By the fact that you’re reading this article in the first place, I’m certain you’ve heard someone say something along these lines:
“AI is going to revolutionize and improve every aspect of your business! It’s going to change the way you work and make you tons of money!”
This, to be honest, is certainly hyperbole. AI is useful as a tool for your business, but centering your entire business around it may not be the best decision yet. From my experience, AI is great in some aspects but hasn’t yet caught up to human standards in others. However, the fields that AI succeeds in are undeniably useful and will improve your business’s overall quality of life.
As someone with a background in digital marketing, I want to go into more detail on the many ways that you can use AI to assist in your digital marketing efforts. In doing so, I’ll explain what AI is, how/why you should use it, and some details that will not only improve your utilization of AI in the digital marketing sphere but also broaden your understanding of AI in general so you can apply AI to different facets of your business.
Read on, and I’ll teach you all you need to know about AI in digital marketing.
A brief summary of the article
AI takes many different forms, but in general, for digital marketers, AI is most useful for content creation + generation, research + brainstorming, and data analysis for predictive analytics. Using any or a combination of all of these in your digital marketing strategy can help bring your business forward into the modern age of marketing.
Some practical examples of AI in digital marketing include the utilization of chatbots on one’s website, creating personalized recommendations based on a customer’s past shopping history and habits, and utilizing artificial language models to assist in research and content creation, whether for ideas or for writing entire articles.
Although AI is a revolutionary tool for digital marketers, it’s important to recognize that it shouldn’t be used all of the time. Although it certainly does save money and increase time efficiency, it can often be inaccurate, accidentally plagiarize, and, depending on the way that you’re using it, cause transparency issues with your current, potential, and future clients. Always remember to use AI responsibly and with purpose.
What is AI in digital marketing?
Let’s start with the basics, then. What exactly is AI in digital marketing?
Well, to put it simply, AI in digital marketing is the utilization of the many applications of artificial intelligence to enhance one’s digital marketing strategy, implementation, and growth. Some examples of such applications include language processing, data collection + analysis, and image recognition.
AI, of course, is not all based on one central provider. Even since the release of ChatGPT on November 30th, 2022, companies all across the globe have raced to release their own AI tools to assist any industry one can imagine. This has led to an entirely welcome abundance of AI tools for any business to discover, decide whether or not they will be useful to them, and then implement into their business’s day-to-day operations.
This pattern is one that both Connective and I have experienced myself. At Connective, we have begun to implement AI in many different aspects of our business, including workflow management, research, and more. I distinctly remember doubting the capabilities and powers of ChatGPT, only to then utilize it myself when writing an article about AI Youtube Title Generators and I only then thought to myself, “Oh my god, this is going to change the world.”
I would argue that ChatGPT already has, and it’s only a matter of time until every industry experiences this kind of realization too.
The different kinds of AI in digital marketing
You may not know this, but not every AI is created in the same manner, and different tools/applications of AI can be lumped into different categories. These different categories allow you to understand more thoroughly what each AI tool you may run into in the digital marketing landscape does and how it could perform in your workplace.
Standalone vs. integrated
These names are pretty self-explanatory; different AI tools can either be standalone AI tools or integrated. A standalone AI tool would be one that was created to function entirely on its own. It is likely to have its own UI, functionalities, and data processing capabilities that operate independently from any other system or application. A few examples of standalone AI tools include chatbots (like you see on websites, or even ChatGPT itself) and virtual assistants like Siri or Alexa.
On the other hand, integrated AI tools are created to be seamlessly incorporated into an existing system, platform, or application. In doing so, the tool can allow one to more easily manage and solve problems within the existing system the tool was created for. These are most often created for large and complex systems with many moving parts, such as CRMs (customer relationship management systems) and social media management tools. Some examples of integrated AI tools include Salesforce Einstein, which allows its users to create personalized recommendations and automate workflows within Salesforce itself. Another example would be Asana Intelligence, an AI incorporated into the Asana platform that allows for easier utilization of the platform by summarizing workflows and task progress with the click of a button.
Both standalone and integrated AI can be useful in digital marketing, but the use cases of both are understandably restricted to different fields. Keep this in mind when searching for AI tools to assist in your digital marketing strategy, such as if they’re an integrated tool locked behind a separate platform you don’t use.
Task automation vs. machine learning
The other main category that separates different types of AI is the division between task automation and machine learning. These two categories have a much more complex difference than the previous section.
Let’s start with task automation. Task automation refers to AI, which is developed to automate typically monotonous or repetitive tasks to improve efficiency and reduce error rates. In general, these AIs follow straightforward rules and algorithms to complete their tasks and are, as such, incapable of handling complex requests like having an in-depth conversation over a customer service request. However, a task automation AI may be able to handle a simple customer request by following a set of predetermined inputs. You likely have seen chatbots of this type on websites before that, rather than allowing you to type input, forced you to answer questions in a certain way. This is a good example of a task automation AI, as it follows a rather straightforward decision path.
On the other hand, machine learning AI refers to AI that is built on learning from large datasets to identify patterns and improve performance without explicitly being programmed to do so. This is likely what one thinks of when they imagine AI, as the ability to “learn” is what is most associated with the “intelligence” part of AI. Unlike a task automation AI, a machine learning AI can and will know more or less how to react when presented with data it is unfamiliar with, such as a customer interacting with a chatbot by typing out responses. A machine learning AI can use past data it has received to formulate suitable responses to any question. Other examples of machine learning AIs include predictive analytics, recommendation systems, and image recognition AIs.
These two designations, standalone vs. integrated and machine learning vs. task automation, form a punnet square (if you remember what those are) that can describe almost any type of AI you come across. For the most part, digital marketers will likely be using a mixture of all four, but different fields will use some more than others. For example, copywriters looking for assistance may turn to ChatGPT, a standalone machine learning AI, more often than an integrated AI. There are several different examples you will see as you explore AI more, so be on the lookout for these traits in different AIs so you can identify what may be more useful to you than others.
Applications of AI in digital marketing
Let’s get further into exactly how AI can be used in digital marketing. Below, I will list a few examples of what AI can do for digital marketers.
Data analysis
Data analysis is an incredibly broad term, especially when it comes to AI. There are multiple applications of data analysis in digital marketing, so let’s take a brief look at how data analysis is used by digital marketers.
Predictive analytics for personalized recommendations
Predictive analytics refers to the utilization of data, machine learning algorithms, and statistics to make predictions about future outcomes based on both current and historical data. You most often see predictive analytics being used for customer recommendations and demand forecasting.
Specifically, predictive analytics is great for digital marketers, especially those running eCommerce platforms, because it allows you to make use of data related to a registered user’s shopping patterns and habits. By using a customer’s data, you can use AI to identify typical patterns of behavior and desire within a customer and then provide them with product recommendations suited to their personal taste. In doing so, you can increase the likelihood of them making a repeat purchase and increase profits.
Predictive analytics can also be used for demand forecasting, as historical data can elucidate patterns of behavior across entire customer and user bases. For example, a company may expect winter to be a high-demand season due to the holidays, but other patterns may be hiding beneath the surface of transaction data that can allow for minor optimizations to increase profit.
Analyzing web metrics with ease
Data analysis algorithms can also make performing your data analysis of web metrics significantly easier. Platforms like Google Analytics not only provide you with easy-to-understand visuals and make accessing data easier, but they also come integrated with AI that you can use to ask questions and generate reports. You can also use other platforms to make web metric data analysis easier, like ChatGPT.
By extracting data from Google Analytics as a .csv file and then uploading it to ChatGPT, you can utilize ChatGPT to perform some of the data analysis for you. It can interpret the results and data within the .csv file and answer any question you have in a fraction of the time it would take for you to analyze the data manually.
Content creation
Content creation, in this case, refers to not only the blog-post style of content every digital marketer is familiar with but also the graphics and images that come alongside it. AI has advanced enough to the point where creating an entire AI-generated article for your blog is as simple as giving an AI tool a prompt, revising the outline it creates, and sitting back while what normally takes hours of labor becomes a maximum of 30-60 minutes of waiting. There are multiple tools that do this, which I will discuss just a few paragraphs down in the article.
The other primary use case for AI in content creation is the creation of AI-generated images. These images are not only simple to create but also have stunning levels of quality. Depending on the values you want your site to embody, utilizing the AI-generated images directly on the site may or may not be up your alley. However, utilizing these images for inspiration in your own design process or to help people who may not be as artistically inclined to envision a new design direction are use cases that can’t be ignored.
Chatbots
It feels like across every other site, especially the most modern ones, you will run into a chatbot in one way or another. I have already discussed chatbots a few times in this article, but in terms of helping guide the customer along the buyer’s journey and your marketing funnel, a chatbot is an invaluable tool. Simply having the ability to answer a potential customer’s questions without needing to have any employees on the other side of the line simplifies the customer acquisition process by a significant order of magnitude.
What’s great about chatbots too is that one doesn’t even necessarily have to blow a ton of money on acquiring an advanced one. Depending on the needs of your business, you can either have a simple chatbot that takes predefined questions and answers, or you can have an advanced one that can answer practically any question that a customer may have.
Research + brainstorming
Regardless of where you stand and how you understand AI, the aspect of AI that is most valuable to anyone across the world is how it can help you perform research and brainstorm new ideas. As discussed, AI-generated images can be used to help one brainstorm and discover new ideas for graphic design and the like. However, ChatGPT is where this aspect of AI truly shines.
Getting ideas for anything, whether it’s title tags or headlines, is as simple as asking ChatGPT a question. If you want to perform research on any topic, ChatGPT allows you to skip the fluff you find online and get straight to the point. In fact, while writing this article, I can say that I have consulted ChatGPT multiple times to get a more detailed explanation of some of these topics as I have learned them. If you haven’t begun using AI to help your research + brainstorming efforts, you need to start ASAP.
Digital marketing AI tools
This is the part you’ve certainly been looking for, or at the very least expected to see, when clicking on this article. In this section, I will list a few of the most prominent and useful AI tools that companies across the world have begun adapting. Specifically, quite a few of these are tools that we at Connective use on a daily basis.
ChatGPT
I have already discussed ChatGPT quite a few times in this article, so I will keep this brief. ChatGPT is certainly the most widely used AI tool today for digital marketers and for the average person. I personally use ChatGPT to assist me with my work in college! No matter the question or request you would like to have satisfied by ChatGPT, it can probably do it. At Connective, we often use ChatGPT for proofreading, brainstorming, and as a method of cleaning and formatting documents for WordPress.
SurferSEO
SurferSEO is one of the tools I personally have used the most throughout my time working with Connective. SurferSEO is a tool that allows you to input any blog article you have written, specify the target keyword, and then it will provide you with metrics that allow you to optimize your article around the patterns present across the highest-ranking pages within that keyword. Although this is certainly useful, it’s not the main reason why I bring up SurferSEO as a digital marketing AI tool.
SurferSEO has recently implemented a new feature called Surfer AI, which, using all of the information gained from the original Surfer tool (such as prominent keyword recognition, counting the images, paragraphs, and header types), can generate an entire article for you based simply on your input of one focus keyword. The quality of these articles is honestly quite stunning as well, reading almost entirely as if they were written by a human. I highly recommend you check this tool out, especially if your blog needs new articles.
HeyGen
If you have any doubts about the power of AI, this tool right here will certainly obliterate any of them. The gist of HeyGen is that it allows you to create entire videos powered solely by AI. Based solely on a single input video, HeyGen can replicate the voice of the person in the video, and generate new videos based on any script. Additionally, if you want to translate a video to a different language, HeyGen can achieve this effortlessly. Finally, HeyGen also features Zapier integration to make the process of creating and uploading videos easy.
OpusClip
If you’re looking to get into social media marketing but don’t have the time to produce independently shot videos, OpusClip is the perfect tool to help you find your way into the landscape. When given a long video, like a screen recording from a meeting, OpusClip will analyze the video and create cuts and splits for sections that it believes could function as a short-form video to be uploaded to TikTok, YouTube Shorts, etc. on its own. In addition, it will also give a predicted performance score based on how effective the AI believes the video will be, and it can also generate captions. As a whole, this tool can not only kickstart your social media strategy, but it can also be a helpful, relatively low-effort supplement to an existing one.
Jasper
Jasper markets itself as an all-in-one AI-powered copilot for all of your marketing endeavors, and it absolutely delivers on that promise. Jasper offers features that can help with analytics, content generation, and team management. Most impressive to me is that its analytics capabilities seem far beyond what many other tools offer currently, with site-wide performance analysis that allows you to see what content of yours is performing well and what isn’t. From there, you can select whatever article or piece of content you like and have Jasper transform it into something that will be more effective at ranking highly. Additionally, you can try out Jasper risk-free with their free trial. Although, unlike the other tools on this list, we at Connective have never used Jasper, this seems like a very effective tool that’s certainly worth looking into if you want a multi-functional AI that gives you the most bang for your buck.
A few video + image-based tools
There are a lot of AI tools that make editing and creating videos and images quite simple. Here is a list of a few of them.
- Adobe Premiere Pro AI Voice Enhancer: as its name would suggest, this tool is great at improving the quality of one’s voice in any video. It removes background noise and edits the audio behind one’s voice to make it sound as if it were recorded in a professional studio.
- MidJourney: one of the more well-known text-to-image AI generators of today, MidJourney is useful for generating design mockups and photo-realistic image generation.
- Topaz Video + Photo AI: these are two rather simple tools that help you upscale images and videos.
- Adobe Firefly: can easily expand an image, or add/remove content from an image.
- OpenAI’s Whisper: generates captions from any audio you provide.
Pros and cons of AI in digital marketing
AI in digital marketing isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, however. There are both pros and cons to utilizing it, especially stemming from the fact that it is still relatively early in AI’s development. Here is a brief look into the potential pros and cons you could face while working with AI in digital marketing.
The benefits of AI
Using AI for digital marketing has countless benefits. For instance, productivity and efficiency can easily be boosted by a significant margin by using AI. If you’re looking to produce articles for your blog, AI will not only be more cost-effective but will also produce the articles faster.
Additionally, utilizing AI to automate low-effort tasks is another positive use of AI. MailChimp, for example, is perfect for automating the entire process of email customer acquisition. Just thinking about it, the functions that MailChimp provides could’ve been a person’s entire occupation in the past, and they have been replaced entirely with one handy tool.
Why might you not want to use AI?
AI is still a developing tool, so there are bound to be some problems that you could run into while using it. For example, natural language processors can still run into errors in terms of information gathering and grammar. ChatGPT, for instance, may not always return accurate information when you ask it questions, so you may need to perform some information validation prior to utilizing the information ChatGPT gives you. Additionally, if you’re using AI to write articles, you may want to consider that users on the internet may not be keen on the fact that the content they’re consuming was written or produced entirely by an AI. This ties into the issue of transparency with AI, but this is something that each individual who utilizes AI must decide for themselves and where they feel comfortable utilizing AI.
Finally, the most prominent concern that many people face nowadays with respect to AI is the ethical concerns behind using AI. You have likely heard this, but the fact that many AI tools are built upon the work of other people who never consented to having their data used to train AI models is dubious, to say the least. However, it’s entirely up to you to decide whether or not that will influence whether or not you use the tools. At any rate, AI is only poised to continue growing, so do with this information what you will.
Conclusion
And that’s about it! That was my most comprehensive, but still relatively brief, introduction to what AI in digital marketing can mean for anyone interested. If you’re going to take anything away from this article, I hope it is that you, or anyone else, can use AI to boost their digital marketing performance with ease. The sheer number of tools and abundance of information that is available regarding AI in digital marketing is astounding, and it’s only going to grow from here. I hope that this article proved useful to you, and regardless of what you choose to do with what you learned here, I hope that whatever you decide to do with AI proves fruitful. Thank you for sticking with me all the way to the end, and have a great rest of your day!
Q + A
Q: How does AI enhance digital marketing strategies?
A: AI in digital marketing can optimize your digital marketing strategies by analyzing large datasets, predicting consumer behavior, and automating certain tasks like personalized content delivery and ad targeting.
Q: What are some practical applications of AI in digital marketing?
A: There are numerous practical applications of AI in digital marketing. These include, but are not limited to: AI-driven chatbots, predictive analytics, sentiment analysis, and recommendation engines.
Q: How does AI improve customer engagement in digital marketing?
A: AI-powered tools can help improve customer engagement by giving customers real-time interactions, personalized messaging, and predictive content suggestions. This increases interactivity and personalization, enticing customers to engage more with your website/content.
Q: Can AI help businesses better understand their target audience in digital marketing?
A: Absolutely! AI algorithms can analyze customer data with ease, including but not limited to their: social media interactions, online behavior, and previous purchases. With this analysis, companies can get insights into their target audience’s preferences, interests, and buying patterns.
Q: What role does AI play in optimizing advertising campaigns in digital marketing?
A: AI can optimize ad placements, bidding strategies, and content delivery based on real-time data analysis of what customers typically engage with and interact with. This can help maximize your ROI and improve campaign performance in digital marketing initiatives.
