Today we have an interesting affiliate marketing case study. Have you ever considered using AI services for your ad campaigns but were hesitant to risk your budget? Well, we have conducted an experiment for you! We convinced a media buyer to run a real ad campaign using images and texts generated by neural networks. In this article, we will share all the details, pitfalls, and features of AI services, and answer the question: is it possible to run profitable ad campaigns using artificial intelligence? (Spoiler alert: the result may surprise you!)
Campaign Details
- Period: 1 week
- Offer: 34461 Duston Gel – CO
- GEO: Colombia
- Vertical: Health
- Traffic source: push ads
Step 1: Choosing the Neural Network
Writing AI services
We started by selecting the best neural network for our experiment.
RYTR
After researching several options, we chose RYTR, a text creation AI service, for its excellent customization options and ability to write text for specific tasks. Below is a brief overview of the pros and cons of RYTR:
| Pros | Cons |
| Quick sign-up via Google accounts | Free version provides only 10K characters per month |
| Simple and clear interface | The limit is restored only after one month |
| Understands multiple languages | The same sentences often appear again |
| Good customization for specific purposes | Text suggestions may be sometimes a bit cliche and straightforward |
| Choice of tone of voice and level of AI creativity | |
| Unlimited characters with a paid subscription |
Despite some minor limitations, we found RYTR to be a reliable and efficient tool for generating text.
In conclusion, our experiment proved that it is possible to run profitable ad campaigns using artificial intelligence. However, it is important to choose the right neural network and carefully consider its limitations. AI services like RYTR can be a valuable asset for optimizing your ad campaigns and increasing their profitability.
Jasper
Jasper.ai is a neural network that utilizes GPT-3 to generate content in various ways for different purposes and at any scale. It supports up to 30 languages and comes with numerous templates and a built-in plagiarism detection system. However, the trial version has fewer features than the paid version.
| Pros | Cons |
| Supports up to 30 languages | Credit card required to get started |
| Good customization for specific purposes | Short free trial (5 days instead of 7) then $590 per year |
| Flexible pricing policy | Starter pack is no longer available, only Boss mode at $59 for 50K/month |
| No option for unlimited characters |
ChatGPT
Chat.openai.com is the current leader among all neural networks. Its system is highly versatile and flexible, allowing users to perform various actions quickly. It can answer questions, provide summaries, and even write code, going beyond the traditional request-response interaction.
| Pros | Cons |
| Highly flexible | Phone number selection has become more difficult as the network has created a database of suspicious numbers |
| Offers an API | Instant access for premium users only, others are placed on the waiting list |
| Answers any questions | |
| Can chat and answer difficult questions |
Out of all the neural networks mentioned, I found RYTR to be the most convenient and suitable due to its features. It is simple, handy, and laconic. However, there are some limitations to consider, such as the 30-65 character limitation that affects the network’s performance. Additionally, the generated texts for ad campaigns may be too direct, especially in Spanish, where most words are lengthy. Editing and checking the output are still necessary.
| Pros | Cons |
| Simple and handy | 30-65 character limitation affects performance |
| Laconic | Generated ad texts may be too direct |
| Editing and checking are necessary |
AI Services for Generating Pictures
DALL-E 2
DALL-E 2 is a neural network by the creators of ChatGPT that can create pictures in various styles based on requests or prompts. It is an “almost free” neural network that offers 50 credits upon sign-up and 15 credits per month. In case you run out of credits, you can purchase additional credits for $15, which will give you 115 credits (minimum plan).
| Pros | Cons |
| Shared account with ChatGPT | Generates only 1024×1024 pictures |
| Generates images in a variety of styles | Images of faces and portraits can be blurry |
| Requires specific prompts for a particular style |
Midjourney
Midjourney is a neural network that can transform text into high-quality images for various prompts. However, the interface can be challenging for first-time users, and you need a Discord account to use the network. The basic plan starts at $8 per month for 200 pictures, $24 for 15 hours of generation, and $48 for 30 hours.
| Pros | Cons |
| Offers a variety of styles | Difficult interface for first-time users |
| 2 work modes: Imagine & Blend | Requires specific prompts for a particular style |
| Affordable pricing plans | Short-period trial |
| Images can be too dark at times | |
| Typical neural network errors | |
| Your queries will be visible in the main chat unless you pay for a professional plan |
In conclusion, for generating images, Midjourney is a suitable option due to its variety of styles and affordable pricing plans. However, users must adhere to the network’s rules and be familiar with the prompts required for specific styles.
Step 2: Generating Text with RYTR
RYTR is a pretty good tool, but it can be challenging to create short ad texts of up to 65 characters. I had to use the entire 10,000 character limit for one account and then create another account to select more unique, non-duplicated texts.
There were some odd texts that RYTR generated, such as: “¡Consigue el dolor ahora mismo! La pomada ayudará!” (Get the pain right now! The ointment will help.) “¡Las articulaciones no son necesarias!” (Joints are not needed!) “¡Calma el dolor articular! Pruebe el porro de [Nombre de la empresa]” (Soothe joint pain! Try a “joint” from [Company name].)
One funny feature of RYTR is that it sometimes adds text with a non-existent discount and promo code (JOINT20) for ad texts, as well as useful tags.
RYTR can generate images, although they are plain compared to MidJorney’s, but they are unique. There are no image settings; you only get an output.
Moving on to practice, I ran a text test aimed at running ad campaigns with the same image but with different generated texts. I encountered an interesting feature where words in Spanish are long, so to meet the character limit, the number of words in the sentence was reduced, resulting in extremely straightforward texts.
Despite the problem, some headings produced good results, especially this one – “¡Alivia tus dolores articulares!” (Reduce your joint pain!). Here are some examples of texts:
| Text | Price ($) | CTR | CR |
| Use this to make your joints healthy | 3.6 | 0.01 | 0.00 |
| Healthy joints in 7 days! | 4.1 | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Feel the joy of movement! | 4.1 | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Pain in the joints? Stop enduring the pain in your joints | 3.9 | 0.03 | 0.00 |
| Do you suffer from joint pain? Take off the pain in your joints now! | 3.8 | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Relief is waiting for you in a single click. Get our cream for joints right now! | 3.5 | 0.02 | 0.06 |
| Are your joints bothering you? Treat your joints properly! | 5.2 | 0.03 | 0.06 |
| This cream will eliminate neck pain in 10 minutes | 5.6 | 0.02 | 0.06 |
| Do your joints hurt? Soothe your pain with ointment now! | 7.8 | 0.05 | 0.13 |
| Ease the pain in your joints! Use our cream for joints today. | 8.2 | 0.05 | 0.18 |
Step 3: Creating Images with Midjourney
Midjourney is a colorful platform that generates inspiring images every time you visit the server. However, keep in mind that each click costs one credit, so you can’t experiment for long. After comparing it to our top creative, we created a query for the neural network. I recommend taking a look at other people’s queries to see what prompts they used.
The images are generated quite quickly, but it’s crucial to pay special attention to forming the query. Otherwise, the AI will just combine the words and produce an unwanted result. For example, the query “Man’s joint x-ray next to a spoon with ointment” resulted in some unexpected and irrelevant images.
The generated pictures also have issues with eyes, fingers, joints, and limbs, causing an “Uncanny Valley” effect that can be frightening. One issue we encountered was that we requested a picture “in the daytime,” but the neural network ignored that, resulting in slightly dark images.
Here are the images used in our ad campaigns:
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Summary and Test Results
Unfortunately, our test showed that the neural network was unable to outperform our top creative, as the conversion rate for all the generated images was much higher. Most likely, this is due to the cartoonish and unrealistic nature of the generated images, as well as the lack of clear focus on the problem of potential customers.
Ad campaigns with the text generated by AI were almost profitable, but poor traffic sources hurt the campaign’s performance. With quality traffic sources, the campaign could have been successful. However, ad campaigns with the images generated by AI wasted our ad budget.
Conclusion
In my experience, neural networks are not a ready-made solution for various tasks. It’s better to use them more wisely, such as a tool for discovering new approaches and ideas. Neural networks are still imperfect and require time for the selection and manual editing of created content.
By working with neural networks, you can break the cycle of repeating template ideas and provide a creative twist to mundane creative selection. Artificial intelligence is still far from fully taking over the creative tasks of affiliates, but we are closer than ever. We thank our affiliate who agreed to take part in the experiment and encourage others to share their experiences with AI in the comments.
Bill Zhem is a full-time digital marketing specialist, blogger and SEO expert. The former head of a website promotion company in Eastern Europe. Join regular readers of my blog to start making money online in affiliate marketing and related niches.
