AI-Generated vs Human-Written Copy: Where Should You Invest?
As a copywriter for the last decade, I found the emergence of AI-generated copy at first a bit scary. Thoughts like, “Will it replace me?” unwillingly crept in, but I suppose the same can be said across the digital marketing industry entirely.
Then, I took a step back and thought, how can it help a digital creator like me create a copy – can it work with me rather than against me? But after trying it and testing it numerous times, I was hugely disappointed (and honestly relieved). There’s still a long way to go.
Is it really a game-changer?
The beauty of written copy is that it evokes emotion and comes from human thought and experiences. AI-generated copy, as fast and easy as it is to produce, has no human touch and cannot truly write influential and engaging copy. It does not have a human experience and cannot touch on pain points essential for marketing and encouraging sales.
More than this, its copy lacks critical elegance and often uses out-of-place, strange words and vocabulary. I can’t help but feel it’s similar to pieces outsourced to countries where English is not the first language.
But as it learns, who knows where AI will go? For now, in my professional editorial opinion, it’s not ready to replace human copy entirely, and at the moment, all I can see is how it’s going to cause more problems than it’s going to solve.
My advice to businesses who want to take shortcuts, it to use AI to research for you, but not to generate your written copy.
I can’t think of any successful businesses that took the short path to success. Littering your website with poor content will only cost you more money in the long run when you have to pay for a copy editor or writer to go through and salvage what they can. It’s best to invest in good copy from the get-go, especially when it comes to writing local search copy to attract customers close to where you are based.
What AI-generated copy can do:
- Create content at speed
- Crawl the internet faster than any human eye
- Has a vast pool of resources (although biased)
- More
What it lacks:
- Emotional depth
- Imaginative flair
- Knowledge of the human experience and condition
- Real-life marketing expertise
- High-ranking ability
- Google loves to hate AI
Example of AI-generated copy vs human copy
To see the difference, we’ve asked AI to generate 100 words on how marketing can help businesses make money.
We’ll copy its response below and then craft one ourselves.
Marketing is pivotal in boosting business sales by creating brand awareness, engaging customers, and generating leads. Firstly, it establishes a strong brand identity through consistent messaging and creative content, making a business recognizable and memorable. This, in turn, fosters trust and loyalty among customers. Effective marketing strategies also target specific demographics, reaching the right audience at the right time, which increases the likelihood of conversion.
Social media platforms, email campaigns, and content marketing are powerful tools for nurturing leads and turning them into customers. Moreover, marketing can leverage data and analytics to optimize campaigns, identify consumer trends, and refine product offerings, resulting in improved sales performance. It fosters community, encouraging customers to advocate for the brand and leading to organic referrals. Overall, marketing is the driving force behind business growth, propelling sales upward and ensuring long-term success.
2025 Estimated Conversion Ratios
- AI-Generated Copy: Average CTR of 3.8%, engagement rate of 12.7%.
- Human-Written Copy: Average CTR of 4.5%, engagement rate of 15.3%.
Here’s how we would do it:
Marketing, mainly digital, is an indispensable tool in your arsenal for success. It will be the driving factor that keeps your business alive and relevant.
If you’re not marketing yourself online, your business is not visible, so attracting new customers to boost sales consistently will be challenging without making noise in the digital space.
We understand that start-ups’ marketing budgets are tight or often non-existent, but it’s the one asset you should make room for if you want your business to take off faster and become sustainable.
When you start making money, you can invest in all the other areas that require your business to run more efficiently.
Which one do you prefer?
Which one would you pay for? We know what we would instead do and what helps our clients earn money and rank higher on Google.
As trained professionals, we have the vocabulary and understanding that Google looks for when ranking pages on the first page. See our case studies for proof.