The future is here. Computers can now use artificial intelligence (AI) to write content for everything from social posts and blogs to videos and advertisements. So, is our copy team shaking in its collective boots? Not so much. Here, we explain why AI copywriting will not be replacing human copywriters anytime soon.
It’s All About Soul
Despite what you may see in movies—from Disney’s Robots to the new Tom Hanks movie, Finch, on Apple TV— robots don’t have feelings. They aren’t emotional or creative or personable. Without getting into a lot of technical detail, AI copywriting software uses machine learning and algorithms to search through online content on specific topics and then generates new content based on what it finds.
What that means is that the copy these programs generate isn’t new; it’s just newly written. It doesn’t put forth new or unique thoughts that help to distinguish your brand. Even worse, the copy may not even be logical or factual, follow the rules of grammar and punctuation, or even be able to pass a plagiarism test.
Writers like ours take the time to get to know your brand, well beyond its products or services. We do our research but also learn directly from you about what sets your company apart, so that we can weave your value proposition throughout your messaging. Further, we take time to learn your style, voice and tone, and carry it through all the content we write for you.
Computers are also not strategic, something our team excels at. We may be writing a blog about a new product or service, and we’ll repurpose that content across multiple platforms—such as a series of social posts, a press release or media pitch, a video script, ad or eblast—giving you more for your money and ensuring that all components work together to get results.
You Get What You Give
Human copywriter expertise is still required when working with AI copywriting programs. You have to input in the appropriate parameters, providing enough information to get content you can really use.
It’s also key to edit and fine-tune the copy you get back. Allow time to fact check, fine tune and tweak the copy before it’s ready for publication, all tasks that require copywriting expertise.
Keep in mind that each round of revisions you make with an AI system uses up your allotted credits. With most AI copywriting systems, you pay for a monthly package that comes with a word limit or a certain number of credits, which includes edits. If you have multiple users on your account, this can be hard to track, and you can quickly reach your limit. Once you do, you either have to upgrade to a higher package or pay additional one-time fees to complete monthly projects. And if you don’t use your allotted words or credits for the month, they usually don’t roll over. This can make a relatively low monthly cost escalate quickly, a common complaint in some of the reviews we read online.
The Human Touch
At the end of the day, your very human customers want to feel like they are interacting with other humans, something AI technology can’t achieve on its own. It can provide a good starting point, help you find angles or approaches you may not have thought of, or even turn out decent short form copy for things like social posts or online ads. Short copy crafting aside, you still need a human copywriter, even if only to review and edit prior to publication.
Many of the reviews by writers who use the various AI copywriting programs note that they are able to writer faster when they start with AI-generated content and that it can help them overcome writer’s block. But they also note that human effort is still required; you can’t just push a couple buttons and expect great copy that’s ready for publication.
Our experienced copywriters add a depth and breadth of creativity, feeling and expertise that computers will never be able to offer. While we aren’t perfect (we’re only human, after all), we pride ourselves on creating compelling, original content that drives results.
Don’t limit yourself to content generated from other content; our team will help you stand out in all the best ways. Let’s get started.