I’ve recently completed a six-month project. To get there, I consulted more than 30 people and benchmarked my ideas against six other organisations. The deliverables included a site review, two brochures, a range of spreadsheet forms, and an 8,000-word report giving the justification for my changes. The next step is a Board meeting to discuss it.
I’m hoping that all the effort I’ve put in means the work will be waved through.
That was a one-off. My regular clients include executive coaches, solicitors and a financial planner, plus a covered car transport company and a private security firm.
For all of them, I do a lot more than pure copywriting.
I design sitemaps, source images, do research, upload content to their blog and newsletter systems, keep them on track with their publication calendar, advise on branding and tone of voice, liaise with specialists such as web designers and SEO experts… and so it goes on.
Oh, and we usually have a bit of a laugh when we have our regular briefing calls.
If you think all that could be replaced by Chat GPT, think again.
Proper copywriting isn’t going anywhere.
Garbage in, garbage out
The quality of work you get from your copywriter depends on the quality of the information you give them. (That’s why my quotes are based on the brief I receive, not on the work I deliver.)
Similarly, the quality of work you get from a generative AI tool depends on the prompt you give it. Prompt engineering has rapidly become a job in itself.
At least a copywriter can ask questions to fill in gaps and check their understanding. Gen AI doesn’t do that.
Also, AI presents false information as if it’s true, so you have to fact-check what it produces.
You might have read that generative AI systems are starting to regurgitate their own regurgitated content. It’s already begun – see The Register AI model collapse. And AI hallucinations are getting worse, according to the New Scientist.
At this rate, GenAI will soon disappear up its own pixels.
What else?
All work and no play makes Jackie a dull girl. To be a balanced human isn’t just about work. So here are some of the other things I’ve done this month:
- I attended a garden party that included a tiddlywinks quiz
- I went to a Northern Soul gig at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, and saw Matthew Bourne’s latest ballet at Sadler’s Wells
- My choir sang songs about air and flying, to raise money for the Air Ambulance Service
- I tried a line-dancing class (didn’t like it)
- I danced jazz-style to the Eurhythmics in my usual dance class (loved that)
- I did a plein air watercolour painting in the local park
Coming soon…
- My improv team is performing a comedy show in London
- I’m due to judge a professional speaking competition
- I’m spending a few days in Devon with the family
I’m a human being not a human doing. And all this creative activity means I have a broad range of experience to draw on in the copywriting I do for clients.
P.S. I recently discovered that my eyesight has changed a bit so I ordered some new spectacles. I might look a bit different next time you see me.