Why Most AI Copy Still Sounds Terrible (and How to Fix It)
Let’s be honest, actually...let’s be honest right away: AI copywriting is everywhere. From side hustlers spinning up “SEO blogs” in seconds to corporates churning out hundreds of landing pages a week, the internet’s flooded with content that technically ticks the boxes but still sounds like it was written by a toaster.
Yes, tools like ChatGPT can produce sentences that make grammatical sense. But here’s the truth: most of that copy lacks rhythm, emotion, and intent. It’s predictable. It’s clean to the point of sterile. And it doesn’t make anyone actually feel something.
That’s because great copy isn’t just about words. It’s about movement. Human writing has texture, breath, and timing. It leans in. It pauses. It surprises you. AI hasn’t quite mastered that yet.
Why Most AI Copy Sounds Flat
AI writes by predicting what comes next. It’s impressive, but it’s also its biggest flaw. It can’t feel what’s right. It can only guess what’s likely. That’s why so much AI content reads like it was built in a lab.
Here’s how to spot it:
Same-length sentences that never break rhythm.
Overly formal phrasing that no one would ever say out loud.
Generic transitions like “Moreover” or “In today’s fast-paced world.” (If you’ve read our banned word list, you know how we feel about that one.)
No human fingerprints. No quirks, no voice, no personality.
Overuse of adjectives and buzzwords. AI often pads sentences with vague or inflated language.
Lack of specific references or lived experience. It can’t cite personal insight or cultural nuance.
Abrupt topic shifts. Machine writing sometimes loses logical flow between ideas.
Robotic consistency. Every paragraph follows the same rhythm and structure, giving away its synthetic nature.
It’s technically correct but emotionally vacant.
Why 100% Unedited AI Hurts Your Site
Unedited AI content doesn’t just sound bad; it performs badly too. Search engines are getting smarter at spotting generic or low-value content, and readers are even faster. We’re now in the middle of the adoption curve for AI writing. Early adopters used it to speed up output, but audiences have already caught on. People can smell that bland, lifeless copy instantly, and they click away within seconds.
For brands, this hurts credibility. When a potential client or buyer lands on a page full of mechanical sentences and awkward phrasing, they lose trust. It signals laziness, not leadership. This is especially painful in product descriptions and real estate listings, where tone and detail directly impact conversions. A single paragraph of slop can make your business feel cheap.
Google’s stance is clear: it’s not anti-AI, but it’s anti-bad content. Pages built entirely by bots often lack E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trust). That means they’re less likely to rank, less likely to engage, and more likely to be filtered out as thin or unhelpful. In short, 100% AI copy isn’t just bad for your brand voice, it’s bad for SEO.
Why Human Copywriters Still Have the Edge
A human copywriter brings intuition that can’t be faked. We understand tone shifts, brand voice, and how to make a reader actually stop scrolling. We know that a perfectly timed one-liner or conversational aside can do more for engagement than a thousand “optimised” words.
We also think strategically. Humans can align copy to a campaign goal, brand identity, and user intent, not just the next most probable word. The difference? It’s night and day.
AI can write a blog. But it can’t understand why that blog needs to exist.
How We Fix AI Copy at That Content Agency
At That Content Agency, we don’t reject AI. We refine it. Think of it as our writing assistant, not our writer. We also use it to nail the structure that LLMs and Google are loving right now. What better way to rank than to ask the algorithm itself how to rank, right?
Here’s how we use it without losing the magic:
Tone calibration: We train our tools with real human copy (our own) to keep the rhythm natural.
Pattern variation: We intentionally break sentence patterns to sound more like a real person.
Keyword humanisation: We make sure your AI copywriting still reads like a conversation, not a keyword dump.
Final polish by an actual human: Every piece gets reviewed, rewritten, and restructured for authenticity and tone.
The result? Content that ranks and resonates.
How to Spot AI-Generated Copy in Seconds
Want to know if something was written by AI? Here’s your quick sniff test:
Read it out loud. If it feels like you’re reading a robot manual, it probably is.
Check for repetition. AI loves to repeat phrases, sometimes in the same paragraph.
Look for filler. “Furthermore,” “In conclusion,” “Moreover” are all red flags.
Scan for emotional blanks. Real humans write with perspective and opinion. AI doesn’t have one.
Watch for overly complicated sentences. Machines tend to over-explain or build long, tangled sentences instead of getting to the point.
Count the adjectives. Too many descriptive words often mean it’s padding instead of persuading.
Notice the fluff. If it dances around the main idea without saying much, it’s likely machine-made.
If you’re still unsure, you can always run a piece through AI content detection tools. But honestly? Once you’ve read enough, you’ll just know.
When to Use AI (and When to Leave It to Humans)
AI can be amazing for ideas. It’s great for early brainstorming, topic outlines, or checking what’s trending. But when it comes to brand voice, persuasion, and storytelling, you need a real person behind the keyboard.
Think of AI as your speed tool. Think of humans as your quality filter. You can use both, just don’t confuse one for the other.
It’s Not About AI vs Humans. It’s About Skill.
At the end of the day, the tool doesn’t matter. The operator does. You can hand two people the same AI prompt and get completely different results. Why? Because great copywriting comes down to human instinct: what to keep, what to cut, what to feel.
At That Content Agency, we blend data, SEO, and creative instinct to make sure your content doesn’t just exist. It performs. Every blog, landing page, and campaign is built to pass both the algorithm and the human sniff test.
Need content that passes the sniff test? Let’s talk.
