The Pros & Cons of AI In Digital Marketing

You know it, you’ve probably seen it, and you may or may not love it. AI is slowly taking over the creative fields, from photography and videography to most of the things you read online (not this though, we promise we’re real). To simplify things, artificial Intelligence (or AI) can help provide knowledge or visuals for a concept without having to be programmed by a real human. You can think of it as your classic social media algorithm, but without all the back coding. However, just like everything else, there are plenty of pros and cons of AI in digital marketing.

PROS OF AI IN DIGITAL MARKETING

MORE EFFICIENT

No one wants to manually type out closed captions on a video or transcribe a long interview. AI is much better at those type of dull tasks that can drag down employees. So, when it comes to automating your simple workflow, the best way to save time is to rely on the help of AI! With computers taking on the simple writing that most people may not even read, you can focus more on perfecting your creatives, or offering higher-value work to your company.

You may already be relying on it more than you think. If you use any type of third-party scheduling app for your social media, you may have noticed recommended posting times, content ideas, or reminders to post on holidays. These all fall into the AI category of your marketing, and it may be smart to take their suggestions. They can also help generate thank you messages, email scheduling, and other mundane tasks that don’t necessarily call for a humanized flare. 

HYPER-PERSONALIZATION

AI is honestly the easiest way to keep all your data in one place. Using artificial intelligence to monitor your personal customer information can make it easier to create marketing campaigns, focus on popular keywords, and understand the best times to reach them. It can track everything you use for your tactics, from location to past purchases to browsing history on your site. This alone can make the user experience more productive and inviting for customers.

It’s time to say goodbye to sending messages that don’t quite hit the mark. Thanks to advancements in technology, companies now have the power to deliver laser-focused messages to the right people at the right time. That’s how your phone knew you were thinking about trying that new brand of dog food the other day.

STREAMLINED MARKETING EFFORTS

We’re always looking for ways to organize our data more efficiently, right? Well, AI might just be the perfect answer to understanding your customers before they’re even customers. AI is a great tool to use when tracking what people are actually searching for, allowing you to target them more proactively. 

It’s also great for creating extra accessibility tools, allowing you to reach a much wider audience. Think about all the time your employees can save when they no longer have to translate audio or text to other languages or cut their turnaround time for description writing in half. 

While AI tools have their benefits, it doesn’t guarantee perfect results. It can be easy to just throw a few keywords into ChatGPT and let it go, but how do you know it will generate what your business stands for? You can’t program your branding, your voice, or your personal missions – right? 

CONS OF AI IN DIGITAL MARKETING

HUMANIZING YOUR CONTENT

At this point, you can almost tell when something is computer-generated just by looking at it (hopefully). AI is under no circumstances self-aware, nor does it specify your specific company standards. The only way to get the best results would be to involve a real person in the process. 

If something breaks, your computer can’t fix it. It cannot recode your website without the help of another program, which has to be installed by a physical person. It cannot console distraught customers or answer detailed personal questions. While AI can be great for holding data, it definitely cannot fix external problems that may come up in day-to-day business.

CHATTING WITH BOTS 

We’ve all seen those pop-up chats on almost every website nowadays. And while they can be helpful in simple situations, that’s never what you actually need them for. We’ve all been stuck trying to call our bank a million times only to just keep pressing buttons and going in circles. Robots can only help a conversation get so far.

While chatbots are perfect for gathering information, like an order number or name, they probably aren’t capable of giving a solution to that specific customer’s problem. When a customer can’t get a hold of what they need, you’d be surprised at how quickly they give up on you. People want compassion and answers, not an automated “thank you for your patience”. 

ATTACK OF THE CLONES

Now here’s where Shout Creative comes in. We’ve all seen the viral videos of the new AI-generated content going around. While on the surface it looks great, over time you’ll start to see repetitive content. Computers can only know as much as we’re willing to teach them. And when it comes to videography of your business or your product, quality and creativity matters. 

Yes, AI content is created faster, but that doesn’t mean it’s truly better. Original content still goes a long way online, even offering higher SEO opportunities, unique branding, and personal connections to your videos. Plus, relying on real humans might even save you some grief in the long run. AI doesn’t understand the concept of copyright or plagiarism, which can become a huge financial problem in the future. Relying on AI rather than the real human mind for things like creatives, video content, or concepts can lead to repetitive and unoriginal content. And really, no one wants to see that.

HOW TO INCORPORATE AI EFFICIENTLY

KEEP IT SMALL

There’s no law that you have to use AI content for everything about your business. Instead, start small. If you’re looking to add a bit of AI-generated work, try testing it out on data charts. Maybe try taking your content calendar’s advice for posting times. These may not seem important, but when used correctly, they can be a great tool to help you grow gradually. 

BALANCE IS KEY

Don’t rely solely on AI-generated text or content. Instead, make sure if you are going that route, to have a real person look over them and make any personalizations or changes. Translations or closed captions can save you a lot of time, but it works best when complemented with a second set of eyes. Allow AI to handle the simpler tasks, while your real employees handle the complex ones.

START WITH REAL PEOPLE, LIKE US!

At Shout Creative, we understand the importance of knowing your target audience when it comes to digital marketing. Our digital marketing strategy will build your brand, generate new leads, grow your sales, and increase ROI. From social media management and videography to Google management, learn more about how Shout Creative can get the word out about your business.