Looking into the crystal ball is an art in itself. Especially when it comes to new AI developments. But ChatGPT has everything it takes to become the new player online. And even to dethrone Google. In this article I explain why.
In previous articles on BrandPepper, writers claimed that ChatGPT will not replace Google. Although they make valid arguments for the limitations that ChatGPT (still) has, I think they are overlooking two important things.
First of all, this is only a beta version of ChatGPT, so there is every reason to believe that the final version will fix many of the current limitations. A matter of time. And second, they forget to mention Google’s shortcomings: and there are many.
That’s why in this article: 8 reasons why ChatGPT will replace Google.
1. ChatGPT has the same resources as Google, but actually does something with it
Almost all information on the internet is public. Both Google and ChatGPT can read this information and do something with it. As a search engine, Google shows where you could find the answer to your question or search query among millions of results. You then have to open all kinds of search results yourself to find the answer to your question. But ChatGPT removes that intermediate step for you and immediately shows you the correct answer. And by ‘good’ I mean: the answer that has the most agreement online. So you no longer have to read and interpret yourself: ChatGPT does that for you.
2. Google has trouble interpreting your question. ChatGPT understands you
Nothing is as complicated as typing the right question or search query into Google. While people are getting more and more adept at this, it’s actually to make up for Google’s shortcoming. What if a search engine manages to distill the right question from your flawed sentence? ChatGPT not only uses artificial intelligence to compose an answer, but also artificial intelligence to interpret your question. That’s another 2.0.
3. ChatGPT checkmates Google as the ‘answer engine’
Google has been trying for some time to transform a search engine into an ‘answer engine’ (Google CORE). In this endeavor, Google is now instantly surpassed by ChatGPT. Up and over. Yesterday I was wondering how I can measure repeat visits in Google Tag Manager. The answer is not easily found in Google. However, ChatGPT immediately gives me a correct manual. Why should I still search for single answers on Google when ChatGPT gives me the summary?
4. In ChatGPT you can ask questions
If you type a query into Google that doesn’t lead to the desired result, you’ll have to come up with a completely different query to get a better result. With ChatGPT you don’t have to. You can simply say, “can you clarify that?” or “more sparkling”, “longer” or “shorter”. With other topics: ChatGPT has the potential to make mediocre answers better and more to the point . Just come up with that in Google…
5. ChatGPT is easier
Compared to Google, ChatGPT just feels more logical, more human, and easier. Google has been striving for years to rate and sort search results “like a human,” but it still seems mostly like a machine. ChatGPT is much less like a machine. If we have learned anything from the past, it is that we are extremely sensitive to convenience. We’re just really lazy. Technological developments that served convenience have always proved to be the winners. Whether it is the steam train or the kettle. Why not now?
6. ChatGPT offers service with a smile
For a long time, Google was the only supermarket in the village. Everything you were looking for was there. But now a new supermarket has popped up that is at least equivalent, but the staff is more polite, nicer, more humble and more ethical. Who would you choose? ChatGPT’s answers are full of (technically unnecessary) friendly and polite wording. The chat knows its limitations “I am only a language model” and also names them. The tool does not get involved in ethical discussions, and does not provide results that are offensive to anyone.
If we know anything from neuropsychology, it’s that we as humans are extremely sensitive to kindness and flattery. Even if we know it comes from a machine. Here too, ChatGPT beats Google.
7. People are fed up with Google’s commercial results
A while ago I was looking for a new parquet floor in Gouda. After four moderately relevant ads, I ended up with the organic search results. Among the first 20 search results were 19 seo pages written on ‘parquet floor Gouda’ and only one search result from a parquet store in Gouda.
We’ve known it for a long time: Google is easy to fool, that’s what SEO is all about. But users do not always benefit from this. ChatGPT is not (yet) commercial and users will therefore immediately judge the answers as more reliable. With Google you never know for sure whether you will get the right answer or a commercial result. But with ChatGPT you know that. And make no mistake: ChatGPT also makes ‘recommendations’. For the observant viewer… despite a typo in my prompt, the tool gets exactly what I’m looking for.
8. ChatGPT is already too big to fail
ChatGPT’s figures speak volumes. Already millions of users. There is such a thing as too big too fail . This was the case for large banks during the 2008 crisis. This also applies, for example, to YouTube (which was never a commercial success for Google, but simply cannot be ‘turned off’ anymore). And it now applies to ChatGPT.
Personally, I also notice that I can no longer live without it. Within a week of the first use, I have ChatGPT open non-stop and use the chat constantly, both for business and pleasure. Not because it’s ‘fun’, but simply because of the convenience. And because ChatGPT helps me do things better. The chat apparently fills a hole in my life that I didn’t realize existed.
Like it or not: ChatGPT is here to stay . And believe me: I also find it ‘scary’. I’m not a big fan of artificial intelligence. And ChatGPT is a real threat to my work as a marketer. A whole lot of knowledge I have has become superfluous in one fell swoop.
But this development is unstoppable. After the first hype (according to the Gartner hype cycle) there will be another dip, but ChatGPT will not go away. Instead of denying that, we as marketers can better anticipate and see what we can get out of it.