Artificial Intelligence. AI. The acronym can illicit a myriad of reactions, both negative and positive. And even staunch supporters of its use in marketing initiatives can admit that it’s very “buzzy”. That being said, while some businesses ponder and pontificate, others have made the leap into AI-powered marketing. AI adoption has grown by over 60% in the past year, while of those who have not, 44% worry about delaying artificial intelligence implementation as a risk to vulnerability to new, disruptive start-ups. The time for AI within marketing is now, but don’t fret — it’s more attainable than you think.
Tried and true
With any new tech that bursts onto the scene, it always runs the risk of being over hyped. And with the major buzz around AI, it’s reasonable to be skeptical. But, your favorite businesses have been stealthily using artificial intelligence for years, and with incredible results. Netflix saved $1 billion in lost revenue in 2017 with AI powered recommendations and Amazon’s AI implementation reduced ‘click to ship’ time by 225%, to just under 15 minutes. They both had the challenge of building out their system in house, but their successes warranted a response from the tech industry.
Mo’ money, fewer problems
All the buzz generated in the past couple years over AI hasn’t gone unnoticed by investors and analysts. AI was responsible for between $8B to $12B of total external investment in 2016, and has increased in subsequent years. Technological advances from AI have been forecasted to increase global GDP $14 to 15 trillion by 2030. And, 71% of experts agree that investments in AI will increase rapidly in the coming years.
Far past a fad
As leading D2C brands have mimicked the Amazon’s of the world, they’ve turned to AI-forward platforms to help them execute. Artificial intelligence has become an integral part of these brand’s marketing strategy, and for good reason. When using AI powered messaging, 49% of consumers are willing to shop more frequently while 34% will spend more money. Now, 61% of marketers to rank artificial intelligence is the most important aspect of their data strategy. And, while tech shopping, 87% of adopters said they were using or considering using AI for improving email marketing specifically. While AI is useful in many different fields, the case for AI being a staple in martech is growing stronger — just look at the platforms scrambling to add it on.
Marketer attainable — no data science skills needed
Much of the research around AI and marketing has been involving enterprise level companies, and large scale deals. This has led to the incorrect assumption that artificial intelligence is just for teams with considerable engineering resources and deep pockets. Businesses of all sizes, some even with little to no data scientists, have found success using AI. The key is finding a technology partner that uses AI and machine learning in order to elevate engineering needs, while providing powerful, automated customer journeys. Blueshift’s Customer Data Activation Platform does just that — but don’t take our word for it, check out how Skillshare and Artifact Uprising are utilizing our intuitive AI for themselves.
Ready to realize your marketing’s full potential with AI? Read more about Blueshift’s AI powered journeys, or test it out for yourself with one of our team members.
