The days of idly speculating about how technology–or artificial intelligence in particular–will upend old ways of working are over. The era of AI is here. And while in many ways, AI has been with us for years already, we’re now at the point of no return. The sci-fi daydream of how tech will change the way we work has become the reality of sorting out what this means for us as marketers.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at where we are with this ever-evolving technology. Welcome to the dawn of digital marketing in the new age of AI.
AI’s Impact on Online Marketing
Artificial intelligence is influential not only in technology-driven industries but also in the marketing and advertising sectors. As this technology keeps improving, businesses are also improving their marketing strategies to include AI.
For instance, over the past year, an increasing number of generative AI tools have been helping millions of marketers produce content decently passable by human standards. Chat GPT and other similar AI tools, like Google’s Bard, can generate content for marketers within seconds.
In 2021, AI in marketing was estimated to be worth $15.84 billion. Key analysts estimate that this value could increase to more than $107 billion by 2028. AI is here, and it’s here to stay.
But popularity is not the only driving force behind the success of AI in digital marketing – it’s also had a positive impact on streamlining operations. For example, AI can help with basic content proofreading, the generation of article topics, and personalized cold emails, just to mention a few. This frees up time and effort that can be allocated toward content creation and other content marketing operations.
A 2020 survey of marketers from across the globe showed that 41% of the respondents reported a significant improvement in their revenue growth and also experienced enhanced performance. They attributed this to the adoption of AI in their marketing activities. And these percentages are bound to increase as more marketers and businesses adopt AI technology.
Here’s a brief overview of AI’s influence on online marketing.
Generative AI tools help with content generation
Content marketing is evolving. As a marketer, you now have to do more with your content as there is a growing need for relevant, high-quality content for target audiences.
Part of this marketing content today includes featuring content such as longer blog posts, personalized messages, and hyper-focused web pages. Creating this type of content takes a lot of work. It’s a time-consuming process that requires creativity and adequate research.
But AI, generative AI to be specific, can help alleviate some of this workload as they can generate content ideas automatically. Tools like Chat GPT and other AI-powered tools can even produce blog posts and other forms of content that include personalized messages at the click of a button, made better and more accurate with (minimal) human revision.
Content marketers can now avoid writer’s block
Producing dynamic content such as blog posts, emails, ad copy, and personalized messages is a creative and research-intensive process. And if you’ve been doing this for years, you’ll know how hard it can get when working on new pieces. One factor that contributes to this harsh reality is writer’s block.
Writer’s block, as the name suggests, is a situation where you experience a ‘mental block’ that slows down your creativity and takes away your ability to start or continue writing projects. It literally makes it hard for you to get a simple paragraph or a sentence going.
But AI tools have proven to be valuable resources for content marketers as they help eliminate writer’s block and, as a result, enhance their productivity.
AI can analyze large data sets for actionable insights
Other forms of AI are revolutionizing how advertisers and marketers process data and derive actionable insights. This technology has the ability to process data sets in a short period. As a result, it helps marketers to understand their target audience better and make informed decisions.
AI also features machine learning. Through this technology, AI can analyze consumer feedback, preferences, and reviews to reveal insights. This helps companies enhance the overall customer experience.
In addition to analyzing large sets of data for actionable insights, AI can also help you analyze security threats. It does this by analyzing large volumes of data to identify patterns and anomalies that may indicate security threats.
AI-powered tools can perform automated vulnerability assessments on digital assets such as websites, apps, and blogs to fish out any potential security loopholes.
Other tools that marketers have used to enhance their data security include VPNs and antiviruses. VPNs, in particular, have proven useful for marketers as even the cheapest VPNs can mask your IP address and ensure a secure connection when browsing online. This prevents cybercriminals from stealing sensitive data in your possession.
This technology has proven useful for optimizing ad targeting
AI algorithms can create and personalize content for individual users based on their preferences, behavior, feedback, and historical data. And from this, it can identify the most effective techniques for ad targeting, ad placements, and messaging.
As mentioned above, AI can process a lot of data to extract meaningful insights. From this data, marketers can deliver highly targeted content to their audiences, increasing engagement and relevance.
For instance, such technology uses advanced algorithms and NLP (Natural Language Processing) techniques to create persuasive ad copy, but most importantly, relevant for your target audience.
AI has helped marketers with search engine optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a vital component of online marketing. SEO techniques increase your online visibility, and influence the ranking of your content on search engine results pages (SERPs). AI-powered tools can identify keyword gaps and suggest optimization techniques to improve content scores and influence rankings.
AI has also helped marketers create more search engine-friendly content and improve their organic search visibility. This technology can also analyze content performance metrics and user behavior to optimize content elements such as headlines, images, and CTAs – elements that have all proven to be valuable for SEO.
In Conclusion
AI has impacted online marketing in many positive ways, including the automation of tedious tasks, analysis of vast data sets, and effective ad targeting. But as a digital marketer or business owner looking to skyrocket your online presence, consider leveraging other online marketing resources at your disposal. While AI has certainly revolutionized the landscape, it’s important to remember that it’s not the only tool in your toolkit. Incorporating a holistic approach that combines AI-driven insights with human creativity and strategic thinking can lead to even more impactful results.
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