In the ChatGPT era, content risks becoming cold, generic, lifeless. We’ve found that despite the technology’s incredible power, it still takes a human at the helm to craft copy and content that moves a reader emotionally.
New technology is always exciting. The other day I saw my five-year-old’s first encounter with Bitzee, a small jewel box with a pop-up screen you can pet. Her shrieks of delight were like nothing I’d ever heard. What is this new thing? How does it work? How magical!
This is the way it feels with AI. We’re giddy with possibility.
Some say it’s the speed that is so shocking. That’s a big part of it, but it’s also how the technology is shaping thought. If words are the clothes thoughts wear, then this thing is thinking. It’s using language to synthesize ideas, organize concepts, structure narratives, and sharpen arguments.
At the same time, there’s a certain coldness. The output is poised and polished, but lacks a depth of feeling. ChatGPT doesn’t have an intention. It’s just a robot calculating what the next word should be. There’s no animating spirit.
My teammates and I ran a quick prompt through ChatGPT to write an opening paragraph that sounds like something that would appear on a commercial painting website in Wisconsin.
Here’s what it came up with:
Need a fresh coat of wow? We bring color, curb appeal, and serious craftsmanship to every commercial space we touch—from office buildings in Milwaukee to warehouses in Wausau. We’re local, we’re seasoned, and we don’t cut corners. Let’s make your building look as sharp as your business.
You can see how it lacks personal connection and it’s all about the “we”—sticking to overused, surface-level, cliché value props like “curb appeal” or “craftsmanship.”
Meanwhile, the best content has blood pumping through it.
You sense there’s a real person on the other side. There are aha moments, flashes of insight, clues to lived experience. These are the forces that produce a piece of writing that actually moves someone.
Going back to the painting example above, here’s an example of what we mean:
While you’re inside enjoying your home, your exterior paint is silently fighting a battle against the elements. Every freezing Wisconsin winter, humid summer, and dramatic temperature swing in between tests its protective capabilities.
See how different that feels? It’s warmer, deeper, more informed, more connected, more helpful. There’s a story being told that you can feel.
And that’s ultimately our job as writers: to get our reader to feel something about our offering.
A sense of trust, excitement, possibility. We want readers to intuit that the people behind the words are people they want to do business with. People who are going to pick up the phone when you call. People who can do what they say they can do.
For brands, this means that the human element will set you apart.
This is what MarketSmiths produces for our clients: a brand voice that resonates with genuine personality. Maybe it’s buttoned-up and business-like. Maybe it’s warm and compassionate. Maybe it’s lofty and aspirational. Maybe it’s playful and imaginative. Maybe it’s direct and no-nonsense.
In every case, the writing gives you a sense for the people behind the brand.
Because human connection runs deeper than language.
Language is just an interface. It’s a technology to help humans connect—not an end goal, but a medium. The connection is what is paramount. That’s where the value lies.
ChatGPT can think, alright. But it can’t feel.
For that, you need a human writer.
