“The Marketer’s (Early) Guide to AI”: AI is Here to Help, But Not Take Over Our Jobs
With artificial intelligence rising and rapidly changing the communications industry as we know it, it is imperative that we keep up with the latest developments surrounding the technology. The Weiss Center hosted an exclusive group of Newhouse students for a livestream of Marketing Brew’s “The Marketer’s (Early) Guide to AI.” This experience served as a lucrative learning opportunity for us as young professionals to hear from prestigious industry experts about how they’re applying AI in marketing and technology.
Marketing Brew hosted a series of executives to discuss how AI has impacted their companies and day-to-day operations. Topics varied from the relationship between chatbots and employees, how AI can impact storytelling and how to leverage AI to maximize the customer experience.
The five key takeaways from the sessions were:
AI technologies can work in conjunction with human labor to optimize efficiency.
- Speakers stressed the importance of using AI as a collaborator to complete mundane tasks quicker and allotting more time to brainstorm creative solutions.
- Upwork’s CMO, Melissa Waters, discussed how her company uses AI as a way for its teams to evaluate tools in a fraction of the time it takes to perform manually.
- Plus Company’s Michael Cohen added that implementing AI tools can enhance a company’s data analytics, allowing the organization to gain greater insights on certain audiences, including clients.
The industry mentality shifted from being fearful to embracing AI.
- Across all of the interviews that took place on Wednesday, it was clear that AI is not something to fear, but rather a technology tool to embrace and use to your advantage.
- Ogilvy’s Global CEO, Devika Bulchandani, highlighted that AI tools will “take the perspiration out of our jobs.” She also added that as long as there are humans we need to reach,” human beings must be the ones reaching them.
AI is helping to ease the consumer customer service experience.
- Chatbots and other AI customer service tools are improving the consumer experience like never before. Research has shown that 70% of queries are able to be solved with chatbots.
- Not only is this more convenient for the customer, but it cuts down the amount of work customer service employees – freeing up time for more complimentary queries.
AI can be trained to effectively tell a brand’s story.
- Brennan Woodruff of GoCharlie.AI discussed how AI has helped him overcome writer’s block.
- Microsoft Advertising’s Jennifer Kattula said that she uses AI every day, from writing emails to preparing for meetings.
- Both speakers emphasized that users can utilize AI tools to follow the parameters of their brand’s image, and ultimately reap the benefits of the emerging technology. If the AI is aware of the company’s objectives and stylistic characteristics, then it can aid with projects relating to brand storytelling.
Companies have been using AI longer than you think.
- It may have only been recently since AI has become mainstream to all consumers, but companies have been using the resource for far longer.
- Nigel Storey, CTO at Zappos, says that the company has used the tool because of its ability to mimic human behavior and to conduct sentiment analyses.
- Amanda Cole, CMO at Bloomreach, echoed Storey’s comments, noting that AI has given companies greater details on consumer behaviors and can provide “hyper contextualization” on an organization’s target audience.
Marketing Brew’s livestream event opened a world of new possibilities in technology happening right before our eyes. AI technology is rapidly changing industry practices every day, and it is imperative that we absorb as much information as possible before we enter the workforce. Attending this livestream event not only taught us about how AI is being used in practice right now, but it also helped us understand how we can utilize AI in our future careers.