As the digital landscape evolves, so do the Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools at our disposal. AI has the ability to analyse data, predict trends and streamline processes. But, just how important is AI for business owners in their marketing strategies? And how much trust can we give it?

Anyone can quickly produce high volumes of content using AI tools. However, it is one thing to generate large volumes efficiently, it is another to have content that will resonate with your customers and prospects.

As a business owner, do you have either the time or skill to be able to do this effectively? And do you know how to prompt AI tools into producing the kind of content that will really speak to your audience and be backed by the right strategy?

There is a lot of content being produced these days, but much of it lacks the quality and substance that will really resonate with audiences. Well written and engaging content needs to tick a few boxes in order to get a guernsey at the starting gate.

To start with, it needs to be really well written with a specific audience in mind targeting their needs and pain points while being strategically aligned to your business goals.

It also needs to be engaging and interactive to tug on the heart strings when telling a story or be accompanied by captivating visuals that bring added meaning.

Providing lots of FREE informative and educational information is fundamental in building trust and building a brand to position yourself as a thought leader.

While AI is a game changer for many businesses, we need to tread carefully when thinking that it can replace the personal touch. So, let’s consider some of the common core marketing functions that a small business needs and can be leveraged by AI.

Research and analysis are an essential component of a marketing strategy. In this Big Data age, a person will struggle to comb the large amount of data available efficiently. AI can navigate immense levels of data in seconds, and also supply real-time insights for use in your marketing strategy.

Automation speaks to manual tasks once carried out by people, now being undertaken by AI. Tasks such as answering customer enquiries with chat bots, scheduling social media campaigns, and using customer profiling and segmentation to bring in new leads.

AI content creation opens up a whole new world of visual creation and can deliver access to a whole new level of efficiency and scale.

While these tools are game changing, they alone do not make a successful marketing strategy. The key to a successful marketing strategy, is to have someone with an intrinsic knowledge of the marketing space and who can apply this understanding to your business’ goals while utilising AI tools to improve efficiencies.

Without the strategic understanding of the big picture, no amount of fast-copy and templating can save a brand campaign. Being able to input the correct information and prompts in a logically sequenced and strategic way requires implicit understanding of marketing strategy and brand management.

An AI tool is only as good as the user, much the same as using software. Leveraging AI content without a personal touch poses significant risks for a small business. Often the content that is generated lacks alignment to business goals and isn’t of sufficient quality to really engage your audience.

But, to really know AI, we must first try and understand AI.

AI works on a series of interconnected nodes that connects data that is accessed by a prompt. That prompt can be verbal, written, an image, or it can be implied by the context of the previous inputs.

With that in mind, consider these key limitations of AI:

• AI has no emotional intelligence
• AI technology cannot understand empathy
• AI learning comes from a restricted source of content
• AI is a language-based model
• AI is limited to its human generated prompt

AI is an amazing tool, no doubt about it. But it lacks skill in the intuitive aspects that a marketer can bring to a business, including judgement and human emotional connection, the most persuasive element of all.

It also means that content generated by AI only, risks being repetitive and lacks the level of critical thinking and analysis that a marketer will bring to a marketing campaign. The net result is blog posts and copy that are very similar, rather than thought provoking pieces that bring true value to the reader.

Some other challenges to consider when using AI tools:

• AI can only interpret a prompt that is within its current capability
• AI does not have awareness, perspective, or inference
• AI cannot think outside-the-box
• AI cannot offer creative solutions beyond its parameters
• AI cannot judge good content from rubbish
• AI cannot determine what is best for your brand

And therein, lays the biggest problem of all. AI cannot work without a human to guide and manage the process and outputs.

If you really want to stay ahead of the game, you will still need to have a team of marketing professionals behind you who can guide your strategy and content.

The future of marketing lies in the collaboration between AI and human expertise. Marketing strategists, copywriters and designers are able to embrace AI as a tool to make their job more efficient and improve the quality of output for clients.

While AI is a truly transformative technology, it remains a tool that still requires significant human guidance to infuse creativity, emotion and strategy. It is highly efficient in combining ideas and concepts that already exist. However, it is the human mind that has created these ideas and concepts in the first place.

As a business owner the ability to use AI tools will not replace your marketing team. These professionals are the ones that have the skills that AI doesn’t have. They are the creatives and strategists that you still need in order to achieve your business marketing success.

Just remember, it’s the creative strategist behind the AI who ultimately turns data into personalised journeys, anecdotes into impactful stories, designs into captivating visuals and engagements into lasting connections.

So, I really don’t think marketing creatives and strategists are going anywhere soon.

Read the full blog here.

Written by Stacy Farrell

Founder and Visual Enthusiast

Content Box