, Brand Kits |
| Custom images | Gemini (Nano Banana 2 free) or Canva Dream Lab | Image creation and editing without design skills |
| Learning what works | Any chatbot with your results pasted in | Finds patterns in your own best posts |
Our opinion: write in Claude or ChatGPT, design in Canva, and keep the idea and the proof yours. The catch with Canva is that its AI is metered by a shared monthly allowance it only describes as multiples (Pro 10 times Free, Business 20 times Free), so heavy AI users can hit the limit. For more, see the best AI for social media, prompts for social media, prompts for LinkedIn posts and the best AI for marketing. Tool guides: Canva, Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini. Writing longer pieces? See how to write blog posts with AI.
Prompts to copy
Ten hooks from one idea
Here is my voice brief: [paste]. Here is the idea and the proof: [idea, numbers, quote]. Write ten different opening lines for a post about it: two questions, two surprising facts from my proof, two short stories, two strong opinions, two lists. Under 15 words each.
You get: Hooks to choose from
One idea, three platforms
Using the hook "[chosen hook]" and my voice brief, write: a LinkedIn post of about 180 words ending in a question; an Instagram caption of about 80 words plus text for a five-slide carousel; and a Threads post of under 300 characters. Use only the facts I gave you.
You get: Platform-ready versions of the same idea
Carousel script
Turn this idea into a [number]-slide carousel. Slide 1 is the hook in under 10 words, the middle slides each make one point in under 25 words, and the last slide asks people to save or share it. Suggest a simple visual for each slide.
You get: Slide-by-slide text ready for Canva
De-AI a draft
Edit this post so it sounds like a person talking: remove clichés, rhetorical questions that do nothing, and these words: [banned list]. Keep every fact. Make it 20% shorter. [paste post]
You get: A post that sounds like you
Week plan from your idea list
Here are my ideas for this month: [list]. Pick the five strongest for next week, assign each to a day and platform from [platforms], and say why each one suits that slot. Mix stories, tips and opinions.
You get: A simple posting plan
Learn from your results
Here are my last ten posts with their likes, comments, saves and shares: [paste]. What do the top three have in common in hook, format, length and topic? What should I stop doing? Give me three rules to add to my voice brief.
You get: Rules based on your own data