A flood of content slop, agency self-marketing flops, and AI psyche props

Welcome to Branch Road’s fortnightly roundup, where we serve up the juiciest marketing, technology, and content morsels from the depths of our cursed Microsoft Teams channel. 

This week, dive into the murky waters of AI-generated content, the art of agency self-promotion, and a dash of psychoanalysis around AI adoption woes.

Content slop: AI’s unwanted gift to the internet

Driving the news: Move over, spam — there’s a new digital nuisance in town, and it goes by the name of “slop.”

Context: “Slop” is the new term for unwanted AI-generated content flooding the internet, characterised by feeling worthless, ubiquitous, and optimised to be so. Not all AI-generated content is slop, but if it’s mindlessly created and forced upon unsuspecting users, it fits the bill.

Why it matters: As marketers, we’re in the business of creating content that resonates. With AI churning out oceans of mediocrity, the challenge (and opportunity) to produce genuinely valuable content has never been greater.

The bottom line: Quality over quantity is quickly turning from mantra to lifeline in the age of AI-generated slop. Let’s keep the internet a place for meaningful human interaction and leave the slop to the digital pigsty.

The thrills and (mostly) spills of agency self-marketing

The intrigue: Agencies (the very people promoting others) are floundering when it comes to tooting their own horns. Some are doubting their self-confidence, while others make bold creative pivots. 

By the numbers:

• 62% rely on owners/founders to handle self-marketing day-to-day
• While 1/3 have dedicated marketing teams, another 1/3 make client-focused marketers juggle it
• 47% think competitors do self-marketing better than they do 

Between the lines: For those hiring marketing agencies, it raises the question: if an agency can’t effectively market itself, how can it be trusted to market your business? 

Further reading: Velocity Partners is taking a novel approach to agency self-marketing with a revealing 3-part series on how they successfully campaigned themselves.

Psychoanalysing AI adoption for marketing

What we’re reading: A recently published essay on Neoma proposes five stages of “AI grief” — offering a new lens for understanding reactions to AI.

Thought bubble: Is this a handy frame for businesses to tailor their messaging to their audiences’ perceptions of AI? Is this the birth of a new funnel? 

The bottom line: Understanding the psychological journey of AI adoption can help buisnesses navigate the choppy waters of technological change — and how to talk about it to their customers. Whether you’re still in denial or you’ve reached AI nirvana, knowing where your target audience (and you) stand can make the difference in your marketing approach. 

Thanks for reading

Look out for the next one — or, like, subscribe and mainline it to your inbox. We won’t spam (slop?) you, promise.