How to write human again

The first time a copywriter used this line, they must have felt like a god.

It’s conversational, light, direct, and simple. It reduces signup anxiety by making you feel like you can undo whatever you’re about to do.

Then, of course, every copywriter and their mom started using it. Now, most people probably overlook it.

This week, I stumbled on a great example of how to fix that. More importantly, it points to where marketers and copywriters should focus their energy if we want any chance of standing out amid the AI slop.

HubSpot co-founder and CTO Dharmesh Shah just launched his take on an AI-native solo CRM, YouSpot. When I saw it in his newsletter, I headed straight for the signup page. There, my attention went to the microcopy underneath the pricing-page CTA:

Clicking the tooltip reveals the question:

Brilliant 👏

​I went to LinkedIn and shared it because “something” compelled me to. Dharmesh gave me a shoutout too, which was cool.

But the whole thing got me asking myself ONE question, to stay on theme: Why did I feel compelled to notice that copy, then spread the word about it?

I think it’s about humanness.

What does humanness even mean when it comes to copy?

We used to think it was about language, rhythm, voice, vocabulary, and the way the words sound. About the way every great copywriter has always told you to write: conversationally.

But AI can already write conversationally most of the time. So, if you really want to stand out, you have to resist the frictionless output that comes from using LLMs blindly and go deeper. It’s in editorial and judgment calls like:

• deciding what your reader needs to know
• refusing to hide behind “standard” or “good enough” copy
• finding the right moment in the customer journey to say something
• taking small risks to sound like an actual person instead of the category average

Non-slop copy is not only the words you write, but also the tiny decisions you make to add a personal touch.

You can only show that humanity when you’re close enough to your audience, and to the moment they’re making a decision, to know what reassurance they actually need. Used badly, AI tends to average all of that away.

I love what Dharmesh did because he saw the standard answer, understood why companies use it, and chose to go against it in a way that still feels subtle, friendly, vulnerable, and clear. (and btw, the rest of his copy is really good too)

Unfortunately, my friend, I can’t give you a magic bullet for figuring this out. Your customers are not my customers, and I’m not as close as you are to them.

There’s a reason we say we need to “resonate” wih our customers. It’s our humanity aligning to theirs.

When you review your copy, don’t only ask, “Does this sound human?” Ask, “What human decision did we make here?”

Discovery

Three questions to write human

I loved Ian Vanagas’s piece about what he thinks about when editing blog posts, especially the three questions he asks before writing anything:

1. Why should someone read this?
2. Why this over something else they can read?
3. What puts you in a unique place to write it?

Even if those were the only questions you asked before writing a piece of copy or content, you’d give it a better chance of standing out. They force you to inject your purpose, perspective, and humanity before you start polishing any of the words.

Product-market fit isn’t one and done

​PostHog shared a refreshingly honest look at trying to find product-market fit again, even after building a successful company.

PMF is no longer something you find once and are guaranteed forever. As products, markets, and expectations keep changing, you have to stay flexible enough to keep learning. Your messaging has to move with that learning too.

Resonance

• Robert Greene, The Laws of Human Nature