Emerging TechnologyAI marketing and business growth

AI marketing and business growth

Marketers must understand the modern-day funnel and flywheel approach to properly leverage AI.

30-second summary:

  • AI is not only used for understanding data, but it is also used for understanding human behavior.
  • Businesses should look at AI as a means to problem-solving rather than a tool for understanding numbers.
  • Since this is an omnichannel world, AI can help with integration by creating an impactful experience.
  • A consistent message using AI will meet the audience in a natural way. Businesses that create consistency throughout the buyer’s journey will be able to generate growth.
  • Businesses can humanize AI by integrating it with storytelling, which helps connect the robotic function of AI to the emotions of your audience.
  • Audience behavior will always be a massive push for AI. So once businesses understand what goes into solving a problem from a marketing and customer perspective, they will be able to grow in a world drastically evolving in an unknown climate.

By now, everyone has heard of artificial intelligence (AI). From search engine algorithms to new tools for optimization, marketers are jumping on the AI bandwagon to understand how it all works together.

But AI is not only for understanding data alone. When implemented correctly, it can help you to grow your business by creating a personalized experience for your target audience.

Why AI is more than data

With the current health climate, artificial intelligence is more data-hungry than ever. The reason for this is the lack of historical data concerning COVID-19. But as we advance AI, the future will be less about data integration and more about solutions.

For example, Google incorporates AI into its algorithm to help understand search intent.

In 2019, Google announced an algorithm change that would impact 10 percent of queries because of its use of Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers. The change is there to better understand the reason for the user’s search.

AI looks at more than data. As this technology understands intent, AI marketing will be used to discuss the reasoning behind a task. AI will become a primary tool used for problem-solving rather than a tool for understanding numbers.

Visualize a world where robots conceptually understand as much as humans. Some marketers are afraid of AI while others are embracing it to help improve business operations.

Instead of thinking of artificial intelligence as a form of “The Terminator”, marketers can look at it as a partner by guiding a user down the modern-day funnel.

There are some companies working with robots that utilize AI to understand everyday tasks, communicate naturally and handle unexpected situations.

Imagine what advanced artificial intelligence could have done for the world during COVID-19. AI could have helped with understanding human behavioral patterns in a short time, thus tracking the spread of the virus.

AI and your marketing strategy

Artificial intelligence helps gather insight into your target audience, which is why marketers must understand how data integration works to figure out the intent for doing a task.

An integrated marketing approach is essential in today’s omnichannel world, so AI can help marketers produce that integration.

You need to be consistent in producing the same experience and messages through each channel. A consistent message using AI will meet the audience in a natural way. Businesses who create consistency throughout the buyer’s journey will be able to generate growth.

The buyer’s journey includes the modern-day funnel, and it has many stages, such as awareness, consideration and decision. A user can enter the funnel at any stage because of all the many channels to receive a message.

Successful marketers will be able to grow a business by understanding how to create engagement and personalization at each stage of the funnel while turning leads into loyal customers, thereby constantly nurturing the relationship.

The funnel includes a flywheel approach. HubSpot believes that the funnel is failing businesses because the flywheel model is the better way to go.

However, when looking at a website, the funnel helps identify each web page according to the stage within the funnel. Every keyword that is added to a web page has an intent for search.

A user in the awareness stage will use different keywords than a user in the consideration stage. Therefore, you can look at the funnel as including the flywheel.

The funnel uses momentum to create a relationship with your customers. It is simply saying that business keeps spinning. But, if you look at the customer reentering the funnel, you will see that there is a circle or flywheel within the funnel.

The experience should never stop, and this is where artificial intelligence comes in handy.

AI can be used for comprehensive engagement in your marketing strategy. By constantly evaluating intent, your customers’ interactions will be determined across channels to create a true omnichannel experience.

Marketing is already analytically driven. AI can help businesses to grow by taking business back to focusing on what matters – the customer experience.

Elements of creativity will never go away

The businesses that utilize AI correctly will be the ones that stand out and grow. Storytelling helps connect with an audience on an emotional level. Businesses can humanize artificial intelligence by integrating it with the art of storytelling. Therefore, elements of creativity will never go away.

Storytelling will help businesses to create a memorable experience. But, the growth of audience engagement is not storytelling. True content creators will look at storytelling as a narrative to demonstrate what a business represents.

Marketers will look at what the business represents and how it fits into creating a solution.

As AI evolves in society and redefines the reason for producing solutions, the nature of creativity in marketing will continue to evolve. The measurement in marketing is the value of output, thinking more like innovators and less like advertisers.

Marketers must understand how the buyer’s journey incorporates both the funnel and the flywheel to properly make use of AI.

Relevancy is not a new concept. Rather, being relevant in the moment is a new concept. To provide a good experience, you must adopt an agile mindset for the process of problem-solving.

Audience behavior will always be a massive push for AI. So once businesses understand what goes into solving a problem from a marketing and customer perspective, they will be able to grow in a world drastically evolving in an unknown climate.

Ashley Schweigert is the owner of Marcom Content by Ashley, LLC. 

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