By Julia Kim, Chief Marketing Officer at Sumsub
The dynamics of modern marketing are undergoing an extraordinary revolution, and at its core is the rapid evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI). From predictive analytics to personalised customer experiences, AI is reshaping marketing, enhancing efficiency, and redefining the future of customer engagement.
As we embrace the power of AI, it’s important to recognise its transformative capabilities while shouldering the ethical responsibilities it demands. AI’s integration into marketing not only streamlines processes but also augments the depth and precision of consumer interactions. However, with this profound technological shift comes the duty to navigate it carefully.
The rise of AI in marketing: A paradigm shift
Recent research from McKinsey highlights that the potential value unlocked by generative AI spans across critical functions: customer operations, marketing and sales, software engineering, and research and development. These diverse applications encompass a broad spectrum, from generating creative content for marketing campaigns to interacting with customers and even translating natural language prompts into computer code.
One of AI’s most significant use cases is its ability to automate tasks that currently consume a significant portion of employees’ time, reaching up to 60 to 70 percent, according to the aforementioned research from McKinsey. This surge in automation is attributed to AI’s enhanced understanding of natural language, a vital component of knowledge-based work. As AI continues to progress, projections suggest that by 2030 to 2060, up to half of today’s work activities could be automated, resulting in substantial productivity gains. However, as we embark on such a transformative journey, upholding ethical considerations must remain at the forefront.
AI’s influence in marketing is rich and varied, leaving a lasting impact across many functions. Its capabilities are transformative, freeing marketers from mundane tasks to focus on more strategic activity with processes such as data entry, scheduling, and reporting undergoing seamless automation.
Furthermore, AI has capabilities to decipher complex datasets, which could enable brands to provide tailor-made customer experiences based on the insights. Such personalisation not only deepens engagement but also fuels higher conversion rates, fostering a greater sense of brand loyalty.
AI’s creative prowess is also not to be underestimated. It’s adept at generating ad copy and potentially crafting captivating articles. Yet, despite new-found levels of efficiency, the importance of striking a balance that retains the ‘human touch’ becomes paramount.
Navigating challenges: Ethical considerations
The ongoing bold embrace of AI in marketing is not without its trials and tribulations. It’s not simply about implementing AI, but about doing so ethically and with calculated foresight. The rising tide of deepfakes casts a stark spotlight on ethical responsibility. According to Sumsub internal data, Q1 2023 alone with Q1 2023 surpassed the total number of deepfakes detected in 2022 by 10%. Evidently, the misuse of AI-generated content is posing dire threats to trust and brand reputation. Finding the balance between innovation and ethical application is now paramount.
The blind acquisition of AI tools can lead to a fragmented marketing automation strategy. To avoid inefficiencies and disjointed customer experiences, the alignment of AI tools with overarching business objectives is critical. As marketing channels become increasingly inundated with AI-generated content, the risk of diluting the genuine human connection looms large. Therefore, ensuring that the AI-generated content retains the brand’s unique voice becomes a vigilant task.
AI interactions that are not well-designed can trigger customer frustration, causing them to leave. To avoid increasing drop-off rates during the sales and marketing funnels, teams must strike a delicate balance between innovation and preserving trust in the brands.
To succeed, it’s important to remember that AI should enhance human connection, not replace it. As such, marketing teams should continue to innovate while staying rooted in the commitment to ethical and customer-centric practices.
Balancing innovation and responsibility
As marketing leaders, we find ourselves at the crossroads of AI’s potential and its ethical implications. There are three guiding principles to navigate this journey.
The first is human decision-making. While AI empowers data-driven insights, human judgement remains invaluable. Decisions informed by AI should be tempered with human expertise. Secondly, businesses should consider an AI-based marketing strategy, however closely aligned with business objectives. An aligned, feasible AI strategy empowers marketers to choose the right tools, averting wasteful spending. In a saturated market of data enrichment and marketing tools, companies often acquire them without proper integration or analysis. Developing an actionable AI-based strategy is crucial for efficient resource allocation. Lastly, understanding your “human” is crucial. Teams must remember that the ultimate audience is human – customers, stakeholders, and employees. As such, they should tailor AI strategies to cater to their unique needs, preferences, and values.
The era of AI-powered marketing is certainly here, bringing unmatched opportunities and challenges. By embracing AI responsibly and strategically, we can harness its transformative power to elevate customer engagement, foster brand loyalty, and shape a future where innovation coexists harmoniously with ethics. As technology continues to shift, it’s our duty to steer this evolution, striking a balance between leveraging AI’s capabilities and preserving the authenticity that defines our brands.
