Have you heard of the “Dead Internet Theory”?

It’s an online theory that most of the internet has been taken over by bots and AI agents, and that the amount of non-human activity is greater than the amount of authentic human interactions taking place. I personally choose not to believe it because it’s depressing to think about, but the rise of AI slop is making me think otherwise. 

I recently came across an ad on my TikTok FYP for some sort of food review app. I don’t remember what the name of it was, but I remember it catching my eye because the influencer trying to sell the app in the video was clearly AI. It’s face kept glitching as it was talking, and it’s movements were unnatural, but someone in the decision making team of this company somehow saw this video and said, “Yep, this is what we’re going to put on TikTok to market our business.”

It’s not just the smaller companies doing this. Bigger companies with the budgets to create actual marketing videos and advertisements are utilizing AI in their marketing as well. 

Xerjoff, an Italian niche fragrance house that generates millions of dollars yearly, recently used AI-generated videos to promote their new ube-inspired fragrance, Ubelia, on their social media platforms. Trivago, who gained notoriety using a human being as their spokesperson in the 2010s, is now airing an AI slop commercial on streaming platforms. Even a huge, legacy brand like Coca Cola used AI for their annual Christmas commercial, to the dismay of many. 

I don’t even need to get into the morality over deepfakes and likeness, and the environmental impacts of using AI (trust me, I have a LOT of thoughts). The AI ads are just flat out not good. The movement behind using AI for marketing feels very strange to me, especially because a lot of marketing in the 2010s had a heavy emphasis on representation and making people feel seen in media. Using AI seems like the complete antithesis to that movement. Instead of finding human truths that resonate with people and make consumers want to experience your product, companies are churning out content with seemingly no real goal other than to just “get things out there”. AI doesn’t travel, eat food, or think about what fragrance they are going to wear before a night out, so why are we using AI to market to real people?

Some people will mention “cost cutting” and “efficiency” as reasons to use AI, but I simply don’t think that’s true in the era of social media. TikTok and Instagram have allowed anyone to create a platform for themselves. Small businesses are able to promote themselves and grow their businesses without a huge marketing team. Bigger companies are connecting with their consumer base on a personal level by listening to real user stories and turning them into relatable learning moments for their audience. Creators are showcasing their talents to the world, and in doing so, turning their hobbies into their full-time jobs. 

Of course, it’s not easy to grow a business and come up with creative marketing campaigns that capture people’s attention, but here’s the thing. You don’t even have to be the most talented graphic designer or videographer to capture an audience. I mean, there are air conditioning repair businesses who have over 100k followers on TikTok from having their employees lip synch to Destiny’s Child songs. While there might not be a “right way” to promote your business, I think there certainly is a wrong way to do things, and that is to prioritize “efficiency” and profits over people. 

Using AI to promote your business is lazy and sloppy. It shows people that you don’t care about being great in every aspect of your business, that you want to be just “good enough”. If you start cutting corners when it comes to marketing your product, then what other parts of your business are you willing to sacrifice? Where else will you start lowering standards in your business?

The bottom line is, people want something real. How many times have you looked up a food review before going to a restaurant to see what other people are saying? How many times have you looked up a product demonstration to see how something is used in real life? You did so because you wanted a real person to show you how something was without any of the BS, and you can’t do that if you’re delivering AI slop to your audience. 

The successful and memorable marketing campaigns are the ones that tap into human truths and everyday relatable moments and turn them into stories that entertain and enlighten the public. Start investing time and effort into your audience and connect with them on a human level, so they will, in return, invest their time and energy into you.