AI has been a hot topic among marketers, creators, and artists in recent years. Some see it as a tool that can make their workflow more efficient and as a way to inspire creativity, whereas others see it as the route to job layoffs and a loss of original invention.
While AI certainly has its benefits and its less-than-ideal effects on certain industries we are still yet to fully understand, the technology isn’t going anywhere anytime soon so let’s become acquainted with how we can utilize it positively.
What is AI?
First, let’s do a quick rundown of what AI even is. AI is short for artificial intelligence and is a form of software that can assist with various tasks to maximize efficiency (Marr, 2022). AI marketing specifically, uses this artificial intelligence “to gather insights into their customers and produce better content,” (Riserbato, 2023).
The AI machine will compile and analyze data and then present the information to the user. In AI marketing, marketers will utilize and apply the information the AI provides to improve performance, achieve business goals, and lessen the workload of necessary but tedious, repetitive tasks. For example, this may look like customer service chat boxes, content generation, targeted advertising, and compiling research (Riserbato, 2023).
How to Use AI For Marketing
Out of all industries, marketing has the most to gain from artificial intelligence machines. Researchers in a McKinsey study found that marketing and sales will have the biggest financial impact by introducing AI machines in the workplace (Marr, 2022). It's predicted by 2030 that AI marketing will power “45% of the total global economy,” (Chacko, 2023).
Some of AI’s benefits and capabilities are distinctly different from one another, while some may have overlapping themes. Let’s take a look at a few ways you can implement AI marketing into your business operations:
Content Personalization and Generation
One of the first ways artificial intelligence can be used in marketing assets is through content personalization and generation. AI can influence a customer's experience and behaviors by analyzing their online behaviors and providing marketers with this feedback to tailor future marketing endeavors. This provides a personalized experience through “web pages, social media posts, and emails,” based on a consumer's “name, occupation, online behaviors,” and more (Riserbato, 2023).
Additionally, artificial intelligence can also help generate content by developing captions, social media posts, emails, and blogs. However, the content produced by AI should be approached with discernment, as AI-produced content won’t be readily publishable upon generation. This means in terms of content generation AI should be used for inspiring creativity and providing the building blocks for creating content that is original, meaningful, and fulfills your goals with content. Therefore, using AI in your content generation should be approached with the intent of starting the process and generating ideas for your content; and not using AI as the beginning and end of content creation (Riserbato, 2023).
Data Analysis
One of the biggest uses for AI in marketing is for its data analytics function. Artificial intelligence can collect information from several sources and provide in-depth insights faster than a pair of human eyes are capable of. This allows AI to predict the outcomes of a marketer’s efforts and forecast sales using data ranging from “consumer engagement metrics, purchases, time-on-page, email opens, and more,” (Riserbato, 2023; Chacko, 2023). Marketers can then take this information and make better-informed decisions with their marketing strategies (Chacko, 2023).
Data analysis from AI-powered machines can also help efforts with search engine optimization (SEO). These algorithms can improve search engine rankings and overall website performance by analyzing traffic to your website and your competitor's websites; and identifying keywords that rank well according to SEO standards (Riserbato, 2023; Chacko, 2023). Content personalization can also fall under the data analytics category.
Chatbots and Customer Service
One of the most recent uses of AI in marketing is chatbots. Using natural language processing (NLP), chatbots can assist with customer service by providing quick solutions and answering commonly asked questions (Riserbato, 2023). This function can also prompt users to take action to get proper help, even if the customer asks a question that doesn’t have a programmed response. Any question that has not been programmed with an answer in the AI’s algorithm can be answered with the next steps for receiving assistance from a person. This can save time and foster better relationships by allowing customer service teams to lessen their repetitive tasks so they can help customers with more complex questions and issues (Riserbato, 2023).
Automation and Delegating Tasks
One of the most helpful aspects of using artificial intelligence in marketing is its automation features. AI-powered automation allows marketers to improve efficiency by offloading repetitive tasks such as creating optimized schedules and categorizing messaging and content (Chacko, 2023). Using chatbots for customer service also falls under this category of automation.
AI Marketing Advantages
Artificial intelligence has the potential to create a significant impact in marketing, as it has many functions the industry can benefit from (Riserbato, 2023). Here are a few ways AI in marketing can benefit your business:
Increase ROI
One of the main goals of implementing artificial intelligence as a part of your marketing strategy is to “increase ROI and build campaigns that are easier to track,” (Riserbato, 2023). The data analytics portion of AI can provide quick insights that can be used to improve marketing assets as they develop, which in the long run can save time and money (Riserbato, 2023).
Improve Relationships with Customers
Artificial intelligence can also improve customer service and relations by providing personalized responses and recommendations in real-time. This function with AI can help foster the relationship between the business and its customers (Riserbato, 2023).
Make Informed Marketing Decisions
By having access to tools like artificial intelligence, marketers can compile data they can use to “analyze, predict, and create marketing assets,” that align with the company’s goals efficiently and effectively (Riserbato, 2023). This helps marketers make informed decisions when it comes to their marketing strategies and the content they produce.
AI Marketing Disadvantages
While artificial intelligence certainly has its upsides, the technology is still relatively new and changing every day. This can create challenges for AI users as they learn to navigate this new facet of the digital landscape. Each industry faces a few downsides with rapidly developing technology, including marketing. Here are a couple of challenges already presented within AI marketing:
Quality of Content
Artificial intelligence machines are simply not reliable and developed enough to produce content for humans without a human editor. AI can mimic and put together content based on a certain data set it’s programmed to collect, but it cannot recreate the nuances of human life and the creativity that we possess. AI may be timely, but it can also provide content that contains factually incorrect information, a tone that diverges from your brand’s voice and identity, and biases. Without the eyes of a human editor, the quality of content would significantly drop and it would be clear that not much thought and editing went into the content creation (Riserbato, 2023). It may even be clear to some that the content was produced solely by AI without human intervention.
Privacy Issues
Over the years, marketing has become more personalized than ever. Though, with personalized marketing and advancements in technology that can at times invade privacy, consumers are valuing their privacy more than before. Some AI functions may require the use of gathering a consumer’s cookies containing their internet searches and behavior to present data and predict outcomes. This can become an issue if the AI software does not comply with laws and regulations on privacy (Riserbato, 2023).
Artificial intelligence machines and generators may be helpful tools for efficiency and gaining additional insight, but they are not a replacement for human intelligence. They are simply tools that can make the workflow more efficient and seamless by offloading a small chunk of the work to a machine. After all, that is what technology has always been: a tool to improve our lives, not replace it.
If your business is searching for additional help with its digital marketing efforts, set up a consultation today with BlueTickSocial to get started!
Sources:
AI Marketing — The Complete Guide
Artificial Intelligence And The Future Of Marketing
How to Design an AI Marketing Strategy
The role of artificial intelligence in marketing
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