Exploring the Role of Generative AI in Copywriting

This blog is part of a three-part series on the potential uses of AI in B2B content marketing. Accelity team members are currently exploring available tools and how they can help us best serve our clients.

When you think of using AI tools for marketing, perhaps the first thing you think of is how to use them for writing projects. If students are using it for their homework, marketers are using it for their assignments too, right?

Yes and no. While AI tools like ChatGPT can whip up a blog post (using your target keywords and in the brand voice) in a matter of seconds it… still sounds like a robot wrote it. So while AI isn’t coming for our jobs (at least any time soon), there are still some really cool ways it’s helping us to write stronger copy.

Join us as we share what we’ve learned about the AI tools available to copywriters, how we can use them to optimize client work, and when it’s best to stick to good old-fashioned human copywriters. 

Tools our Copy team is testing

• ChatGPT: The freemium chatbot developed by OpenAI and the most popular AI tool since its launch in November 2022. With the right prompt, ChatGPT can do anything from writing an ebook to planning the perfect vacation itinerary. 
• Copy.ai: The tool I was using before ChatGPT. Because Copy.ai is specifically marketing focused, its templates, prompts, and outputs are much more helpful. Users can generate only a certain number of words for free each month. 
• Simplified: Simplified is an AI tool for content creators, not just copywriters. It has dozens of templates for generating email, social, web copy and more. (I use it when I run out of my free credits on Copy.ai). 
• HubSpot AI: This is a new feature still in beta and powered by OpenAI. Since we’re a HubSpot marketing agency our team has slowly been getting access to see how we can use it with our clients (stay tuned!). 
• GrammarlyGO: Grammarly’s AI has been powering our copy for years by suggesting edits for clearing writing. It just launched an AI feature to help with rewrites, voice changes, cuts and other improvements. 

4 ways copywriters can use AI for content marketing

1. Outlining blogs and long-form content

The worst part about writing content, especially long-form content, is staring at the cursor on your screen when trying to get started. AI can kickstart your momentum by coming up with an outline and filling in subtopics for each section. It often provides a solid framework copywriters can build from. 

2. Generate multiple variations of copy

Copywriters know all too well that when you’re writing a campaign, you say the same things OVER and OVER. While that can be good—prospects need to see a message multiple times for it to be effective—it can also be repetitive. AI can help writers come up with fresh new ways to state a message. 

3. Rewrite copy in a different voice

Just because we work with B2B SaaS doesn’t mean it has to be B2Boring. Our clients each have their own unique voice, and AI tools can help rewrite copy to fit different brands. However, AI doesn’t understand humor very well. (Have you ever asked Siri or Alexa to tell you a joke?) So while these tools can’t fully capture writing as your client, they can give you some ideas for making copy more engaging. See the example below. 

Let us help you win more clients. Schedule a demo today.  

4. Brainstorm headlines, subject lines and microcopy

Writing 1,000 words on the challenges insurance agencies face when they rely on manual processes? Easy enough. Coming up with an eye-catching headline for that blog? The hardest part. AI can help with the brainstorming and include the necessary keywords too. 

You can see the titles ChatGPT suggested for this blog post above. There are some solid choices, but we ultimately chose “Exploring the Role of Generative AI in Copywriting.” ChatGPT usually LOVES a subtitle, which can make a title pretty lengthy; plus, we didn’t want to make it seem like the blog would be a full endorsement of using AI (see the next section). 

How NOT to use AI in copywriting

We’re all learning here! There are many great potential uses for AI in copywriting, but before you fire your copy team, here’s what you need to know. 

AI does not know about recent events. 

AI is pretty limited in its knowledge of current events. If you’re writing about how proposed legislation could impact your audience, for example, it’s not going to be able to help you. Need a basic overview of Abraham Lincoln’s biography? Sure. Need to know how the most recent unemployment numbers are impacting your sector? AI can’t help. 

AI will not create novel or unique ideas.

Whether you’re a CEO trying to find a faster way to write marketing emails or a marketing director looking for ad campaign ideas, AI can only get your started. It might think of something you didn’t, but because it’s based on existing content, it got its ideas from someone who already thought of it (that’s a whole ‘nother can of worms). It’s up to you to take that inspiration and make it sound new to fit your brand. 

AI lacks the human touch. 

Sorry CFOs, you still need people. People are much better than robots at understanding emotions, sarcasm, tone, brand, and other nuances. These subtleties are what make great marketing campaigns so effective: they resonate with the audience on a human level. AI can help you get started with brainstorming (learn more about that in our campaign strategy post), but it’s up to the copywriter to choose the right words to drive the message home. 

Conclusion: It’s a start

In conclusion, generative AI has the potential to revolutionize B2B copywriting. With the ability to quickly produce large amounts of text and automate repetitive tasks, it can save time and increase productivity for copywriters. AI-powered tools can also help generate creative and engaging content, while still allowing for human input and oversight. However, it’s important to remember that AI-generated copy is not a one-size-fits-all solution. There are still scenarios where human writers may be better suited for the task. By using AI in conjunction with human writers and understanding its limitations, businesses can leverage the power of AI to improve their B2B copywriting and stay ahead in a competitive market. The future of B2B copywriting is looking bright with the help of generative AI.

^ ChatGPT wrote that. It’s not how I would’ve concluded; I would keep it shorter and not spend so much time repeating the blog. It’s also not the main takeaway from the blog, but I’m not surprised the robot assumes it’s making my future look bright. 

So, what do we think? AI is a great tool for helping copywriters get started on writing tasks, but good marketing still demands the human element to resonate with the target audience: humans.