A robot holds a paint brush as it prepares to paint an oil painting on canvas in piece about AI in marketing and creativity in campaigns.
Editorial

AI in Marketing: Balancing Creativity and Algorithms for Marketers

4 minute read
Ankoor Dasguupta avatar
By Ankoor Dasguupta
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Learn about the five AI tools empowering marketers today.

The Gist

  • AI in marketing. AI's strategic edge in tansforming market analysis and strategy development.
  • Optimizing data management. AI is enhancing marketing efficiency and insights.
  • AI's role in enhancing human resources. AI is elevating recruitment and branding in marketing.

I still remember, more than a decade ago, when Fine Arts students were solely focused on one aspect — the unique way their brush and art medium could convey stories on canvas. As a digital immigrant, I've been fortunate to closely observe this evolution. It's akin to a metamorphosis, where AI in marketing is not just a catalyst but sometimes a driving force behind initiatives. This is particularly thrilling for someone like me, who worked during the heyday of fax machines and cordless telephones.

The transition to AI is particularly thrilling for someone like me, who worked during the heyday of fax machines and cordless telephones.
The transition to AI is particularly thrilling for someone like me, who worked during the heyday of fax machines and cordless telephones.piyaphunjun on Adobe Stock Photos

Those who have embraced this transformation remain pertinent.
  
Today's marketers are empowered by algorithms with the following five tools:

1. AI in Marketing: Faster Decision-Making

The journey for executive leaders and marketers has never been straightforward, but algorithms have enhanced the ability of CMOs to substantiate their decisions. Whether it's forecasting market trends or predicting customer behavior, algorithms significantly aid in more precise decision-making. This reduces uncertainty, allowing for well-informed experiments to complement instinct. This advancement is partly due to the fact that, beyond search engines, tools like OpenAI have simplified the research process.

Related Article: AI in Marketing: More Personalization in the Next Decade

2. AI in Marketing: Better Data Outcomes

We've had access to significant data pools, specifically Big Data, which is driven by machine learning. This has greatly alleviated the challenges marketers faced a few years ago. Companies like Google, Meta, Amazon and Netflix have their foundations deeply embedded in machine learning. Speaking from my perspective as a marketer, AI in marketing has indeed enabled me to interpret vast data pools much more efficiently today.

Related Article: 4 Rules to Preserve Brand Trust When Using AI in Digital Marketing

Learning Opportunities

3. AI in Marketing: Amplifying the Human Touch

I'd like to highlight the significant impact this has had on human resources. Recruiting talent at all levels remains a central challenge for leaders and HR professionals. Streamlining the recruitment process, optimizing performance management, refining screening and selection methods, creating faster and unique assessment tests, and enhancing employee onboarding — credit for these advancements goes to the humans behind machine learning. This amplifies the human touch, which also translates into deeper employer branding.

Related Article: Machine Learning and Generative AI in Marketing: Critical Differences

4. AI in Marketing: Radically Simplifying Things

Starting from rendering manual data entry obsolete, the pace of change has been rapid and significant. Consider the current landscape of content creation, the lives of influencers, data analysts and Photoshop experts. As the adage goes, "With great power comes great responsibility." Therefore, while algorithms align almost perfectly with creativity, it is imperative for everyone to use this power wisely, judiciously, ethically and optimally.

5. AI in Marketing: Freeing up the CMO’s Time

This is truly the icing on the cake. While it may seem minor, algorithms have afforded marketers more time to focus on their creative endeavors. Let's acknowledge that the world operates neither solely on logic nor entirely on creativity. A blend of emotional intelligence and creativity, spiced with a dash of logic, makes for an effective approach.

In this recipe, logic serves as the salt. Furthermore, AI in marketing acts as a catalyst, enabling the creation of differentiated value in advertising campaigns.

Conclusion: Ensuring Best Practices for AI in Marketing

Senior marketers bear the responsibility of acknowledging the limitations, policies and copyright issues associated with AI use. They must ensure best practices for AI in marketing are disseminated among their teams, while also seamlessly adopting next practices for sustainable purposes.

I am particularly fond of this quote by Vitaly Pecherskiy: “AI cannot replace human creativity and idea generation, but it may be the greatest supplement to the human brain ever discovered.”

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About the Author

Ankoor Dasguupta

Apart from writing extensively around marketing and advertising, Ankoor also loves writing around leadership and its various facets such as values, people, purpose, overcoming challenges and around sustainability. Organizations he’s worked with include GE, Times of India, India Today, SHEROES, Comexposium India, DDB Mudra and at present working as the CMO with Shisham Digital. Connect with Ankoor Dasguupta:

Main image: goami on Adobe Stock Photos