For all its controversial biases, artificial intelligence comes out as the best tool for marketers.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
AI-based marketing tools allow teams to derive insights from the data collated and available, and the decisions based on insights from these tools offer customized and completely personalized offerings. AI technologies allow data collection, analysis and additional observations of trends and situations that can impact and influence both the customer and the marketing team.
Benefits of AI
One of the most significant benefits that AI offers for marketing is the personalization that paves the way for a much more agile response mechanism and, consequently, an excellent customer relationship. AI tools provide a much more complete range of opportunities for outreach and a better customer experience. The use of AI in marketing strategies is broadly based on three things: intelligent segmentation through sound data analysis, creating a connection based on this segmentation, and then delivering personalized messages to each segment.
With the support of ML and predictive analytics tools, the best target group can be identified in clear preference segments. This slicing and dicing becomes extremely precise with these three tools, and each preference point is clearly identified for each segment and target group.
The granularity of detail that AI can provide is impressive and makes it very easy to target these segments with personalized messages and products. As a result, marketers can create a unique and personal customer connection. Building relationships with the target market on their terms is a great option for B2B marketing.
The fact is, there’s really no other option for AI in marketing. It’s been around for some time and has proven its worth in better marketing at a much lower cost.
Challenges for AI
However, AI also has its challenges and limitations, which could be significantly undesirable. Aside from the inherent biases that AI suffers from, there’s the vital issue of customers being uncomfortable with bots on the other end of the line.
Although AI is widely accepted as an intelligent replacement for humans, any communication with a non-human for marketing actually becomes an obstacle to building relationships. The good news is that AI will always need a human on the backend to make decisions, be creative with conversations, and be imaginative enough to forge a bond with the customer segment.
Then there’s the question of doubts about the complete reliability of a machine-based algorithm. An AI tool may have several inherent drawbacks that can actually wreak havoc on marketing communication despite its apparent benefits. These could go far beyond racial bias or even geographic ignorance. A misplaced phrase could lose a customer forever, and that’s a situation an AI tool, trained in machine learning, can’t rush to resolve.
Furthermore, the human psyche is too complex to fit into neat formulas. In fact, business leaders have even argued that AI should be regulated for all the threats it could pose. There will undoubtedly come a time when customer preferences seem illogical to an AI software tool.
Implementing AI for marketing outreach is never an easy task in terms of business activity. If it is to become part of the workflow, there is a clear need for deep integration, not only of human-machine operations, but also between existing platforms and the new AI tool. If our focus is on using AI to enhance existing capabilities, this integration must be seamless, or it will generate more negative aspects than positive ones.
Another issue could be the privacy and security of customer data when it’s in the hands of AI tools, no matter how sophisticated. Even with the latest security measures, there will always be doubts in customers’ minds about the sanctity of their personal data in the hands of a bot.
That said, new-age customers seem quite comfortable sharing their data with bots like Alexa, so if the process demonstrates transparency and strong security controls in terms of data collection and storage, this hurdle can be overcome.
The biggest issue here is the biases AI suffers from. Inherent racial, community, linguistic, cultural, and even geographic biases could change the landscape of marketing activity. Needless to say, there will be far more to lose than to gain. There are many cases where AI bias has led to marketing disasters. But there are also ways to fix these problems.
In fact, many industry leaders have established ethics and privacy review boards, which include technical and legal experts, to assure their clients that AI projects are fully compliant. This way, any concerns can be dispelled.
Clearly, very little can be done to halt the rapid proliferation of AI in marketing strategies as a critical tool for data insights and segmentation for the appropriate personalization of marketing messages. Industries will find a way to circumvent any lingering doubts. These doubts still exist primarily because we, as humans, are still somewhat suspicious of AI, given the claims made in popular media.
AI could take over the human world and rule us, mercilessly, we’re told. But the reality is that AI, as of now, is only as smart as the lessons it’s been taught. Both its flaws and its strengths stem from that. It truly lies in the hands of business leaders to harness the enormous potential of this technology for the marketing sector. The benefits are substantial, but proper leverage may take decades to manifest.
The question remains: should you rely on AI for marketing? The answer is obvious: Do you have a choice?
