Copywriting

 

If your content isn’t creative, it’s not worth bothering with.

How can you make it creative? I hear you ask. The answer is simple: write it the old-fashioned way—without the aid of AI.

The ‘Godfather of AI’, Geoffrey Hinton, may well have won the Nobel Prize in Physics, but even he is said to be “increasingly wary of AI’s rapid evolution, particularly regarding the technology’s ethical implications and unforeseen consequences (such as its influence on society and job displacement).”

I was wrong about AI

I have been a freelance copywriter since 2007. From humble beginnings, my client list has blossomed to include some of the great corporations of our time in areas such as insurance, finance, Saas, investments, communications, and renewables, to name just a few.

When the first rumblings of AI began, I was convinced that businesses worldwide wouldn’t be fooled by using AI to create content. As a technology, it can never replace the creativity and unique experience a human writer can bring to a project.

But I was wrong – not about that last part; AI can never replace the uniqueness of a human writer. But I forgot to factor in the financial implications.

Because companies are so focused on the bottom line, freelance copywriters all over the country (and the world) are falling by the wayside. Years of experience are being lost to the rise of AI.

At what cost?

Creativity. Empathy. Insight. Resonance. The human touch.

What does AI-generated content do?

The answer to that is not a lot. It certainly doesn’t add value (IMHO).

AI-generated content

It’s not unique to you, it’s not your authentic voice, and frankly, it’s vanilla content that is just there for Google rather than your readers.

In the world of art, it would be a paint-by-number picture as opposed to a masterpiece because it lacks all the elements human copywriting has:

  • Human experience
  • Empathy
  • Creativity
  • Nuance
  • The human eye for detail and quality

The result is dull, lifeless copy that doesn’t add value to your readers.

But AI’s cheap. Isn’t it?

If you compare the cost of articles written by a freelance copywriter and an AI tool, AI is cheaper. But do you really want to sacrifice quality and your brand’s reputation to save money?

Engage

In fact, a survey by Hootsuite discovered that 62% of consumers are less likely to engage with and trust content created by an AI application.

This lack of engagement is particularly relevant if you look at it from an SEO (Search engine optimisation) perspective. Google penalises websites that use unoriginal and low-quality content. So, if you want to maintain high engagement and trust, you must use a freelance copywriter.

Human-to-human connections are the most powerful

There is no one better placed to write content for your consumers than a human copywriter.

They will use their experience, empathy, deep understanding of your audience, and humanity to create original content that builds trust. They can write within your brand guidelines and even suggest new approaches and techniques to give your marketing content the edge in your crowded marketplace.

Stop the flood of AI-generated homogenous content that’s saturating the internet. Instead, opt for the unique, empathetic, and creative human face of copywriting.

Sally Ormond, freelance copywriter