Copywriters soon to go the way of toll both collectors!

by 36 replies
49
Just picked up this one from a FB post. Copywriters are
about to be replaced by computers.

Persado Raises $21 Million to Replace Human Copywriters With Computers - Venture Capital Dispatch - WSJ

-Ray Edwards
#copywriting #collectors #copywriter #toll
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    • [1] reply
    • Hey, Bencivenga! Sounds to me like someone's talkin' smack...
      "We have never lost to a human," Mr. Vratskides said. "I'm a mathematician , and I can guarantee you, it's like a computer losing to a human on a chess game, even worse than that...It incorporates a lot of randomness to get there, it's like getting a needle in a haystack. We built the haystack. The human brain does not work this way."
  • Something that can rival humans in terms of writing long copy (and not just spinning headlines) is still decades away.
  • I thought Upworthy already used this...
  • Da Na na naaah....na na...na...nan...naaaah....

    He was crushed...

    But then they saved him....

    Rebuilding the damaged pieces...

    Ray....the $21M...man.

    How could they replace the veterans?

    Scary thing is people are doing so much crap online...

    Metting people...chatting ...sharing...

    Would they notice???

    Is this the last stand of copywriting?

    Maybe they will "HOOK UP" people like Ray and the other copywriter brains out there so when they pass their copy can live on.

    Stay tuned...

    Coming soon..

    "The Superheroes of Copywriting"

    Just enter your product here........
  • It'll be interesting to see how it pans out.

    It's in WSJ rather than some random blog. It appears to have solid stats upon which to base its bold claims.

    Do I see it taking over completely? Nah.

    They may be removing the human element, but they can't remove it completely. Ultimately a human has to decide whether to use the software. A large contingent are petrified of this kind of artificial intelligence.

    It almost accidentally created an added benefit to human-written copy...
  • Ray,

    Not happening. Will this software reduce access to specific clients? Sure!

    But it will make room for better copywriters. How?

    We will study this software's copy controls.

    Let's just say, there's a new kid on the block who is about to hand over it's secrets.

    "Algorithms?" "We Don't Need No Stinking Algorithms!"
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    • In years gone by, as a tournament chess player and software developer, I watched as computer chess grew in strength... to the point where it routinely beats the best chess players in the world.

      Will the same thing happen with computer copywriting?

      I don't believe so.

      Humans possess something computers never will... inspiration.

      With new products and new mechanisms for existing products constantly appearing, computers will always be (at best) slightly behind the curve.

      Alex

    • Yep. It can enhance what copywriters do, but it won't be able to replace them.

      From the article: "Persado's software is successful because it's solving what is essentially a finite mathematical problem, Mr. Vratskides says, incorporating the components that go into persuading someone--the language, the emotions, the product features--and then picking the right combination of phrases to get them to act... running quickly through all possible combinations and then testing which approaches work best."

      I'll bet its main utility will turn out to be for testing and combining various successful elements -- headlines, sales appeals, etc. that have been written (or at minimum edited) by human copywriters.

      The article doesn't make it clear whether the program actually writes or not, which is telling. In fact the software website's headline is "What if there were a way to use data to write the perfect message?"

      And neither the article nor the website offers up any samples.

      Some programs actually write (eg. Narrative Science, which writes article blurbs), but I'd guess that this "copywriting" program just pieces stuff together and tests combinations.

      A few copywriters already offer similar "manual" systems for putting together sales appeals... Doesn't Seth Czerepak sell such a system?

      One thing the program definitely does is confirm Eugene Schwartz's angle:

      "Copy is not written. If anyone tells you 'you write copy', sneer at them. Copy is not written. Copy is assembled. You do not write copy, you assemble it. You are working with a series of building blocks, you are putting the building blocks together, and then you are putting them in certain structures, you are building a little city of desire for your person to come and live in." -- Eugene Schwartz, Author, Breakthrough Advertising

      Anyway, machines aren't going to replace human writers for a helluva long time to come. Let alone copywriters. I'd be more concerned about "off-shoring"...
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  • It sounds like the business is not replacing copywriters but has merely built a very advanced split testing algorithm.
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  • There is too much emotion and too many contextual variables for a computer to ever effectively replace a quality copywriter. I think there are too many subtleties for a computer to create truly great copy.


    Maybe I shouldn't say it could never happen, but I sure do think it will be quite a while before it will
  • Maybe this will lead to the same changes that I see in my main industry (I'm part owner in a translation/communications company in Tokyo). My market is rapidly splitting into two:

    (1) Low-end work that is barely readable, but CHEAP and "good enough" (machine translation and/or cheap labor in the Philippines, China, etc.).
    (2) High-end work that is "translation" indistinguishable from the best native English writers/copy writes (Expensive...essentially original writing).

    I keep warning translators out there that they have to start thinking of themselves as professional writers. They need to produce high-end content, or they will lose work to the low-end. There won't be anything left in the middle.

    It's a hell of a lot of work to educate clients and potential clients, though. Especially when they can't see the differences.

    So, will machines replace copy writers? Sure, it could happen (eventually) on the low end with uneducated clients.

    This coming from someone who once said (not too many years ago) that machine translation would never replace human translation.
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    • Machines are still a ways off - I got a corporate gift recently, a branded electronic thingamabob. Hell if I know what it is, as its "manual" calls it Smatr mobile power (sic) and states step 1 is "power detection, press the button, the lamp is notlit, the low battery needs to be charged, the bright blue light when charging.ca conlinue to use (sic)" and step 2 is "he following method-oriented products charging way"

      I've never used the goddamn thing.
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  • Thanks Raydal. but i really dont think,that 100% happen because sometime,word is soul..i mean,u need some psychology to make that word impress the target which in here is human.
  • This is relevant: The robot cookbook: can a supercomputer write recipes? | Life and style | The Guardian

    Basically, it shows that, while the most intelligent computer can get the basics right, it just can't get it as right as a human.
  • I don't know.... I just find it hard to believe a computer has the ability to tap into empathy the way a human soul and personal experience can provide.

    I try to write copy from the perspective of "being in the prospects"... and that's the big problem. I've never seen a robot with shoes.

    But hey, if Gary Busey can learn how to use Amazon Fire... anything is possible in this life....
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    • [1] reply
    • Just got one for Christmas, thinking I'd use it on the Sat/Sun nights to catch up on old TV series that I previously missed. I really like it and it is really easy to use too. The problem is the rest of my family is constantly using it so I can never get on the damn thing when I want. LOL

      RE: computer. I saw the same article. They didn't mention how many copywriters or their skill level they competed against. Like any other profession, copywriters can range in skill and experience. The way I see it, their $21M program works until it hits a bug or someone hacks their system. Then their marketing suddenly shifts from selling credit cards to selling Viagra or some other spammy stuff.

      Thanks for the share Ray but I'm not worried about being rendered obsolete by a computer program anytime soon.
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      • [1] reply
  • Here's an e-mail I got from Drayton Bird.

    Chilling news for copywriters - from the Wall Street Journal.

    "Improbable? Terrifying?

    Maybe. But a firm called Persado has raised $21 million because its computer has proved its superiority in tests.

    This fiendish device creates automated messages to persuade people to act - routine but important stuff like renewing a contract.

    The Wall Street Journal reports that Citi uses Persado for its credit cards and says its emails' open-rate has increased by 70% and click through rate by 114%.

    "We have never lost to a human," says Persado's founder, Alex Vratskides.

    And you know what? I believe him. I bet it works for many simple jobs because:

    a) Most copywriters are plain bad.

    b) Many routine tasks are given to the less competent, though I think practical things like renewals are far more important to customers (and marketers) than guff about our amazing new gizmo.

    c) Many - maybe most - have bogus creativity injected by writers bored with doing the same old job.

    Whenever one of my zealous Young Bird starts getting "creative" I send an abusive message...."
  • "One machine can do the work of 50 ordinary men, but no machine can do the work of one extraordinary man."

    -Thomas Edison

    What separates the ordinary from the extraordinary?

    Ordinary people are good craftsman at best. They get paid because of their skills and, in some cases, because of what they know. But extraordinary people are creators. They get paid, not just for what they know and for what they can DO with what they know, they get paid for how they think.

    They have the ability to tap into a source of creative power which transcends our current knowledge base and which creates brand new concepts out of nothing. They don't compete, they create.

    Will machines ever be able to do that? Maybe. But if that day ever comes, we've got bigger worries than just losing our trade.
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    • Problem with that is most copywriters are pretty ordinary people (self included).

      Still, I doubt the machines will replace even the "good craftsman" any time soon in copywriting...
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    • That's similar to subway using surfboard in their food. When companies get lazy and want to increase profits. They lose control. They let it slip out of their hands. They think things will be fine lol
  • Banned
    That's awesome, it also shows once again that personal data is BIG money.

    Example...

    ...all they're dong is checking a database to see when was the last time a customer recieved a new phone from Verizon & doing the math,
    • x amount of months + contract expiring = promote free phone

    It still doesn't eliminate copywriters because the copy has to originate from somewhere, the software is only spinning data inside the copy & weeding out low performing copy, example:

    • Mark get your discounted Samsung Galaxy S5 while supplies last!
    • James get a free Nokia Lumia 1520 today!
    • Kelly receive your new iphone 6 now!
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  • Should I think again if I really want to start studying copywriting? Or is this just something that I shouldn't be worried about?
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    • Short answers: no. Don't worry about it.

      Sure. A software program might work if you want to sound like every other bland company out there... if you don't want to clearly and persuasively communicate the difference between you and your competitor... and if you don't know how to speak directly to your audience.

      Companies realize they have to turn around their marketing a lot faster than ever before -- and produce more content. So they're looking for workarounds and shortcuts.

      This is why I'm a big believer in bring more to the table than copywriting.

      Learn about funnels. Autoresponders. Opt-ins. What works, what doesn't. Read. Read. Read.

      A good book to complement this topic is Dan Pink's A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future.

      Here's the deal: we're drowning in information. There is so much content marketing out there and unfortunately, bad content. Automation will only bring more mediocre content that is about as effective as those silly mission statements that doesn't tell you much at all about the company.

      What really matters is context.

      Why should I care about what a company is telling me? I don't want to know the "what" but the "why."

      Why should I care about your product or service?
      Why will it make a difference in my life?
      Why is your choice better than your competitor's?

      The buyer is looking for guidance, someone to explain these things to him or her. Not baked-in content that just blathers on about what everyone else is blathering on about.

      Tell me what it means.

      That's your buyer asking you to do this. And I don't believe for one second that a computer software program is going to be able to rise to the challenge.

      You'd think the content mills would already be proof positive that automation doesn't work well in this field. You'll get dinged by the search engines and ignored by your audience. Not a win in anyone's book.
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  • From the website:

    It's #2 that I'm particularly interested in here.

    Is he saying that the software generates, and tests, millions of messages?

    At first glance that seems impossible. Who has that big a list size?

    If this guy has actually "never lost to a human before," I'm guessing it's because he's testing the first message the app comes up with against the first message the human comes up with, and all these split tests are probably dealing with very short messages.

    I'm also questioning whether this software is really a replacement for copywriters at all. How does it know what to write without some kind of input from a human operator? I'm guessing what it does is takes a basic input from a writer and then develops a variation on it that's likely to convert the best.

    Nonetheless, I'd be very interested to see this thing in action.
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    • A bit more research...

      Here's a couple of screen shots:





      And, a couple of zingers...

      It doesn't actually specify the size of the consumer market required to make it viable.

      The sales and marketing for the software still remains heavily... human.

      He doesn't actually see this replacing copywriters


      Apart from this. Everything is becoming automated, there's a hotel in Japan opening up that even has robots cleaning the rooms!

      I would think of all ventures in the online business world, copywriting is the safest from pure automation.

      And even if it were automated, if you look at web design, SEO etc, these things have had software solutions for a few years now...

      and people are still selling $10,000 websites!
      • [ 1 ] Thanks

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