Why Smart Companies Don't Trust ChatGPT

Never underestimate the power of your web copy. Time and again, we see how the right words can transform a vanity project into a high-performing marketing tool.

*Enter Copywriter*

We highly recommend our exceptional content creator, Jess Dunbar, who has been our go-to for standout copy for over a decade. Her spot-on insights and impactful writing can elevate any project to the next level. But with AI on the rise, what does the future hold for copywriters?

Jess has penned a fantastic piece on why you should be cautious about letting AI take over your marketing communications – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

 

Who hasn’t had a go at asking Chat GPT to take on some of their workload? It’s intriguing, it’s easy, it saves time – and it’s everywhere. Everyone is doing it. Surely we’re missing a trick not to lean on new technology in the workplace?

Well, the answer isn’t quite that easy.

Chat GPT is excellent at some things (and let’s not forget, it’s just one of many AI copy generation tools):

  • It’s clever with code – if coding is part of your job, AI can assist with troubleshooting, because it provides instant answers and useful snippets. This saves time compared with trawling search engines and forum threads for help.  
  • It’s a great research tool – scanning the web in seconds, you can generate huge quantities of relevant background research without sweating over your keyboard
  • It offers a great springboard into producing a whole variety of documentation – writing a tricky letter, creating a presentation or need to know how to word a cost/benefit analysis? AI will give you a great framework to adapt to the job, kick starting your task and providing an easy-to-follow guide.


So, hands up – we can all benefit from aspects of tools like Chat GPT.

But, it can’t sell. It’s not “real enough” to produce compelling content which converts. The lack of a human tone of voice throws a mental red flag at the reader – often entirely unconsciously. And that’s just one thing.

Let me give you 5 other reasons to be very wary of letting AI loose on your marketing comms.

 

You can’t trust it

This is key. Yes, it’s great for research, but if you use any of that content, always fact check it first. That’s because Chat GPT and its pals literally “make up facts” due to the way it uses word prediction to formulate sentences. That makes using AI seriously risky business.

 

It will never understand your audience

Sophisticated as it is, AI technology lacks nuance and basic human emotion. The most important part of marketing is a true understanding of your audience – their wants and needs, their pain points and barriers. ChatGPT will be blithely unaware of all this detail – making its marketing copy banal and lifeless.

 

It won’t add value

AI writing tools will only ever work with what you give it. A copywriter should provide a valued partnership where objective perspectives into your business raise valuable and pertinent questions. Copywriters are a second mind on the matter, able to bring new revelations and ideas, or challenge internal perceptions. A computer just can’t bring that added value.

 

You may dilute or damage your brand

The risk of publishing untruths under your brand name is certainly not worth the gamble – but there’s a second damaging side effect. Generic copy is flooding the marketplace, due to competitors all searching for similar output from content generators. When you spend so much time creating your brand and cornering your share of the market, why would you want to homogenise your output?

 

You’ll be complicit in rewriting history

OK so this is more of a moral dilemma, and perhaps you prize progress above all. But personally I find it deeply disturbing to think of the vast quantities of unchecked content flooding the internet, and our archives. Don’t forget – AI generators mine those archives to produce more content, so mistakes are multiplied. And before you know it, these errors become “fact” because, of course, multiple sources suggest credibility. Just as we see with fake news, we risk entering a minefield where we no longer know whether to believe trusted brands, or indeed feel we can identify fact from fiction.

Now I’m an ex-journalist so it goes against my principles not to allow a right of reply – so I asked ChatGPT for its opinion: can it really hold its own against a human brain?

Interestingly, despite asking after writing the rest of this post, it neatly summarised my points, answering: “While ChatGPT is a powerful tool for content generation and can handle many tasks efficiently, it is not a complete replacement for human copywriters, especially when high levels of creativity, emotional resonance, and nuanced understanding are required. The best approach often involves a combination of both, leveraging the strengths of each to produce high-quality content.”

Balanced but on the fence, I’d say. I tried a more direct question. Here’s what happened:

I’ll let it have the final word – but if you need a human to rein in the robots, get in touch – jess@jessdunbar.com