Have you ever heard of the phrase that says “Artificial intelligence will surely take over digital marketing in a short period of time”? Well I think it does have validity. Artificial Intelligence is a game changer for marketers because it helps in personalizing, optimizing as well as automating a variety of marketing activities.
First off, digital marketing deals with promotion of a brand's product while connecting with potential or soon to be customers or clients using the internet and many other forms of digital communication.
Artificial Intelligence(AI) in brief.
Simply explained, Artificial intelligence (AI) is technology that enables computers and machines to simulate human learning, comprehension, problem solving, decision making, creativity as well as autonomy.
In other words, applications and devices equipped with AI can see and identify objects almost as perfectly as humans can. They can understand and respond to human language too. They can learn from new information and also new experiences. They can make detailed recommendations to users and experts. Shockingly, they can also act independently, replacing the need for human intelligence or intervention. Well, why would a self-driving car need a human to intervene, right?
Like I said, AI seems to be the biggest game changer for many digital marketers as they seem to rely on it with each and every passing day.
What are digital marketers using AI for?
Content Creation.
It is undeniable that digital marketers thrive on content creation in order to market their brands. The problem however is that good and eye catching content takes a lot of time and effort to create, something that many digital marketers have failed to pull off.
This was until they discovered AI. With Artificial Intelligence, a heavy burden has been lifted off their shoulders and many digital marketers have turned to AI copywriting tools like Chat Gpt to create content that they feed to their audiences.
Analytics.
With digital marketing comes data compilation. With all kinds of data scattered on different channels and platforms, it tends to turn a bit (if not extremely) hectic for digital marketers to sit down, compile all that data from different sources and make use of it. Also making real sense out of such large volumes of data seems rather complicated. In the end, they choose the easy way out, turning to AI tools to do the data hunting and compilation.
Task Automation.
There are quite a number of tasks that need to be constantly repeated but with only so little time to handle these tasks, Digital marketers are only left with one choice which is make use of AI tools to automate repetitive and time consuming techniques.
Customer personalization.
Digital marketers that have used AI tools for marketing have testified that the tools AI uses often make work the easiest since they always personalize the experience that the customers get with specific brands which is time saving and digital marketers do not need to carry out the customer personalization on their own.
Improving Customer Experience.
AI tools such as Chatbots are quite useful when it comes to improving customer Experience. Chatbots are known to provide rapid and accurate assistance or support which makes customers fully satisfied with a brand's reactiveness.
Trend Prediction.
AI has the ability to use historical data to predict upcoming or near future trends which in turn aids digital marketers to plan in line with the predicted analytics and improve their strategies.
Impacts of Artificial Intelligence on Digital Marketing.
To a greater extent, AI has performed an incredible role when it comes to Digital Marketing and it can be witnessed in the following ways;
Improved Customer experience.
When it comes to digital marketing, customer experience is a key factor here. AI must definitely be aware of this because it can enhance customer experience in many ways, such as providing responsive chatbots to answer customer questions in real-time, offering personalized product recommendations, and delivering faster and more efficient customer service, all in real time. By improving customer experience, AI helps a brand to build stronger and more sustainable relationships with customers, thereby increasing customer loyalty and retention in the process.
Improved Data Analysis.
AI has exceptional data analysis capabilities. In the world of digital marketing, data is an asset that can provide deep insights into campaign performance, customer behavior, and market trends. AI can process and analyze enormous amounts of data quickly and accurately, enabling you to make more informed data-driven decisions. AI-based data analysis also helps you identify new market opportunities, measure ROI from various marketing activities, and optimize overall marketing strategies.
Time saving through Automation.
Automation is one of the most significant benefits of using AI in digital marketing. AI can automate various routine and repetitive tasks, such as scheduling social media posts, sending marketing emails, and managing advertising campaigns. This not only saves time and effort but also ensures consistency and accuracy in executing marketing strategies. With automation, a brand can do away with unnecessary repetition and instead focus on more important strategic aspects while AI handles daily operations that require constant repetition. Incredible, right?
Increases Customer Engagement.
One of the main advantages of AI in digital marketing is its ability to personalize. AI is able to collect and analyze customer data in-depth so that a brand can offer highly relevant and tailored content to each customer's preferences. This personalization not only increases customer engagement but also drives higher conversion rates. With AI, it is easier to identify customer behavior patterns, understand their needs, and provide timely and appropriate product or service recommendations.
Increased Returns on Investment (ROI).
With all the amazing tools,, AI can help improve marketing strategies, which can lead to a higher return on investment (ROI) for different digital marketing campaigns. Companies using AI in marketing automation can see an average ROI increase of up to 30%
Improvement in Digital Marketing Strategies.
AI has the ability to use historical data to predict upcoming or near future trends which in turn aids digital marketers to plan in line with the predicted analytics and improve their strategies.
To a lesser extent however, there have also been some drawbacks regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence in Digital marketing and it has manifested in the following ways;
Low creativity.
It is definitely true that content creation in line with Digital marketing takes a lot of time and effort but when AI is used for this cause, a few things are bound to go wrong. Although AI is highly effective in analyzing data and automating tasks, it also has limitations when it comes to creativity.
Honestly, for content to be persuasive and eye catching, creativity is an essential element in this aspect. AI can assist in the creative process but still cannot fully replace the human touch in generating original and unique ideas and content. AI still requires human input and direction to produce truly original and creative work.
Concerns regarding data privacy.
There are so many concerns regarding data privacy when it comes to using AI for digital marketing purposes. The use of AI in digital marketing often involves the collection and analysis of substantial amounts of customer data, right? This raises very many concerns about data privacy and the security of all the customers' personal information.
Companies and brands therefore need to be extra careful and they need to ensure they comply with applicable data protection regulations in order to protect customer data. Data privacy breaches can damage a company's reputation and result in serious penalties too.
High costs involved.
Well, many people think using AI in digital marketing is a walk in the park. Well, not exactly. Developing and integrating AI technology requires significant investment. There is need for companies to invest in hardware, software and also human resources. There’s also a dire need to incur costs for training and development to enable their teams to use AI effectively. For small and medium-sized businesses, these costs can be a major barrier.
Limited Human Interaction.
Given that Content creation thrives more with creativity, it becomes a little harder to achieve with the use of AI. The limited creativity therefore makes content created with AI less appealing and convincing.. it generally lacks the human touch.
Further more, whereas it be true that AI can enhance efficiency and effectiveness in various aspects of marketing, it cannot fully replace human interaction. The human sentiment in marketing is an important aspect that creates an emotional connection with customers. AI may be able to provide quick and accurate responses, but it most definitely cannot replace the interpersonal relationships that humans can build. Therefore, it is important to maintain the human element in digital marketing strategies to achieve better results.
High dependence on data quality.
As we all know, the performance of AI is directly linked to the quality of the data it processes. In cases where the data is flawed, outdated, or even incomplete, the AI's analysis and decisions will definitely be flawed, outdated and very incomplete. In other words, the quality of input is directly proportional to the quality of output.
Whereas Artificial Intelligence has done a lot of good when it comes to digital marketing, it is safer not to completely overlook the consequences that could come about when digital marketers entirely depend on AI for marketing.
