And so you\u2019re probably drowning in messages about your business\u2019 potential professional relationship with artificial intelligence (AI), and how you should use it to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- maximize your marketing efforts<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- save yourself a shitload of time<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- hold on to a tidy amount of your marketing budget.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
But damn, it\u2019s a lot to wrap your head around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
And it\u2019s not that you\u2019re not interested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A few of your business buddies have given it a spin, and they\u2019re finding some success with it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
But are they giving you the complete picture?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like you, I have a single-owner, service-based business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I’m all about being totally transparent. (I specialize in that long-game marketing strategy called SEO<\/a>, so I have to be.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, having used AI copywriting tools for some of my business copy, here\u2019s my review.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
They\u2019re shit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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I\u2019ll share exactly why I feel this way in a moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But for those of you just dipping your toes into the AI ocean, let\u2019s look at what these copywriting tools are capable of and how they work, then check out some of the more popular ones.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A quick summary of AI copywriting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
An AI copy generator is the result of combining machine learning (a robot) with natural language processing (NLP) software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I like to picture it as The Terminator sitting in a junior school classroom, with every piece of written text in history laid out on a tiny desk in front of him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I think it brings an element of cuteness to an otherwise terrifying reality of creating something that knows ev-rey-thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In reality, an AI copy generator scrapes existing internet content, and then analyzes the writing patterns, styles, and language to generate copy based on the prompts it\u2019s been given.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
As I\u2019m writing this, the most coherent ones are the famed ChatGPT, Jasper AI<\/a> and Copy.ai<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Businesses have been using AI to generate copy for all sorts of marketing communications \u2013 from website copy and product descriptions to blog posts to sales emails.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
But should they?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 5 downsides to using an AI copywriter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Getting copy in an instant seems like a really appealing prospect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I\u2019m willing to try anything that can give my business a positive boost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But when it comes to AI, I just can\u2019t swallow the \u201cIt\u2019s great!\u201d line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And here\u2019s why.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Prompting is time consuming<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
One of the biggest arguments for using AI-generated copy is that it will save you time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But from personal experience that hasn\u2019t been the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just getting the prompts right is hard, partly because we\u2019re using these tools to fix the problem of not knowing what to write.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Senior copywriter Glenn Murray\u2019s comment in his AI copywriting article<\/a> sums it up nicely:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been a copywriter for 21 years, and I\u2019ve worked with about a thousand clients. And not a single one of them was even able to articulate what they\u00a0wanted, let alone what needed to be said in order to achieve that outcome. (Indeed, most couldn\u2019t even articulate\u00a0kinda\u00a0what they wanted!)\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
This has often been my experience as well, which is why I work with a (very human) copywriter<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Getting my ideas out of my head and onto the briefing form isn\u2019t always easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s why I rely on the copywriter. I need them <\/em>to prompt me<\/em>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve worked with about a thousand clients. And not a single one of them was even able to articulate what they\u00a0wanted.\u201d \u2013 Glenn Murray, senior copywriter<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
When I started experimenting with AI copy bots, I quickly realized that getting lengthy pieces of copy out of them (such as blog posts) isn\u2019t an option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Generating simple email subject lines is more promising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But it still takes me 15-20 minutes to get anything remotely close to what I want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And even then I end up cutting and chopping the suggestions because there isn\u2019t a single one I like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It really isn\u2019t the miracle time-saving tool I\u2019d been led to believe.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. There\u2019s little room for feedback<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Working with a copywriter is a collaborative process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The copy almost always needs to be tweaked.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whether it\u2019s swapping a single word, restructuring the piece, or cutting whole paragraphs, there\u2019s always something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Explaining this to my copywriter takes half an hour at most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I highlight the bit I don\u2019t like, leave a comment, and then put it in their capable hands to fix.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Getting a bot to understand the changes I want is nowhere near as easy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
To give the best copywriting feedback<\/a>, it\u2019s important to sit on the copy for a few days and read it multiple times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But more often than not the bot has moved on by the time I\u2019m ready to give my feedback, whereas my copywriter still has my project front of mind.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
This makes it easier (and quicker) to provide comments and get the copy I want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. The copy looks ugly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Readability affects the user\u2019s experience<\/a>, making it an indirect ranking factor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I\u2019ve gotta say, these AI copywriters don\u2019t seem interested in making their copy easy to read.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Horrendously long sentences, titles that always include a colon, and formulaic prose<\/a> makes the copy they spit out hard to digest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bots may not have to breathe or look at the copy, but we do!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course you\u2019d format the copy before you serve it up to your clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But that\u2019s another step you<\/em> have to take, and one a copywriter or editor can handle for you immediately (usually without you even needing to ask).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/a>Src: SEMrush<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. Everyone\u2019s a fan<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Okay, maybe not everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But a lot<\/em> of marketers and businesses are using ChatGPT and its counterparts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And so it won\u2019t take long for AI-generated copy to become very samey, very boring, and very easy to spot.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A lot of marketers and businesses are using ChatGPT and its counterparts. And so it won\u2019t take long for AI-generated copy to become very samey, very boring, and very easy to spot.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Part of the problem is that AI copywriters can only scrape what already exists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their \u2018new\u2019 copy is just a rehash of what\u2019s already out there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m not saying everything humans do is always original.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But our ability to be exposed to new experiences allows us to think about topics and subjects in ways that robots simply can\u2019t achieve.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When it comes to challenging the idea that copy bots lack the creativity and emotion needed to make marketing copy stand out, some writers have already gone head-to-head with an AI writer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And the side-by-side comparisons are stark.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dave Harland shared a great example of what happened when writing copy for a clockmaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He walked us through the revision process with a client for context, and then gave the same brief he was given to ChatGPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Check out his newsletter to see the results<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. AI can\u2019t be trusted<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
From tricking members of TaskRabbit into completing CAPTCHA<\/a> codes to inventing court cases<\/a>, ChatGPT is proving to be somewhat unreliable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And that could spell danger for your business and marketing efforts.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Publishing plagiarized copy and falsehoods could land you in a legal quandary, or damage your brand\u2019s reputation.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you use an AI copywriter you\u2019ll need to fact-check everything it spits out before you publish it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Granted, you should do this when working with a new copywriter anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But when you work with a human you get to know each other and develop a trusting relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And as that trust grows, you may be able to ease up on the fact-checking and leave it in their capable hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who knows when this might be possible with ChatGPT?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fact it relies on scraping the internet, which we know is full of misinformation, means this issue may not be solved anytime soon.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Resting on your laurels won\u2019t be an option if this is your only copywriter.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The advantages of using AI<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As you\u2019re reading this, you may be\u00a0thinking I\u2019m just a grumpy digital marketer who\u2019s worried about AI stealing her job. (I\u2019m none of those things.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So in the spirit of balance, let\u2019s look at the other side of the argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because if so many people are championing this technology it has to be good for something, right?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. It\u2019s great for small, simple tasks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Asking it to generate headlines, short captions, simple instructions, or even fun bedtime stories for your kids<\/a>, are all good examples of when an AI copywriter can save you time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These are the sorts of tasks where you need something quick, easy, and on the nose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And it\u2019s basic enough that you don\u2019t need to spend time editing or tweaking the copy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asking an AI copywriter to generate headlines, short captions, and simple instructions are good examples of when these tools can save you time.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
2. It\u2019s affordable<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The cost of outsourcing creative tasks is a barrier for many small businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s face it: good designers, writers, and social media creatives don\u2019t come cheap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
ChatGPT is a far more affordable option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So when it comes to spending, human creatives simply cannot compete with the bots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For new and emerging businesses, the content an AI copywriter can generate to help them get off the ground is appealing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just make sure you invest some of your time<\/em> to check the copy before publishing it.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. It’s good enough<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s a phrase I hear a lot of AI positive marketers use: \u201cThe copy is good enough.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They\u2019re not wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But it\u2019s such a backhanded compliment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If the bots had feelings, I\u2019m sure they\u2019d have a little cry about it too.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just because a piece of copy makes sense and is passable doesn\u2019t mean you should use it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read it through, put yourself in the position of your target audience, and be honest about whether it will encourage your client or customer to take whatever action you want them to take.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. It’s being adopted by lots of marketers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A lot of marketers and copywriters are adopting AI and finding ways to work with it rather than against it (or perhaps in fear of it).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having a group of marketers put the tools through the mill is great to see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sadly, they never seem to tell the whole story, and often decide to jump on a bandwagon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having used the tools myself, I think it\u2019s true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m just not experiencing what they\u2019re promising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, something is amiss, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rather than buy into bro marketers who swear by AI, I\u2019ll simply point you in the direction of Ami at Damn Write<\/a> for a more balanced AI positive copywriting viewpoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My advice? Don\u2019t give up on the humans just yet<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
With so much hype around AI copywriters, and ChatGPT becoming increasingly sophisticated, it\u2019s hard not to at least give it a spin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I certainly have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And there have been moments when it\u2019s been useful and fun to use.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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