Yes, You Can Still Find Success as a Copywriter in 2023

While it was technically unveiled at the tail end of 2022, the ChatGPT AI chatbot has absolutely dominated tech and business headlines this year. So much so that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration at all to call 2023 the year artificial intelligence finally flipped from the stuff of science fiction and the distant future into a legitimate asset humans can make use of today. 

Indeed, the future crept up on all of us while we were preoccupied with a pandemic, and now it seems we’ve already entered the age of automation. ChatGPT’s unbelievable capacity to produce unique responses and logical, largely readable content within mere seconds in response to written prompts is an undeniably fantastic feat of modern technology. That being said, the meteoric and rapid adoption of AI in recent months has left many human professionals wondering if their jobs, and perhaps even entire careers, have suddenly become redundant.

Copywriting: A career choice in danger of extinction?

Chief among concerned career paths is the copywriting industry. If ChatGPT can create articles on virtually anything within mere moments for free, where does that leave human writers who will need at least a few hours and monetary compensation to produce an article on the same topic?  

Copywriters’ fears in regards to the rise of AI chatbots are absolutely valid to a certain extent, but before we dive into why copywriting will almost certainly remain a human-dominated domain in the years to come, let’s talk about exactly what a copywriter does in the first place. Copywriters, generally, work to produce written content that targets a specific audience or group of consumers. In most cases, the content is intended for either marketing or promotional purposes. 

The verbiage and messaging seen in marketing emails, online blogs, press releases, and TV/online ads are usually written by copywriters. Put another way, a great copywriter knows how to lend a consistent “voice” to their company. Copywriters familiarize themselves with their company’s identity, and then work to ensure written content across all of its channels remain consistent with that branding.

AI is convenient, but lacks creativity

Now that we’ve established the role of a copywriter, that brings us to our next nagging question. Can AI really produce content just as compelling as a human copywriter? All indicators point to the same conclusion: No! ChatGPT may be great at quickly putting together coherent responses to questions, but AI chat bots still miss the mark by a wide margin when it comes to understanding human writing as opposed to simply mimicking it.

While an average piece of content written by a human copywriter probably isn’t going to hold a candle to Whitman or Poe, even branded written content intended largely for promotional materials require a certain amount of subtlety. And, while AI algorithms like ChatGPT are clearly capable of producing unique content, such programs still have a very long way to go when it comes to actually writing in a way that appeals to the human condition and perceptions. AI can pull endless information from the world wide web, but none of that data will supply the same level of empathy, creativity, and warmth a human writer can sprinkle into their work.

Meanwhile, another key aspect of copywriting in which AI falls short is humor. Consider for a moment how many of your favorite products or companies have used sarcasm or humor in their branding, commercials, etc. Humor is a major aspect of appealing to consumers of all kinds, but current AI models still aren’t capable of grasping the nuances of human humor. A recent study conducted at Cornell University asked AI models to choose the right captions for various New Yorker cartoons and explain why the scenarios were funny, but the algorithms struggled mightily to grasp the humorous scenes.

AI as a copywriting asset

It’s natural for copywriters, and any number of other professionals working in fields like graphic design or customer service, to be wary of AI and the effect it may have on their job prospects in the future. While no one can predict what will happen decades down the line, AI is much more of an asset for copywriters than a threat nowadays. 

Relying on ChatGPT to produce content totally on its own would be a big mistake. It’s been well documented that ChatGPT often makes errors and produces inaccurate or flatout misleading content. Content written by AI should absolutely always be reviewed and edited by a pair of human eyes. 

That being said, there’s no reason copywriters can’t take advantage of chatbots to make their working lives a little easier. ChatGPT and other AI programs can help copywriters perform relevant topic research, sculpt rough first drafts, and perform data analyses focusing on targeted audiences. Alternatively, a copywriter may want to use AI to help with more straightforward tasks like creating headlines or producing product descriptions. This approach frees up the human writer to focus on content that requires more nuance. 

Rumors of copywriting’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. If anything, the AI programs available today can help human copywriters produce more compelling work in a shorter time. If you’re ready to begin your own copywriting journey, start browsing Ladders’ job filter today.