Will Marketing Be Replaced by AI ... or Form a Dynamic Content Duo?

Have you ever feared that AI could replace your job as a marketer? 

There’s no doubt that AI has become ever-present in the marketing space, but AI is not replacing you. In fact, AI and humans hold more power as a unit – the dynamic duo, as one might say. When used synchronously with humans, AI can be a resourceful and powerful tool incorporated into your B2B marketing strategy.

For us, it all started back in summer 2023 with AI for Content Creators, a webinar series hosted by MarketingProfs. Of particular interest to me was “AI and You: The Creative Duo Revolutionizing Marketing Content,” hosted by Cathy McPhillips, chief growth officer at Marketing Artificial Intelligence Institute. McPhillips covered everything from the AI tools you know and love (or fear) to new ones that can assist your marketing efforts.

This message rings even truer in 2024. Believe it or not ... AI, marketing, and humans can all coexist!

Surprise – You’re Already Using AI Marketing

Artificial intelligence is the science of making machines smart, as described by Demis Hassabis, co-founder & CEO of Google DeepMind. Similarly, AI in marketing is the science of making marketers bright, as stated by Paul Roetzer, CEO of Marketing AI Institute. Artificial intelligence is learning what we’re doing so you don’t have to work as hard!

As McPhillips’ webinar noted, your life is already AI-assisted. Your marketing will be too, and probably already is. 

Many of the things you do on a daily basis use AI technology:

• Zoom transcribes meetings
• YouTube suggests videos
• Gmail finishes your sentences
• Facebook targets you with ads
• Spotify learns the music you love
• Siri answers your questions
• TikTok personalizes entertainment
• Amazon predicts future purchases
• Netflix recommends shows and movies
• Google Maps routes you to your destination
• Apple unlocks the iPhone through facial recognition
• Tesla Autopilot drives your car

Why Are B2B Bosses Moving Toward AI?

Artificial intelligence has company decision-makers salivating. Both leaders and boots-on-the-ground workers are seeking AI tools for tasks that are repetitive, data-driven, and predictable. 

There are nine key uses of AI tools in marketing:

1. Drive costs down and revenue up
2. Consumer personalization
3. Predict consumer needs and behaviors
4. Offer actionable insights from marketing data
5. Reduce time spent on repetitive, data-driven tasks
6. Get more out of existing marketing technology stacks
7. Gain greater ROI on campaigns
8. Creates intelligent marketing using data & personas
9. Makes brands more human, automating repetitive tasks and opening room for human creativity
   
   

Marketer + Machine

An AI can perform some tasks better than a human could. In other cases, a human may be better equipped for the job. But, have you ever thought about how much AI and humans could accomplish together? Although the two have vastly different methods, combined they could become your ideal marketing machine.

Why Humans Need AI

Artificial intelligence can assist you with various marketing efforts and the routine tasks that come with them. With AI and automation, there are tools that can streamline repetitive tasks, augment human creativity, and more!

• Content optimization for search engine visibility: AI can incorporate keywords, links, and other SEO suggestions to get you found in Google Search.
• Test subject lines and copy variations: AI can see which keywords, formats, and variations would work best for SEO.
• Amplify content: AI can reword or add to content to improve your writing. 
• Repurpose your content: AI can rework old content to become relevant and fresh. 
• Translate for your growing audience: AI can translate your content to resonate with a certain audience, whether that be translating for language in another country or slang for a younger demographic.
• Content ideation and brainstorming: AI can give you a starting point for your ideation. This is especially helpful for those who experience chronic writer’s block!
• Outlining and mapping thoughts: Applications such as ChatGPT can help organize your thoughts while making them strategic and relevant to your goals.

(One of the most unsettling stock art images we've ever seen.)

Why AI Needs Humans

Although AI can be useful, it can’t replicate content the way a human would. Human creativity and connection are essential to telling your company’s story – and AI can’t do this alone. Here are some examples of why AI can’t run solo:

• Prompt crafting: Without humans, there would be no artificial intelligence. Without humans to prompt an AI, there would be no response. Drafting thorough and clear directions will help the AI generate a useful response.
  
  
• Use case identification: Before using AI tools, you should have a reason for using them. If you don’t know what you’re trying to accomplish, neither will the AI. Therefore, you won’t receive the response you’re looking for.
  
  
• KPI/OKR/strategy development: You know your company’s goals and strategies the best out of anyone. Providing an AI with your KPI/OKR/strategy will help the AI draft specific and relevant responses that couldn’t be accomplished otherwise. 
  
  
• Technology selection: AI can’t select the tools for you. Do your research, know your goals, and test out different platforms to select the technology that’ll work best for what you wish to accomplish. 
  
  
• Personality, humor, nuance: Artificial intelligence struggles to detect certain parts of human communication, including tone of voice and sarcasm. Therefore, after an AI outputs a response, human editing is necessary for the content to align with your personalized style.
  
  
• Make a human connection: Artificial intelligence is not sophisticated enough to convey emotion and directly engage with customers. This would include cases such as communicating a product recall or reassuring a partner that their business is essential. Edit your responses to include emotion and empathy.
  
  
• Facts and accuracy: AI can’t necessarily detect what is true and what isn’t. Review and edit your content to avoid copyright problems and misleading statements. 
  
  
• Ensure lack of bias: Artificial intelligence can’t detect bias, discrimination, or stereotyping. Review your responses for each of these elements.

Role & Risks of AI in Marketing

Upskilling is the need to learn additional skills – for digital marketers, that need starts now. 

Don’t get it twisted – many executives are jumping to the conclusion that AI can replace marketers. These companies will soon be left behind. While humans need AI, AI also needs humans. Therefore, AI won’t replace your job. It will act as your creative partner; it won’t do the work per se but will assist you in your B2B marketing strategy. 

The assumption that marketers are no longer useful has generated industry concerns. However, leaning on AI  also presents possibilities, even for the individual marketer.

Risks:

• The peak of inflated expectations: Employers are expecting work to be done faster with automated AI. They also believe technologies can do more than they actually can. As a result, companies are downsizing – and probably regretting it. Instead of considering the benefits of AI and humans working together, jobs are being seen as redundant. 
• Knowledge is at risk: Business success requires critical thinking skills. You must be able to apply yourself, work through nuanced situations, and practice skill-building.
  
  

Opportunities:

• Improved technologies: As technology continues to advance, you must advance with it. Learn and become comfortable with these advancements, because an AI-skilled marketer will be more valuable than one who’s not.
• Sharpen your soft skills: Soft skills will become more important as AI continues to evolve. As software, AI can’t adopt soft skills. If you’re a leader, work well with others, and have effective communication skills, you’re on your way to surviving the intelligence revolution.
  
  

Don't Want AI Marketing to Replace You? Try This

There’s always more to learn about AI technology. Here are a few options for expanding your company’s knowledge and strategy:

• Test the tech: Dive into free/trial versions of platforms that your company is considering to see if they meet your expectations.
• Listen to and read about AI: There are various resources available to learn more about AI, including The Marketing AI Show, hosted by the Marketing AI Institute.
• Find those with stories to share: Listen to others’ experiences with AI, especially at companies of a similar size or industry.
• Avoid the hacks and quick fixes: The best tools are the ones that will most likely require more effort. Be patient and learn with the AI.
• Find a community: Search for a community, such as Slack, to interact with people who have the same interests/questions as you.
• Pilot your first use case: Identify why you’re looking to use an AI tool, and jump in and try it! If the tool doesn’t comply with your use case, move on to another.
• Fail fast: The best way to learn is from your mistakes. Try new things and accept failure.

AI Marketing Tools

To become indispensable, you must adapt to internal and customer expectations.

There are over 11,000 AI tools at your disposal – and most aren't out to get you! This number continues to grow daily with the rapid development of technology.

Content creation tools generally assist with images, videos, copy, and advertisements. 

Content optimization tools will help you reach your target audience using SEO (search engine optimization), links, meta tags, and more.

• MarketMuse: Suggests content your brand should be creating
• LongShot AI: Writes credible content for SEO
• Research AI: Evaluates content performance

Content promotion tools distribute content through various platforms.

• Hootsuite: Popular social-scheduling tool now offers OwlyWriter caption generator
• Rasa.io: Helps retarget emails
• Lately.ai: Generates custom social content/evaluates performance
  
  

Will Marketers Be Replaced by AI? Nah, We're Better Together

As AI experts have said since 2023, machines and humans ultimately produce better work as a couple. Continue to review AI tools and grasp new knowledge – the technology is evolving week by week. The use of AI and humans in marketing will not only benefit you, but also enhance the future of your company’s success.

To learn how to expedite your marketing while getting value out of your team members, check out our webinar:

(This blog post was originally published in July 2023 and was recently updated with fresh insights.)