Dan Ferrari’s BIG warning about ChatGPT4o / AI copywriting

I had the pleasure of hosting 2 amazing copywriters last Friday at my new house. 

Copywriter #1 is my long time mentor and marketing samurai Dan Ferrari, one of the best copywriters to ever click-clack the keyboard. He’s normally in Hawaii or Central America, but was in San Diego for a weekend. We’ve known each other 8 years now - WILD. 

Copywriter #2 is my long time friend and one of the most sought-after financial copywriters in the industry, Austin Lee. He also lives in San Diego, about 7 minutes from my place in La Jolla. 

In astrology, that Friday was the luckiest day of the year because of some “Jupiter Cazimi” that I don’t understand. 

But whatever it is, I found it lucky that I got to hang out with my long time friends and plunder their brains for their most recent marketing and copywriting lessons they’ve learned. 

So we went for a hike down to Blacks Beach, came back to my house to grill up some steaks and veggies for dinner, and watched UFO conspiracy videos while chatting about everything from AI and ChatGPT to family and raising kids. 

I also found it lucky I got to “show off” my golf cart and new house, which Dan hadn’t seen yet. 

I could feel my inner child beaming the whole afternoon and evening…

“Look what I did, Dad! Isn’t it impressive? Didn’t I do a great job?”

Anyways, we shared some really cool stuff, including:

• Dan’s 3 secret copywriting projects he won’t tell anyone else about
• My secret hack (that’s legal and 100% moral / ethical) to TRIPLE the LTV (lifetime value) of nearly every front end customer
• My NEW secret coaching project that’s launching on June 20th (stay tuned for that!)
• How copywriting is different today than in 2020

But I want to share what Dan had to say about AI copywriting, because I know it’s such a hot topic with YOU and all the other copywriters out there. 

First, I’ll share some BAD news…

Then I’ll share why it may also be GOOD news for you. 

The scary thing Dan said?

“If you’re starting out copywriting today, you’re kinda f**cked.”

Why? 

You guessed it, ChatGPT. 

Did you see the recent videos about ChatGPT4o?

The AI can literally have a “FaceTime” conversation with you, pretend to be your girlfriend / boyfriend, translate languages in real time, look at and understand videos and pictures, and all sorts of crazy stuff. 

Dan shared how he recently used ChatGPT4 to write the FAQ section of a sales letter, and it took him 15 minutes instead of the 30 minutes it might take without AI. 

So it DOES save a copywriter time…

But here’s the thing. 

First Dan prompted the AI. Then he looked at what it spit out and asked it to make some adjustments and include 2 questions that it missed. Then he took that block of copy and edited it. 

That’s 10-20 decisions he had to make, minimum…

To chief the AI copy-bot and tweak the copy. 

Those marketing decisions are the key, because that’s what took the copy from average to great. 

Here’s the problem…

If you’re a copywriter starting out nowadays, how are you gonna learn how to make those editing decisions?

The only way you learn how to edit copy is to WRITE copy… and then edit it. 

Does this word add anything?

What logic point do I need to move the reader through here?

How do I explain this point?

Is this sentence better, or that sentence better?

Is this block of copy that the AI spit out any good?

There’s a LOT more to it then copy-pasting a prompt in and getting a block of copy out. 

And the problem is, I don’t believe copywriters right now are rewarded for learning this kind of stuff…

Because AI does the fundamentals up to say… a 6 out of 10 level consistently perfect, every time. 

Plus, everyone and their grandma are selling AI copywriting courses, and very few people are selling “how to take AI copy and elevate it to the next level.”

(Cuz it’s not sexy.)

So there’s a hole in the education there, I believe. 

It’s like this…

Imagine you want to play in the MLB - the professional baseball league in the US. 

You need to learn how to hit the ball. 

But everyone’s selling courses on how to use a robo-arm to hit the ball…

Which is actually PREVENTING you from learning how to hit the ball with your own arms. 

To hit the ball at a high level, one strategy is to use the robo arm… 

But you would need to train the robo arm, spot its mistakes, understand its strengths and weaknesses, correct it constantly, and “edit” its swing in real time. 

The only way to learn how to do that is to actually swing the bat yourself. 

WHAT A CONUNDRUM. 

So what’s the answer?

Do you use AI or not?

Honestly, I don’t know the answer. 

I guess it comes down to intention. 

Are you using ChatGPT with the intention of saving time?

Or with the intention to help you learn?

I think both are good intentions. 

But to become a great copywriter, the #1 most important intention you need to have is learning. 

INTEND to learn. 

(Why this word instead of that word? Why this idea instead of that idea?)

Because if you’re learning, you’re progressing. 

Moving forward, I believe these will be the trends in copywriting…

• Basic execution will be cheap, fast, and AI driven
• High-converting advanced copy will become more and more scarce, and higher and higher priced (especially long-form sales copy)
• The copywriters that get ahead will be the ones that focus on learning… stay patient and tenacious with acquiring the skill
• … AND who do inner work to solve their emotional blocks. I believe this will be where the next generation of copywriting superstars will come from.