3 reasons why it’s crucial for brands to introduce machine learning into their marketing

Published August 10, 2017   |   
arvindl

Every so often, a story ripples through the media along the lines of “Scientists say a ‘smart pill’ is just over the horizon to make us immediately more intelligent.” While there is no telling when we will actually see such a pill, there’s a metaphorical “smart pill” available to marketers now, and it comes in the form of artificial intelligence, or AI.
AI is rapidly transforming the enterprise—and that includes the marketing department. According to a recent Gartner survey, 85 percent of customer interactions will be managed without a human by 2020.

Essentially, AI leverages machine learning to maximize the effectiveness of marketing efforts by predicting the best next customer interaction based on what it has learned through previous interactions. The more data AI has to work with, the better job it does identifying patterns of customer behavior and engaging them in more meaningful and authentic ways.
In today’s digitally connected world, customers are demanding brand experiences that resonate with them on the channels they prefer. And if they don’t feel as though a brand is being authentic, they’ll disengage. AI is the partner to the marketing team, helping it deliver the right message at the right time.

Moving past the anxiety about AI’s impact, Here are three reasons why CMOs should tell their teams to cheer—not fear—the power of AI:

Enables more precision

Marketers are awash in data. New technologies and channels are creating billions of customer interactions, yet marketing teams alone are not equipped to consume or mine all this data to target and engage each customer at the speed and scale required today. With the help of AI, marketers have the ability to optimize campaigns, including selecting the appropriate content, at the right cadence, across all channels, and to select segmentations. And AI can uncover opportunities that are inaccessible without its “brainpower.”

Marketers’ fear of AI is due to a lack of understanding. The reality is AI will complement marketing rather than replace it. What’s more, AI will amplify their marketing efforts at a time when we are all forced to do more in less and less time.