It’s Not Just a Formula — It’s a Dead Giveaway

Copywriting Isn’t Art, But There Is an Art to Great Copywriting

It’s not just a cliché sentence structure — it’s a telltale sign of AI-generated content.

You’ve seen this, right? This style of sentence is everywhere lately. Facebook comments, LinkedIn posts, and newsletters, all rife with “it’s not x it’s y”-style introductions, followed by a paragraph or two of context, and an emoji bulleted list. 

*Sigh*

Listen, I’m not here to rant about AI-written content. I promise. 

To be perfectly honest, talking about AI has become…kinda boring. 

Too much hype. Not enough substance.

I’m less interested in debating whether or not AI is the end of times vs. the second coming, and more focused on how people are choosing to use it at the current moment, and what that’s signaling to their intended audiences. 

There Is Inherent Value To Your Humanity (Even Its Flaws)

In the marketing world, we talk a lot about originality and authenticity, and while those ideas themselves can get a little murky and tiresome, there is something in there that’s worth striving for: The act of sharing your unique perspective, because unique perspectives have value. 

This is an area where the oversaturation of AI-generated content concerns me. It often feels lazy. Formulaic. Lacking perspective.

I want to learn new things. Go down rabbit holes of information and climb out with a head full of fresh ideas and new curiosities to explore.

When I see the “it’s not x it’s y” construction, my interest almost immediately deflates. I become distracted. I start looking for other signs that this was written by an LLM. I’m no longer reading to learn. Now I’m looking for clues.

And listen, I get it — I completely understand the urge to use tools like ChatGPT for brainstorming and research and the like, but for actual content creation? 

It just doesn’t jive with me. Maybe it’s a matter of preference. 

But I also feel that the act of writing is where the internal exploration of ideas often takes place. I have an idea, or at least I think I do, but I realize how half-formed my ideas are once I actually have to articulate it in the written word. 

I want us to embrace tools that foster deeper thinking and clearer communication. In my opinion, those are the spaces where new ideas are born. But I like writing. I like to read what others have written. 

Do We Really Know the Difference Between Human- and AI-Generated Content?

There was a recent New York Times article, entitled “Who’s a Better Writer: A.I. or Humans?” that I found fascinating. It’s well-worth reading. (And a quiz worth taking.)

I chose the human-written language every time, not because I was looking for the human-written prose, but because that was the writing that spoke to me. 

In my reading of the text, the AI content was flatter, where the content written by a person was just a little bit funkier, eschewing the rules of grammar and punctuation when it served the piece. 

I know I’m veering into “music sounds better on vinyl” territory here when it comes to person vs. AI-generated text, but my point is that AI is a tool. It can be used thoughtfully or carelessly. And I don’t want to fill the world with careless words.

As a writer, marketer, creative — whatever label you wanna use — I’m searching for those “a-ha” moments that inspire me to keep chipping away at an idea, because I know if I’m moved, that it’s going to connect with other people, too. That’s the goal. To turn on the lights. To pluck the heartstrings. Not in a manipulative way. To reassure that there’s a real person on both ends of this exchange. 

My fear is that we’re so concerned about being “first to market” that we’re not clearly considering the downstream effects these tools might have.

Is AI helping or hindering teams to do their best work?

Are we solving the problems of consumers, or are we serving them something they didn’t ask for and don’t ultimately need? 

Of course, there’s no single answer. Time will tell.

Maybe it boils down to this: Who do you trust? What do you value? What does quality mean to you, and who do you feel is most capable of delivering it to you?

Your answers will tell you everything you need to know. 

Interested in learning more about how you can get original, effective content that people and traditional & AI search loves? Contact us! We’d love help you achieve your goals.