Monday Memo
A Byte of Knowledge
We recently talked about NYT bestselling author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz's latest book, Who Makes the NBA?: Data-Driven Answers to Basketball's Biggest Questions.
He wrote it in just 30 days using AI, and here's how he did it:
1. Identify the Right Tool for Each Task
Seth didn't rely on AI for prose that much; instead, he utilized it for data analysis and artwork generation. He leveraged ChatGPT's Code Interpreter (now Data Analysis) to merge datasets, create and adjust graphs, and clean the data.
For artwork, he turned to Midjourney and DALL-E. The lesson? Use AI where it excels, freeing up time to focus on areas where your human touch matters.
2. Ensure Continuous Engagement and Feedback
By sharing his findings on Twitter, Seth gained real-time feedback on his ideas.
When a tweet about NBA coaches' value went viral for the wrong reasons, he refined his argument based on the public's reaction. Use social platforms to test and adapt your narrative to audience responses.
3. Save and Document Religiously
AI tools can be erratic, with timeouts and memory lapses. Seth recommends saving your work frequently, especially when approaching tool-imposed limits. Ask your AI to export all text or data before it times out to prevent loss of progress.
4. Embrace Iteration for Perfection
For every piece of AI-generated art in his book, Seth created multiple iterations, sometimes up to 100, before selecting the best one. AI allows for rapid prototyping, so take advantage of this to refine your visuals until they align with your vision.
5. Humanize the AI's Output
While AI can draft certain sections, like technical explanations, Seth infused his personality and style into the core content. He used AI as a tool, not a crutch, ensuring his voice and expertise remained at the forefront.
By following these detailed steps, you can harness AI to supercharge your writing process. You can create a genuine polished piece of work that resonates with your readers and while maintaining your unique voice.
Something to Ponder
In his must-read book Unreasonable Hospitality, Will Guidara tells the story of his first time eating at Per Se - a New York City restaurant considered to be one of the best in the world. The entire meal was spectacular in every element of the dining experience.
However, at the end of the luxurious meal, Will was served a simple cup of filter coffee. While it was a perfectly fine cup of coffee, it stood out as just average compared to the extraordinary food and service.
This highlighted a gap that existed at many high-end, fine dining establishments at the time. While they focused intensely on incredible food and wine, the coffee at the end of a meal was often an afterthought.
Will realized this was an opportunity for his restaurant to elevate the coffee program and stand out. So he put Jim Betz, a passionate coffee expert, to be in charge of the coffee program at his restaurant. Jim took ownership and made the coffee service a show-stopping, educational, and delicious experience.
No matter how successful, every business has holes. By identifying them and allowing your team to innovate, you can set yourself apart.
So ask yourself: Where are the holes in my competitor's business? How can I fill them? And how can I leverage AI to achieve it in half the normal time?
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We Asked – AI Answered
Our Question: “Unboxing videos have become a cultural phenomenon people are addicted to watching. One nine-year old, Ryan Kaji, made $29.5 million in a single year from his videos where he removes toys from their packages and gives them a go.
What specific psychological triggers are activated when consumers watch 'unboxing' videos that make them so popular?"
* ChatGPT gave us a list of reasons why, like "Anticipation and Reward" and "Social Proof", but one really stood out: How these videos trigger a sense of pseudo-ownership before an actual purchase.
So we asked the chatbot to dive deeper...
ChatGPT's Answer: The concept of ownership and possession in the context of unboxing videos can be quite fascinating, as it taps into deep-seated psychological and emotional responses.
The Endowment Effect:
This is a key principle that underlines the sense of ownership and possession. The endowment effect is a cognitive bias that describes how people ascribe more value to things merely because they own them.
In the context of unboxing videos, even before physically owning a product, viewers begin to experience a sense of psychological ownership. The detailed presentation of the product in these videos triggers the imagination of the viewers, leading them to mentally simulate owning the product themselves.
Mirror Neurons:
The human brain contains mirror neurons which are responsible for empathy and the ability to understand other people's actions, intentions, and feelings. When viewers watch someone else handle a product and react to it, these neurons fire in a way as if the viewers were handling the product themselves.
This neural mirroring can evoke a sense of ownership before the actual purchase, as viewers vicariously experience the unboxing through the individual in the video.
Vicarious Consumption:
Unboxing videos enable viewers to vicariously consume products through the experiences of others. This proxy consumption can evoke emotions and judgments about the product as if the viewers had the product themselves.
It's a form of imaginative consumption where the viewer is taking mental possession of the product, and this can be almost as powerful as actual possession in terms of emotional engagement.
Psychological Ownership:
Psychological ownership refers to the state in which individuals feel as though the target of ownership (or a piece of that target) is theirs, even in absence of legal ownership.
In unboxing videos, the detailed showcasing of the product, the explanation of its features, and the display of its aesthetics help the viewers develop feelings of control, intimacy, and self-identity with the product.
GOT 15 SECONDS?
Thanks for reading the Monday Memo.
Until next time!
The AI Marketers
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