“Branding” And “awareness” is a load of horse shyt

The other day I had a (lighthearted) argument with one of my friends.

We were yapping about whether or not marketing is more of a science or an art.

Eventually we kind of got sidetracked, and he ended up trying to make the point:

(not his EXACT words)...

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“The sole point of marketing is to get someone aware.

If someone reads your ad, you’ve done a good job”

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Now look…

I’m not a major dumbass. This does have some truth to it.

But if you really dig deep, and you REALLY think about what he said. It’s a bunch of horse shyt 99% of the time.

Copywriting is sales in text, no?

Let’s take two salesmen then:

Salesman #1 goes around flying a big flag with his logo… he yells “look at this pill I’ve got” his car has one big imprint of the website.

Maybe he gets a few looks. (gets a few people “aware”)

THEN…

Salesman #2…

He goes up to every door and asks for the sale.

Yeah, maybe some people hate salespeople… maybe some slam the door on him… who knows he could put someone to sleep because his pitch is really that boring.

But who do you think got the most sales?

The one who got people “aware”? Or the one who sold people.

Yeah, this does have some caveats.

But all in all, the point of marketing, advertising, and, yes, copywriting… is to get some DANG sales!

That’s why I think research is so important.

Without the right research, you’re dead in the water selling the wrong thing, to the wrong people, at the wrong time.

But with research?

I think you know what happens:

AI has changed how consumers shop by speeding up research. But one thing hasn’t changed: shoppers still trust people more than AI.

Levanta’s new Affiliate 3.0 Consumer Report reveals a major shift in how shoppers blend AI tools with human influence. Consumers use AI to explore options, but when it comes time to buy, they still turn to creators, communities, and real experiences to validate their decisions.

The data shows:

The most effective brands are combining AI discovery with authentic human influence to drive measurable conversions.

Affiliate marketing isn’t being replaced by AI, it’s being amplified by it.

Download the full report to see what this means for your brand.