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The Future of SEO & Content: Can AI Replace Human Writers?
It’s another #futurefriday!
Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute, recently hit us with this little nugget:
“In 10 years the majority of content will be generated by software. In 20 years, humans will wonder why we wasted so much time on content creation. I can’t see any other way around this.”
Pretty bold statement. But, is it true? Julia McCoy from Search Engine Journal decided to find out.
She started by examining some AI tech that’s already producing content:
Washington Post’s Heliograph
The Post created a bot to handle boring, but necessary, reporting. It writes the sort of things no reporter wants to waste time on — like high school football stats, automated earnings reports, etc. And it works well. In 2017, it created 850 articles for the Post.
One downside: It’s proprietary and probably cost 7-figures to build.
Quill
This AI tool is similar to The Post’s bot, but it’s available for the mass market. Quill’s strength is taking data and turning it into content. The content it creates isn’t really engaging, but it can be helpful with explaining your data.
The other downside? Price. It costs around $70k per year.
Sensing a common theme here? Yeah, AI can create content, but it’s mostly limited to data analysis and other boring tasks.
Here’s why you shouldn’t worry about AI taking your job:
- Robots can’t replace your ‘voice’. No matter how good robots get at writing, its unlikely they’ll be able to add personality, or brand voice, to a piece of content in the near future.
- AI isn’t relatable or authentic. Why is influencer marketing more effective than advertisements? Authenticity. The same goes for robots. Would you rather read a blog post about rock climbing at Red Rocks written by a robot, or by someone who has actually done it? We’ll take the latter 8 days a week.
Our view: AI isn’t replacing content creation any time soon. It will, however, probably become better marketers by providing insight into our data that we can turn into content.
Take the jump for more insights, and examples, from SEJ…
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Secrets the Pros Use to Create Great Facebook Ad Design
Secret, secret, I’ve got a secret…🎶
Well, AdEspresso does at least, not so much us (or Mr. Roboto). In fact, AdEspresso is coming at us with not one, but twenty-two, secrets on Facebook ad design that will give your campaigns the boost they need.
1. Test Multiple Designs…like always. AdEspresso recommends a 2 x 2 variation. For every campaign, you should test two different images with two different copy texts. That’s at least 4 different ad designs.
Other things to be wary of are ad fatigue and high ad frequency. Both can decrease ad effectiveness so it’s important to keep things fresh.
3. Add social proof to eliminate fear. Consumers will resist buying products from fear of spending money and buyers remorse. Testimonials work like a charm to combat this fear.
6. Address the logical and emotional. We are emotional creatures. So, while listing your product’s features may appeal to the rational side, it does nothing emotionally.
Instead, use images with smiling faces or relaxed atmosphere. And, try listing emotional benefits like “Spend less time vacuuming on Sunday and more time cheering on your favorite team.”
8. Pick the right placement. How many of you choose automatic placement for FB ads and call it a day? Well, that may not be the best strategy. AdEspresso says:
- Desktop Newsfeed is great for engagement and generating sales & leads. It supports longer copy and link description.
- Desktop Right Column is less effective but cheaper. Images are smaller and text less readable. This works well for retargeting users who already know your brand. Just use an image they’ll recognize.
- Mobile Newsfeed is great for engagement & mobile app installs. The copy is shorter, so be careful. While conversion rates on mobile are often deceptive, mobile is great for discovery. Then users will buy it the next day on their desktop.
17. Along with picking the right placement, you’ll also want to use multiple formats. Carousel, collection, canvas, and so on. When matched correctly, format and placement can get you serious exposure.
Still more secrets to uncover…👇
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Can We Go Thrift Shopping?
Like rapper Macklemore, we love a good trip to the thrift shop.
You know how it goes, you walk in without really planning on buying anything, and then you find a perfectly weird coffee mug. You just gotta buy it. It’s only two bucks.
Here’s something you might not have known about your $2 Goodwill purchase:
Your money goes toward job training and placement programs for your community. So really, your whole community should celebrate when you buy that perfectly weird coffee mug.
And, in Goodwill’s newest ad, the whole community does celebrate when a woman makes a purchase. This ad is a little bit goofy, a little bit fun, and gets a great message across.
That’s the trifecta of advertising 👇
“Be less concerned about climbing the ladder and more concerned about having rich career experiences.”
Jennie Akins
Ads from the Past
Ads from the Past
Mark here! Two things I’m a sucker for: vintage, hand-drawn advertisements and motorcycles. Combine those two and you’ve got perfection.
This ad comes to us from sometime in the early 1900s. After 1905 and likely before 1908.
