{"id":109769,"date":"2026-08-19T08:20:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T15:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/?p=109769"},"modified":"2026-08-19T08:20:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T15:20:14","slug":"ai-write-like-ogilvy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/ai-write-like-ogilvy\/","title":{"rendered":"Can AI really write like David Ogilvy? I tried to \u201ctrain\u201d Claude to recreate one of his most iconic ads"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cTraining\u201d AI on the principles of respected writers is popular at the moment.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve seen multiple posts on LinkedIn promoting the approach, and David Ogilvy is a particular favorite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated.png\" alt=\"Collection of screenshots under a heading of &quot;Can AI really write like David Ogilvy?&quot;\" class=\"wp-image-109780\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated.png 1200w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated-300x250.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated-1024x853.png 1024w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated-768x640.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m skeptical. Justin Oberman, an influential marketer, recently wrote a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/pulse\/anti-guru-10-why-ai-cant-write-like-david-ogilvy-justin-oberman-swcwc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">takedown of AI-based Ogilvy imitation<\/a>, in which he said that the \u201csubstance of Ogilvy&#8217;s genius was never his rules.\u201d I\u2019m in full agreement.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nevertheless, I wanted to test the idea. I wondered what would happen if I combined some of the guidance on the web and LinkedIn with my experience as an editor. I regularly work with AI-assisted editorial systems, and I liked the idea of building an Ogilvy-themed one in Claude Code&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Could I produce an ad that was, while perhaps not indistinguishable from something Ogilvy might produce, reasonably close to it?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The idea: Recreate Ogilvy\u2019s Rolls Royce ad for the latest model<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I set myself the following challenge: create an AI workflow that would recreate Ogilvy\u2019s iconic Rolls Royce ad, but for the 2026 Spectre II model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"950\" height=\"1290\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce.png\" alt=\"Original 1959 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud ad by David Ogilvy\" class=\"wp-image-109782\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce.png 950w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-221x300.png 221w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-754x1024.png 754w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-768x1043.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 950px) 100vw, 950px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So that I couldn\u2019t iterate constantly, I placed the following three rules on myself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>I could only ask Claude to replicate the Rolls Royce ad once: <\/strong>I allowed myself to make minor tweaks as I built the flow, but not to prompt Opus to create the ad for the Rolls Royce Spectre II multiple times and then make big revamps.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>I had to incorporate philosophies as well as specific rules: <\/strong>Along with following specific writing rules, I wanted Claude to run processes inspired by Ogilvy\u2019s underlying philosophies, such as reviewing product documentation closely and conducting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/copywriting-research\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">customer research<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>I had to be completely transparent about my AI workflow: <\/strong>I intended this exercise to be primarily an experiment, rather than a definitive \u201chow to write like Ogilvy\u201d guide. That meant being open about my process and Claude project files, which I\u2019ve made available on <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/danmowinski\/ogilvy-writer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GitHub<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">My project tree: Introducing Ogilvy AI&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I wanted to build a system that could repeatedly produce Ogilvy-style copy, rather than a one-off ad, and that I could continue to refine and test against different models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I used Opus 5 and Claude Code for the experiment. I built a complete project with skills, agents, and lots of context. At the same time, I was eager to keep things relatively simple, so I didn\u2019t add anything that wasn\u2019t absolutely essential to the markdown files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s the project tree:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"691\" height=\"472\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092527\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Project-Structure.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of a Claude project file structure with skills and agents\" class=\"wp-image-109784\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092527\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Project-Structure.png 691w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092527\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Project-Structure-300x205.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 691px) 100vw, 691px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s an overview of how I structured the project:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>CLAUDE.md:<\/strong> The main markdown file with overarching instructions for the project. I listed out the instructions here for when an end-to-end run that invokes the research agent and implements the skills in order is needed. It\u2019s generally best practice to use a master orchestration skill for this, but I thought that was overkill for such a small project.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>context\/writing-rules.md: <\/strong>These are Ogilvy\u2019s broad writing rules, consisting of 27 direct quotes drawn from his published books. I also added a paraphrased explanation for each one for more depth. I put these in the context\/ directory so they are applied across all projects. If you just wanted to generate a quick Ogilvy-style ad without any research or subsequent critique, you could do so.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>context\/examples.md: <\/strong>Transcriptions of copy from a selection of ads attributed to Ogilvy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>agents\/customer-research.md<\/strong>: A subagent for conducting customer research based on product context. It invokes Apify\u2019s MCP, which I used to scrape the r\/rollsroyce subreddit (more on this below).&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>skills\/create-brief.md: <\/strong>A skill (probably the most important) in which the AI model generates a brief that includes a definition of the target customer, pulls together the most relevant details from customer research, and lists key product details.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>skills\/write-copy\/: <\/strong>A skill in which the AI model reviews the brief and picks a relevant template from the skill\/asssets\/templates.md file, which contains four templates I created based on Ogilvy\u2019s past ads.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>skills\/critique-copy\/: <\/strong>A final pass in which the model goes through the 27-point writing checklist again point by point and removes AI tells.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>temporary-files\/outputs\/: <\/strong>A folder for the customer research report, brief, and all copy outputs.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>temporary-files\/product-context\/: <\/strong>A file for product docs (for example, specs from the company website).&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If I were going to use this flow regularly, there are several areas I would improve. In particular, the research could be much more comprehensive. For this experiment, I only scraped the top 50 posts in r\/rollsroyce subreddit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It would also be good to have a searchable database of Ogilvy ads, perhaps using Notion connected to Claude via MCP, so that the LLM could find the most relevant examples for inspiration. I uploaded four popular Ogilvy ads as examples for my run-through.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How I populated my stack for Claude Code<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Working in Visual Studio Code, I wrote all of the markdown files manually, based on a close reading of David Ogilvy\u2019s three published books. I avoided using Claude Code\u2019s skill or agent creation feature so that I would have full control over the instructions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">context\/<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I built my<strong> context\/writing-rules.md <\/strong>file<strong>, <\/strong>which contains 27 rules, based on writing advice from the following sections of Ogilvy\u2019s books:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Confessions of an Ad Man: <\/strong><em>How to Build Great Campaigns (chap. 5) <\/em>and <em>How to Write Potent Copy (chap. 6)<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ogilvy on Advertising:<\/strong><em> How to Produce Advertising That Sells (chap. 2) <\/em>and <em>18 Miracles of Research (chap. 15). <\/em>I also based the guidance for the research agent (customer-research.md) on the latter chapter.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Unpublished Ogilvy: <\/strong>I took some points from the third chapter, <em>Lists<\/em>. His posthumous book is interesting but fairly light on writing advice (I highly recommend the interview at the end).&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For <strong>context\/examples.md<\/strong>, I transcribed the following ads and added some labels for the different structural elements (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/headline-examples\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">headlines<\/a>, subheads, body copy, and CTAs).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"204\" class=\"wp-image-109782\" style=\"width: 150px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce.png\" alt=\"Original 1959 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud ad by David Ogilvy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce.png 950w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-221x300.png 221w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-754x1024.png 754w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092434\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Original-Rolls-Royce-768x1043.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"201\" class=\"wp-image-109787\" style=\"width: 150px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092931\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Hathaway-Shirt.png\" alt=\"Classic Ogilvy ad featuring the man in the Hathaway shirt\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092931\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Hathaway-Shirt.png 804w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092931\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Hathaway-Shirt-223x300.png 223w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092931\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Hathaway-Shirt-762x1024.png 762w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092931\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Hathaway-Shirt-768x1032.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"179\" class=\"wp-image-109788\" style=\"width: 150px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092951\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Margarine-Ad.png\" alt=\"Classic Ogilvy ad for Lever Brothers margarine\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092951\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Margarine-Ad.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092951\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Margarine-Ad-252x300.png 252w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"205\" class=\"wp-image-109789\" style=\"width: 150px;\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093013\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Schweppes-Ad.png\" alt=\"Classic Ogilvy print ad for Schweppes Bitter Lemon\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093013\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Schweppes-Ad.png 382w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093013\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Schweppes-Ad-219x300.png 219w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For<strong> context\/product-details.md<\/strong>, I simply copy-pasted official product specs about the Rolls Royce Spectre II that I found on the web, including a press release.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">agents\/<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The<strong> agents\/customer-research.md<\/strong> was my research agent, and I connected Apify\u2019s MCP to Claide Code so I could download 50 Reddit posts (plus comments) from the r\/rollsroyce subreddit. Setting up the MCP was fairly straightforward, but I had to play with the different scraping limits of the Reddit Scraper Lite Actor before it started to pull data without issues.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1168\" height=\"397\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093058\/AI-David-Ogilvy-MCP-Setup.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of MCP server setup with preloaded research tools\" class=\"wp-image-109791\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093058\/AI-David-Ogilvy-MCP-Setup.png 1168w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093058\/AI-David-Ogilvy-MCP-Setup-300x102.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093058\/AI-David-Ogilvy-MCP-Setup-1024x348.png 1024w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093058\/AI-David-Ogilvy-MCP-Setup-768x261.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1168px) 100vw, 1168px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I had it analyze the raw data and organize it into a research file with a buyer profile and a summary of their desires, pain points, and obstacles to purchase. I also included instructions to include verbatim statements and language from users.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s an extract from the report Opus generated:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"563\" height=\"507\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093121\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Research-Notes.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of Reddit research notes on Rolls-Royce buyers\" class=\"wp-image-109792\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093121\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Research-Notes.png 563w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093121\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Research-Notes-300x270.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 563px) 100vw, 563px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">skills\/<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are three skills in the AI workflow: <strong>create-brief<\/strong>,<strong> write-copy<\/strong>,<strong> and critique-copy<\/strong>. These were meant to encapsulate some of the underlying philosophies of David Ogilvy\u2019s approach.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The create-brief skill draws on the customer research generated by the research agent and combines it with relevant product details from the context\/ folder to create a copy brief. I based the brief, in part, on the advice Ogilvy gives in <em>18 Miracles of Research <\/em>in <em>Ogilvy on Advertising<\/em>, where he lists several questions that effective research can answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"572\" height=\"677\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093148\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Copy-Brief.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of a copy brief template with guided questions\" class=\"wp-image-109794\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093148\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Copy-Brief.png 572w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093148\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Copy-Brief-253x300.png 253w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 572px) 100vw, 572px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The write-copy skill is essentially a set of instructions to read the brief and generate the copy. Importantly, it references the writing rules and sample ads provided in the context\/ directory.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I added an instruction inspired by Ogilvy\u2019s habit of writing \u201c20 alternative headlines for every advertisement.\u201d A markdown file with some basic templates, based on ads by Ogilvy, was also included as an asset in the .SKILL folder.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"563\" height=\"695\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093213\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Skill-Templates.jpg\" alt=\"Screenshot of copywriting templates used in a Claude skill\" class=\"wp-image-109795\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093213\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Skill-Templates.jpg 563w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093213\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Skill-Templates-243x300.jpg 243w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 563px) 100vw, 563px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The critique-copy skill instructs the model to run a final pass of the finished piece against the brief and writing rules and to remove any obvious AI tells.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The result: Ad for Rolls Royce Spectre II<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With my stack built, research gathered, and Ogilvy\u2019s rules, past ads and a full set of product specs added for context, I was ready to go.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I used the following prompt:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>You are tasked with creating an ad for the Rolls Royce Spectre II. This should be in the style of David Ogilvy\u2019s well-known iconic ad for the Rolls Royce Silver Cloud but should not imitate it for its own sake. It should be a new ad for a modern product aimed at a contemporary audience. It should be based on thorough customer research and a detailed understanding of product specs.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After Opus had generated the copy, I asked it to create an HTML mockup based on the original design. I used an image of a 2024 Spectre Model (not the Spectre II) from <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:2024_Rolls-Royce_Spectre_in_Midnight_Sapphire_over_Silver,_front_left.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wikimedia Commons<\/a> for the visual lead. I liked it because the car is in the same position as in Ogilvy\u2019s ad.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here it is\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"942\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad.png\" alt=\"Full AI-generated Rolls-Royce Spectre ad recreated in Ogilvy's style\" class=\"wp-image-109796\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad.png 942w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad-141x300.png 141w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad-483x1024.png 483w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad-768x1630.png 768w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093301\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Spectre-Ad-724x1536.png 724w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 942px) 100vw, 942px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">My Takeaways: What worked and what didn\u2019t&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yep, there\u2019s <em>quite <\/em>a way to go.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I intended the exercise as a fun experiment. In all honestly, I didn\u2019t for a second believe that Claude could match the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/persuasion-techniques\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">persuasiveness<\/a> and clarity of a genuine David Ogilvy ad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was curious, however, about what would happen if an AI workflow went beyond simply feeding a model a prompt with ten rules or a single SKILL.md (comment \u201cOgilvy\u201d in the comments to get it free!).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The result was\u2026let\u2019s go with passable. It\u2019s not Ogilvy. But I don\u2019t think it\u2019s <em>all <\/em>bad.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. It was better than just prompting Claude<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Below are the headline and subheader that were generated when I prompted Claude off the bat (without prior context). I told it to \u201cCreate a new ad for the new Rolls Royce Spectre II based on Ogilvy\u2019s iconic ad (image attached).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"332\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093331\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Pull-Quote.png\" alt=\"Pull quote from an AI-generated Rolls-Royce Spectre ad\" class=\"wp-image-109797\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093331\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Pull-Quote.png 800w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093331\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Pull-Quote-300x125.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093331\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Pull-Quote-768x319.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As I was writing this article, I couldn\u2019t shake the nagging feeling that I was doing a lot of work for what would turn out to be zero gain.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t think that happened. The result from the simple prompt had multiple hallucinations (the lead quote is made up) and was generally much wordier and less based on real user experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That said, it wasn\u2019t a gargantuan difference.<strong> If you\u2019re using Claude or similar AI tools for copy, there\u2019s limited benefit in bombarding it with a long list of <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/copywriting-tips\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>writing rules<\/strong><\/a><strong>. <\/strong>It can also gather publicly available product details using its own websearch tools.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My ad would perhaps benefit from a rigorous post-writing editorial flow, as is often the case with the AI-assisted flows I sometimes work with for other clients, but I had expected tighter copy based on the guardrails provided.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. The research made a difference<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In <em>Ogilvy on Advertising, <\/em>David Ogilvy writes, \u201cWhen I got the Rolls-Royce account, I spent three weeks reading about the car and came across a statement that \u2018at sixty miles an hour, the loudest noise comes from the electric clock.\u2019 This became the headline, and it was followed by 607 words of factual copy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Opus did a fairly good job of incorporating the Reddit Insights into the brief and quoted a genuine user (I verified it afterwards) within the rules I set. In conjunction with Ogilvy\u2019s guidance to go heavy on facts, this approach is potentially a good combination for other types of copy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>If you\u2019re using AI to write copy, automating a portion of the research by having your chosen model check reviews (Reddit, G2, TrustPilot, etc.) is one of the best things you can do.<\/strong> It takes a fraction of the time to gather and analyze this research compared to doing it manually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Opus really struggles to drop its stylistic tendencies and imprecision&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI models (Opus seems to have a particular proclivity for this) have a way of talking. Yes, there are the obvious tells: it\u2019s not X, it\u2019s Y, atypical use of verbs, em dashes, and so on. But there\u2019s also a feeling that comes from reading it. You just know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This was evident in my ad. Take this sentence from the first list entry: \u201cOn a long enough descent it returns more than the descent costs.\u201d The unusual use of the verb \u201ccosts\u201d here is a typical example of muddled AI speak. It would be much more effective to say something like, \u201cOn a long enough descent, more electricity is returned to the battery than the car uses.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1276\" height=\"166\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093400\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy.png\" alt=\"Numbered body copy paragraphs describing Rolls-Royce Spectre features\" class=\"wp-image-109798\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093400\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy.png 1276w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093400\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-300x39.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093400\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-1024x133.png 1024w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093400\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-768x100.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1276px) 100vw, 1276px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The other big issue was the imprecision. Opus often slightly misinterpreted the product context. A press release I added to the context, for example, described the clock in this way: \u201cA new timepiece has also been introduced. Its design takes inspiration from precision aviation instruments, which prioritize absolute legibility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Opus took that and said, \u201cThe clock is modelled on aviation instruments, which are designed to be read at a glance and not admired.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1228\" height=\"162\" src=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093416\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-Detail.png\" alt=\"Close-up of numbered body copy from a Rolls-Royce Spectre ad\" class=\"wp-image-109799\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093416\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-Detail.png 1228w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093416\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-Detail-300x40.png 300w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093416\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-Detail-1024x135.png 1024w, https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13093416\/AI-David-Ogilvy-Body-Copy-Detail-768x101.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1228px) 100vw, 1228px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This tendency of AI to confuse things emphasizes the need for at least some degree of human review and fact-checking of AI-generated copy. It\u2019s practically impossible to completely iron out these inaccuracies with editorial review, and for fact-led copy of the type Ogilvy advocates for, it\u2019s a big issue.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. There was strategic direction, but it was almost certainly wrong<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Opus did seem to decide on a core idea for the copy. It honed in on the fact that the Spectre II is highly energy efficient and reflected this focus through the title and much of the body copy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, I\u2019m not entirely sure this was the right tack. Very little is said about the actual driving experience, something that is much more present in Ogilvy\u2019s ad. In addition, the facts that owners are often slightly embarrassed about owning a Rolls-Royce (it carries a stereotype) and that many see later models as hyped-up BMWs were left out. These <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/objection-handling\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">common objections<\/a>, strangely, were included in the auto-generated brief but ignored during the writing stage.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In comparison, Ogilvy\u2019s original had much more of a cohesive narrative. It evoked a real experience. His subheading reads, \u201cWhat makes the Rolls-Royce the best car in the world? \u2018There really is no magic about it\u2014it is merely patient attention to detail,\u2019 says an eminent Rolls-Royce engineer.\u201d The fact-based copy that follows makes a lot of sense in this context. It is essentially an elaboration of the luxury of detail.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This strategic direction is, to my mind, very difficult to automate. It may be that the flow could be improved to better pick an angle that aligns with the research. But knowing where to take an ad at a high level is, in my experience, often as much a matter of intuition and gut feeling as data analysis.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wrapping up: Where does Ogilvy\u2019s magic come from?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When I <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/ai-copywriting-tactics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">interviewed some of the world\u2019s top copywriters<\/a>, they were unanimous on one point. While AI did have good use cases (automated research was regularly cited), there were specific things that it couldn\u2019t replicate: human stories, unique style, and strategic direction.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I intend to continue refining my AI workflow, focusing on the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Increasing the number and volume of data sources<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Analysis of data and detailed product materials for brief creation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refining guardrails for context-aware fact-based copy in plain English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s where I think the value lies. But it seems to me that a hybrid approach, one that combines AI productivity with human insight, especially at the strategic level, will remain in place for high-stakes copy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Inspiration can\u2019t be automated, and the processes behind it are often mysterious.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll finish with one of my favorite Ogilvy quotes: \u201cIf all else fails, I drink half a bottle of rum and play a Handel oratorio on the gramophone. This generally produces an uncontrollable gush of copy.\u201d<br><br>Now, when is AI ever going to get drunk and listen to Handel to better sell your product?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Also, here\u2019s the <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/danmowinski\/ogilvy-writer\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GitHub repository<\/a> with all my files and folders for Claude Code.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cTraining\u201d AI on the principles of respected writers is popular at the moment.&nbsp; I\u2019ve seen multiple posts on LinkedIn promoting the approach, and David Ogilvy&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":274,"featured_media":109780,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-109769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-copy-writing"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Can AI really write like David Ogilvy? I tried to \u201ctrain\u201d Claude to recreate one of his most iconic ads<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/ai-write-like-ogilvy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Can AI really write like David Ogilvy? I tried to \u201ctrain\u201d Claude to recreate one of his most iconic ads\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cTraining\u201d AI on the principles of respected writers is popular at the moment.&nbsp; I\u2019ve seen multiple posts on LinkedIn promoting the approach, and David Ogilvy...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.crazyegg.com\/blog\/ai-write-like-ogilvy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Daily Egg\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/crazyegganalytics\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-19T15:20:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-19T15:20:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/13092230\/Form-Statistics_Image-1_Updated.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Daniel Mowinski\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@CrazyEgg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@CrazyEgg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Daniel Mowinski\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crazyegg.com\\\/blog\\\/ai-write-like-ogilvy\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crazyegg.com\\\/blog\\\/ai-write-like-ogilvy\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Daniel Mowinski\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crazyegg.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6d38b18fbc4dbac2a3e3c053e92df52b\"},\"headline\":\"Can AI really write like David Ogilvy? 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