The Secret Isn’t Better AI. It’s Better Thinking.
Artificial intelligence has transformed the way businesses create advertising.
What once took days can now be achieved in minutes. Images, headlines, social media posts, posters and even videos can all be generated almost instantly.
Yet despite having access to some of the most powerful creative tools ever developed, much of today’s advertising looks remarkably similar.
The reason is surprisingly simple.
Most people skip the thinking.
They open their favourite AI tool and type something like:
“Create me an advert for my business.”
The AI responds with a polished design, catchy headline and professional-looking copy.
Technically, it has succeeded.
Commercially, perhaps not.
AI Cannot Read Your Mind
Imagine calling an architect and saying,
“Design me a house.”
The first question would never be about bricks or windows.
It would be:
“Tell me about the people who are going to live there.”
How many?
What lifestyle?
What budget?
Do they work from home?
Do they have children?
Without those answers, every house starts looking the same.
Advertising works exactly the same way.
The Brief Is More Important Than The Prompt
Many articles online focus on creating the “perfect prompt”.
There isn’t one.
The perfect prompt for a local café would be completely different from one written for a solicitor, a charity or a children’s toy shop.
Instead of searching for the perfect prompt, create the perfect brief.
A good brief gives anyone, whether human or artificial intelligence, everything they need to produce something meaningful.
Start With Questions
Before creating any advert, ask yourself:
Who am I talking to?
What problem am I solving?
How do I want people to feel?
What makes my business genuinely different?
What action do I want people to take?
Why should they believe me?
Only after answering those questions should you begin writing prompts or asking a designer to create the advert.
Don’t Talk About Yourself
One of the biggest mistakes businesses make has nothing to do with AI.
It is talking about themselves.
“Our award-winning service.”
“We’re the biggest.”
“We’ve been established for thirty years.”
“We’re passionate.”
Customers rarely wake up wondering how long your business has existed.
They wake up wondering how to solve their problem.
Great advertising isn’t about telling people how wonderful you are.
It’s about showing them how their life becomes better because you exist.
The Blue Ball
Imagine a pyramid made from dozens of identical red balls.
At the very top sits one blue ball.
That is the first thing everyone notices.
Your advertising should work the same way.
Your unique story.
Your personality.
Your customer experience.
Your values.
Your local knowledge.
Your expertise.
That is your blue ball.
Artificial intelligence can stack all the balls perfectly.
It cannot decide which one should be blue.
That decision belongs to you.
Think First. Create Second.
Artificial intelligence is one of the greatest creative assistants ever invented.
But it is exactly that.
An assistant.
It can organise, improve, expand and visualise ideas.
It cannot replace understanding.
The businesses that succeed will not be those using the newest AI tools.
They will be the ones asking better questions before they use them.
Because great marketing has never started with technology.
It has always started with understanding.
Before You Ask AI, Ask Yourself
To help you put these ideas into practice, we have created a free Think Before You Create – Advertising Brief Worksheet.
Download it, print it, or complete it digitally before you create your next advert.
Don’t worry if you run out of space. In fact, that’s a good sign.
Use additional sheets of paper if you need them. The more detail you can provide, the better your final result is likely to be.
Think about your customer.
Think about your message.
Think about the problem you’re solving.
Think about what makes your business different.
Most importantly, think about what you want people to feel when they see your advert.
Only then should you open your favourite AI tool.
Rather than typing “Create me an advert for my business,” give it the information you’ve gathered. Tell it about your ideal customer, your brand personality, the action you want people to take, and your unique “blue ball”. Explain the tone of voice you want, the emotions you want to evoke, and the story you want to tell.
The same applies to images.
Instead of asking for “a coffee shop advert” or “a promotional image for a restaurant,” describe your coffee shop or your restaurant. Mention the atmosphere, the colours, the people, the location, the products, the style and the details that make it recognisable to your customers. Better still, upload photographs of your premises, products or team as reference images so the AI has something authentic to build upon.
The goal is not to let artificial intelligence invent your business.
The goal is to help it understand your business.
Because the best advertising has never been created by guessing.
It has always been created through understanding.
