Building brands with AI as an ally

The building of a brand is shifting in its purpose and its objective as we integrate into an emerging future of deep intelligence, instant engagement methods and unique algorithm communication.

There is a subtle air of desperation in brand and marketing agencies as they try to grasp this new sphere, which is driven by artificial intelligence (AI) — a reality that is fast becoming the new mode of business. 

We’ve come a long way as an industry of crafters, taking brand engagement through new and exciting paradigms, including bringing customers closer to the brands they love. However, the agency comfort zone is about to dissipate completely, offering levels of uncertainty, opportunity and possibility that our minds have yet to seize.

The only way out is through, and the only way through is to adopt a growth mindset of curiosity and agility. The possibility of what AI and deep intelligence can offer is very exciting. AI is poised to transform how we reach, engage and retain customers. It creates new business processes, pivoted around improved time management, increased creative collaboration and more astute key performance indicator responsibilities. It will force agencies into developing a business model founded on discerning human capital from AI capital.

A recent study by Accenture found that AI-powered marketing and advertising technology has the potential to increase marketing efficiency by up to 50% and boost return on investment by up to 30%. Furthermore, a survey by Epsilon found that AI-powered personalisation can lead to up to eight times higher conversion rates than non-personalised experiences. Businesses can analyse large amounts of customer data to gain deeper insights into individual customer behaviour, preferences and needs, and AI is just bringing a more dynamic and personal edge to this.

Automation allows marketing tasks such as e-mail marketing, social media management, thought-leadership pieces, planning, data analysis, reporting, research and ad targeting to free up space for more strategic thinking, business expansion activities and improved client relationships. Most design tools, such as Adobe XD, Canva, Gravit Designer, Studio and Tailor Brands, already have AI incorporated into them, solving design challenges that in the past would take time to do.

Added to this, ChatGPT has created a mind shift in how we approach our productivity. As a language model created by OpenAI, ChatGPT has the potential to revolutionise the marketing and branding industry by providing agencies with conversational support that can be integrated into many other AI tools using Zapier. The possibilities are endless. Think copywriting support, image generation, brand naming, social videos and responsive chatbots. The aim is not to rely on AI to think for you, but rather for it to inspire and support your ideas. Think of it as a draft that requires your aesthetic and imaginative mastery.

I hear what you’re thinking: AI can never replace human creative thinking, emotional intelligence, attention to detail or teamwork. Not yet, anyway — but who knows. This where technology becomes an immeasurably valuable opportunity for those who can see it. Adding the human factor to the mix adds poetry, vulnerability, experience, interpersonal rapport and reasoning. Humans are the creative conduits through which these tools come alive. The question becomes: “What does your unique conduit blueprint look like?”

Agencies face a beautiful new strategic challenge: to reassess their full human capital resource, analysing each team member’s unique skills, passions, experience and role. Adding AI application support to their tech stack, enhancing their “human” contribution, and finally, drafting a new blueprint that celebrates their new distinctive role to the business. At the same time, agencies need to educate their clients about the many new possibilities that can elevate customer and brand experience, leading to more effective marketing strategies and campaigns.

Take five minutes and explore this new world. Start with futurepedia.io, where you’ll find a collation of AI applications to experiment with. Look up design tools like Wittypen, Prezi, Animoto, Hootsuite, Venngage, and Grids. Keep in mind that these have not all been tested to their fullest capacity in professional environments, so the idea is to play and figure out what works best with your offering and current requirements.

AI is only getting richer, and it is learning at an exponential rate with every interaction it receives. So, although there are some glitches, it can only improve over time.

The impact of AI on the marketing and branding industry is immense, and businesses that embrace this technology are sure to reap the benefits. Given that the benefits of AI are too significant to ignore, turn any fear or desperation to “keep up” to an invigoration to magnify your offering, boost your revenue and celebrate human capability.

• Simone Berger is a brand strategist, facilitator and coach.