AI, or artificial intelligence, is no longer in the realm of science fiction. It’s making its way into a lot of different aspects of our lives. Tech companies have been using and refining AI for years. They use it to anticipate how customers will use their services and build better responses to customer needs. Almost every large company is using the power of artificial intelligence to react faster and automate processes. AI may seem very esoteric to some, but it can also be very simple.
It just depends on the use case.
Artificial intelligence marketing uses customer data with the power of machine learning in several ways. It all depends on what goal they want to accomplish with that data. Some companies use AI marketing to keep you on a website or watching their video marketing content longer. Others use AI marketing to get you to buy more products than you were originally looking for. AI can help you leverage the power of data to build your business faster a create a better customer experience. Here we’ll discuss what AI marketing is and how companies are using it today.
How Does AI Marketing Work?
The last decade has seen a massive migration to e-commerce, working online, and the exchange of data on the internet. You and your potential customers are generating more data than ever, and you can use it your advantage to give them more relevant products in an easier way. With data, comes the ability to make your marketing perform at a higher level at less cost.
Ross Kernez of Hpone says that AI marketing makes execution more efficient. Marketing on traditional channels is less specific and requires more money to message mass audiences. With AI marketing, though, you can target the right people at the right time in the buying process. Here are some great examples of how AI marketing works:
- Ads that target new parents just after they’ve announced having a child on social media
- Promoting products based on customers’ past purchases and likely future purchase decisions
- Regional promotions based on local product and service preferences
These are just a few examples of how you can integrate AI into your business and increase sales and profits. Done right, AI marketing shortens the steps you have to take to get to a close.
How AI Can Complicate Your Customer Relationship
Companies and other organizations need to be careful with how they deploy AI marketing. Years ago, we were all willingly allowing companies to gather and control our data in exchange for free services like social media outlets and better search results. At the time, most people didn’t understand what the exchange was in that agreement. Now, as AI marketing is everywhere, it’s easy to recognize what’s happened.
Customers today are more aware and more concerned with how their data is collected and used. People are reading the fine print, and they want a say over how they are marketed to and how to protect their privacy online.
Business owners and managers need to be careful with how they present data collection to customers. The wrong move can seriously damage brand reputation, not to mention potentially drive customers away. Using AI marketing responsibly is going to be the key to effective advertising targeting in the future. Customers and potential customers will only want the ads they want to see, and that’s going to be a challenge for marketing teams everywhere.
How Quality Content Makes AI Marketing Easier
Your customers and the people you’re targeting in your marketing campaigns will be more willing to give you access to your data if you’re delivering value. They’ll want to sign up for the amazing video content you’re producing or to hear about the latest product developments in a newsletter. The best AI marketing creates a beneficial two-way relationship between you and your audience as opposed to an adversarial one.
Don’t make the mistake of relying on AI marketing too much. It’s a value add that makes delivering content at the right moment to the right people easier. However, nothing should replace the hard work that goes into creative marketing efforts that build your brand and create unique customer experiences.
Most companies view AI marketing as a significant advantage. It certainly takes a lot of the guesswork out of anticipating what your customers are going to do. The influence of AI marketing is only going to continue to grow, so your team needs to know how to deploy it strategically.
Inhouse vs Third-Party
The big decision for many companies when it comes to business functions is whether to hire in-house or to contract the work out to a qualified third-party. This goes for AI marketing as well. People who are well-versed in AI and machine learning are in high demand, so expect to pay a high salary to attract the right talent. Thankfully, a lot of the platforms you market on are continuously building more AI into their systems. You can pay them a per-use fee based on your marketing activities. The final option you have is to outsource your marketing and any included AI to a digital marketing team. They’ll be able to help you capitalize on everything AI marketing can offer and have the experience to navigate multiple marketing and sales platforms.
A lot of companies use a combination of these approaches based on where they are in their growth journey. With more options available today, you can decide what you want now and change it down the road if it fits you better.
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