AI marketing is a strategy of leveraging data and machine learning to convey campaigns that aid you to accomplish a brand’s goals more appropriately. Most marketers employ Artificial Intelligence in market research, data science, and real-time campaign analysis. AI Marketing accredits to the use of customer data from online and offline sources, coupled with concepts such as machine learning, to foresee what users will do on websites or apps. Then, businesses can target definite users with specific content in the right channel at the right time. The increasing role of AI in marketing reflects the astounding growth of AI as a whole.
Challenges associated with AI Marketing
Artificial intelligence poses many new challenges for marketers. Before assimilating AI tools into your marketing operations, it is crucial to identify which challenges you will need to address. Some of these challenges associated with AI Marketing are such as –
. Data problems
No matter the industry or domain, it is important to identify any problems associated with the data that powers AI tools. For instance, you may not have enough data for Artificial Intelligence tools to produce some fundamental insights for marketing campaigns. Your data may be incomplete or inconsistent. For example, you may not have rich data for some prospects but minimal data for others. Your data may contain some duplicate entries or some information is missing from your data. So your AI tools will evaluate erroneous data.
Also read: How to get Google Analytics Setup in 5 Easy Steps?
. Privacy concerns
When you rely heavily on data collection and analysis to guide marketing, you need to remain compliant with laws such as the GDPR. This may promulgate various rules regarding how data associated with individuals is stored, processed, and managed. In some cases, efforts to acquiesce to these laws can hamper your capability to use AI tools. For example, if you store data locally to avoid storing it in the cloud, where it may be more problematic for cloud-based AI tools to ingest that data.
. Inadequacy of budget or buy-in
AI marketing solutions require specialized software that is expensive to amass, deploy, and maintain. This is often a considerable obstacle for small marketing budgets. You might also face hardship obtaining buy-in from stakeholders who will be answerable for approving and administering marketing solutions.
. Lack of talent
Companies need to have skilled, trained employees to correctly deploy, administer and interpret AI marketing results. You will likely need someone with a data science background to take this on, and your whole marketing team must take the time to learn to use the tools adequately.
All of these challenges can be met by an exemplary marketing organization that recognizes the value of AI-powered solutions.
Also read: Why SEO Matters for E-commerce Websites?
How one can get started with artificial intelligence marketing?
Every marketing organization is distinct, but there are some common steps that all marketers need to take to ensure the effectiveness of an AI-powered strategy such as –
. Set goals and KPIs
One needs to analyze what you hope to get out of AI marketing. Define metrics and KPIs that you will measure to assess the effectiveness of your AI-powered strategy. For example, you need to set a goal of increasing conversion rates by a certain percentage over the next quarter, or reducing your marketing costs by a certain amount in the same timeframe.
. Need to set data privacy standards
One needs to create a data privacy strategy for your AI operations from the start. One of the best ways to do this is to program data privacy rules into your AI solutions themselves. For example, you can make sure that the AI tools anonymised personal data received, and that data is stored by default in ways that implement the access controls, encryption, and other privacy protections needed by regulatory frameworks.
. Establish data sources
AI marketing tools require an astounding amount of data to deliver accurate, meaningful insights. That data can come from various sources, such as your CRM system, automated marketing tools, your email delivery platform, your automated workflow system, website logs, and metrics generated by various social media channels. One can also amass data about the geographic location of prospects, and how various buyer personas correlate with buying patterns. In addition to determining where you will obtain data, be sure to address data quality risks. Verify that your data sources are adept to afford error-free data consistently.
Also read: Top Digital Marketing free and paid tools in 2021 that you need to grow your business
. Need to obtain the necessary skills
Expect to invest some time and endeavor in learning how to make the most of your AI systems. If you cannot amass the essential talent in-house, prepare to hire outside talent to do the job. Plan for how you will retain the essential talent, and avoid situations where only one employee has the necessary knowledge required to work with AI tools.
. Need to select an AI platform
One need to choose AI tools that will power your marketing operations is one of the most difficult. This is one of the most important steps in the process of getting started with AI marketing. When analyzing tools, consider your main marketing goals, and whether the tools excel in addressing those goals. Some of the most common goals are such as –
. Increase the speed of marketing operations
. Reduce costs of marketing operations
. Need to drive higher conversion rates
. Improve lead qualification
Benefits of AI marketing
Once you have completed the steps described above to get started with AI in marketing, you will be in a position to relish a range of benefits. Some of the benefits of AI marketing are such as –
. Increased ROI
AI can assist you to achieve higher returns on your investment by amiable you to extract valuable insights and act on them faster. For example, AI tools might alert you in real-time to a new social media marketing contingency associated with a trending hashtag. By acting fast, you can procure better results with a lower investment of resources.
. Better customer experience
According to an Oracle report, 34% of marketing leaders accredit that AI will lead to the biggest improvement in customer experience because it facilitates hyper-personalized content. Customer satisfaction rates increase by 36% when marketers personalize content.
. Faster, more effective business decisions
With the aid of AI, marketers do not have to wait until the “end” of a marketing campaign to make their decisions or depend on quarterly reviews to shape the next phase of their marketing strategies. Real-time analytics means they can make the right decision, right now. In short, artificial intelligence puts marketers in a position to make acquainted and cost-effective decisions faster.
Also read: Top Digital Marketing Terms You Should Know in 2021
Wrap Up
There is a new brand of consumers out here today – fast-paced and knowledge-based. They foresee getting value out of a commodity before buying it. They need to know that the brand cares about them and their requirements. Consumers foresee the brand to know what they want before they decide to take the plunge. They require suggestions, tips, answers, and assistance now. AI marketing is the only way for companies to keep up with the ever-growing customer requirement and forecasts.
