The poetry of prompts: How language is redefining advertising in the age of AI
Every piece of advertising starts with an idea, but those ideas are then communicated through words. But, says Simon Dolsten, CEO & Co-Founder, Dolsten & Co, in the age of AI, those words carry more power than ever... so make sure you choose the right ones.
)
Advertising has always been about language. A single line can sell a product, spark a movement or shift culture.
Now, in the age of artificial intelligence, language has become more than creative, it has become operational. The words we type into machines don’t just describe our ideas. They make them.
In the age of artificial intelligence, language has become more than creative, it has become operational.
Prompts are the new creative brief. They guide an AI model the same way a line of copy guides a campaign; through tone, rhythm and emotion. And the best prompts read less like code and more like poetry.
Above: When it comes to AI images, the gap between acceptable and unforgettable comes down to the words used, so an image of a shoe can be standard and uninspiring, or elevated and imaginative.
Every AI-generated image, script or headline starts with words. The difference between something forgettable and something unforgettable often depends on how those words are written. 'Generate a photo of a sneaker', gives you an image. 'A single sneaker floating in a beam of light, photographed like a relic from the future', gives you a feeling.
That shift, from instruction to emotion, is where the creative opportunity lives. Other industries are finding the same power in language. In fashion, Tommy Hilfiger used natural language prompts to analyse customer feedback and translate it into design cues, leading to faster trend response and tighter creative alignment. In film and entertainment, writers are using AI tools to storyboard ideas before they ever reach a camera.
[The] shift, from instruction to emotion, is where the creative opportunity lives.
Across sectors, words have become the bridge between imagination and execution. AI is only as creative as the person typing. When a brand asks for 'a powerful CEO', it often gets something cold and corporate. But when it asks for 'a visionary leader building from her kitchen table, planning the next big thing', it tells a different story.
Prompting forces brands to clarify their voice and tone. It turns vague mission statements into visual storytelling. Even the data agrees. According to Adobe’s 2025 AI & Digital Trends Report, 69% of executives plan to invest more in talent as their organisations adopt AI-driven creative workflows.
Above: "AI is not replacing the craft, it’s amplifying it," says Dolsten.
Now, we should acknowledge that there have been many conversations about what AI means for the creative industry, specifically about the worry that it will replace jobs, and the notion that if the prompts are so good, wouldn’t that mean we won’t need certain roles anymore? I’d argue that, if you look at what Photoshop did for photography and art direction as an example, AI is doing a similar thing for creative work, which is speeding up the execution so we can spend more time on the ideas.
Thus, AI isn’t replacing creative roles, it’s reframing them. The magic isn’t in typing a prompt, it’s in knowing what to ask for, how to refine it and how to bring it to life. A great lighting designer or art director still matters, they just have new tools to think with.
Prompt writing sits at the crossroads of copywriting and art direction.
Ultimately, AI is not replacing the craft, it’s amplifying it. So, the lesson is clear; even as automation expands, human creativity is becoming more valuable, not less. The brief still matters, it just happens to be written for a machine.
Prompt writing sits at the crossroads of copywriting and art direction. It’s not about telling AI what to make; it’s about teaching it how to see. The next creative revolution won’t be led by who can code better, it will be led by who can write better. The most powerful creatives of the AI era won’t just design visuals or craft taglines, they’ll write prompts that shape emotion, define taste and translate strategy into images.
Prompting isn’t replacing creativity, it’s revealing it. AI didn’t steal the soul of advertising. It just gave it a new language.
