Cyber Monday: Still Nothing For Sale
What if you were an entrepreneur?
I’ve devoted a lot of time with this newsletter to the subject of jobs, specifically those in the creative industry. Is Generative AI a threat to graphic designers and similar professions? While job prospects might be bleak for entry level positions, it seems like a great time to be an entrepreneur. While I certainly lack the spine to start my own company, let’s consider for a moment if you were in those shoes, you had a lot of drive and ambition, and wanted to cut costs in order to start your venture. While there are a ton of AI tools for business development, you could probably do a lot of those things with ChatGPT. Same thing holds true for all your messaging and copywriting if you’re willing to spend a little time editing. There is a custom GPT called ‘Logo Maker’ that asks a few questions and spits out a pretty good rough draft. It might have some typos, but it’s probably close enough to send over to someone on Fiverr who could finish it for $100 or less.
While we’re on the subject of Fiverr, why not checkout the roster of professionals who are already offering their services as AI experts in a variety of disciplines? AI artists has almost 16,000 participants, but AI websites has only 800. Not that I’m encouraging a race to the bottom by competing on price, but it’s good to understand what’s out there.
There are a dozen different AI Slide Deck tools trying to hook you on a subscription plan, but Google Slides and Powerpoint are both now AI enhanced. If you’re willing to invest about 45 minutes of time, you could learn how to use Canva or Adobe Express and BAM, your social media strategy is taken care of. And while I don’t remember the names, I know there are a ton of AI tools for Web Design, Search Engine Optimization, Analytics, Ad Words, and so on. There are even tools that will assemble a video for you based on your blog post and upload it to YouTube along with a custom thumbnail…and you wouldn’t even have to write the blog post.
This is a bit of a stretch, and I’m sure some of those tools don’t work as well as their promotional materials claim, and you’d still have to just hunker down and work a bit, but I’m sure if you were launching a startup, this is how you’d be looking at the problem and trying to figure out where you could save money and when you’d want to still hire a creative professional. If you are a freelancer, now is the time to be writing a manifesto of sorts, so you can communicate your value proposition and say, “I’m human, and can do this better”. You should also figure out where you can no longer compete and be familiar with some of these tools so you can either use them or advise your clients on them.
And if you’re a small marketing agency whose had the good fortune to charge for copywriting, social media, and presentation decks, you’re now about to be hit by a wave of new freelancers who want to use these tools and offer lower rates and faster turnarounds as they try to launch their careers. If you’re older, or savvy, you can hire these people, add your editorial expertise, and pass it on to your clients. However, there is probably a limited window for this, and just like the freelancers, you should probably clarify what you’re good at and where you add value.
If you’re a purist, or a holdout, or need a reality check about what’s becoming the new normal, you should read this article onZDNet about a Salesforce study revealing that 64% of Workers Have Passed off Generative AI Work As Their Own
If you’re actually in a startup and you’re making a tool that just piggybacks on ChatGPT, you’re probably pretty vulnerable and you should read this article about What Startups Need to Know About AI Heading into 2024. We’re about to usher in a whole new era.
If you’d like a longer read on this subject, check out The Rise of Generalists in the AI Era. The author states that many of will use a wide range of ‘assistant’ tools to complete a greater body of work, but we’ll still rely on our creative abilities and aesthetic judgement.
If you’re closer to the money end of things, you should read How Venture Capitalists are Using AI to Invest more Effectively. A lot of VC work is just data analysis and looking at hundreds of pitch decks and trying to pick a winner. Why not let an AI assistant do the grunt work?
Curious About RunwayML’s New Motion Brush?
Took about five attempts, thanks for asking!
Do you ever just want to burn it all down? Send me a message and I’m happy to be your humble research assistant. until then, keep learning and please forward this newsletter to your friends.