4 AI controversies marketers and brands should avoid

Artificial intelligence is a hot topic, and a recent study suggests 61% of marketers have used AI in their marketing activities. By now, you’ve probably heard about all the ways AI can help you formulate and execute your marketing strategy, but are there any drawbacks?

To help you avoid missteps as you explore the world of AI, here are four AI pitfalls that marketers and brands should keep in mind.

Pros of AI in Marketing

Before we consider the drawbacks of AI in marketing, we should look at the positive aspects.

One helpful aspect of AI is that it can Automate repetitive parts of the marketing processSuch as task automation, data analysis, and campaign personalization.

Automating the above tasks allows marketers to spend more time planning their strategy, brainstorming content, and finding new ways to connect with consumers.

AI can also significantly reduce errors made in the marketing process by avoiding time lapses, spelling and grammar mistakes, and incorrect math or data entry.

Speaking of data, AI can also analyze large sets of data 24/7 without resting or tiring. After all, AI is a great tool that can be used to perform tasks that would otherwise be difficult or impossible for humans to do.

4 Cons of AI in Marketing

While there are many benefits to integrating AI into marketing, there are also some disadvantages that marketers should be aware of.

1. Machines cannot replace human connection.

While AI can personalize marketing campaigns using up-to-date data, it doesn’t take away the importance of human connection. For example, chatbots are a common form of AI used in marketing to automate customer communication and problem solving.

In fact, 89% of consumers appreciate customer service chatbots for their prompt response. However, unlike humans, chatbots cannot display emotion and are unlikely to respond to customer inquiries with empathy like a human agent.

Chatbots also have limited responses and may not have the data they need to answer each customer question.

If customers feel their concerns aren’t taken seriously or aren’t getting the answers they need, they may become frustrated, and their relationship with your brand may deteriorate.

According to a recent study, 53% of consumers have cut spending After a bad experience with a company.

Quality customer service is integral to retaining customers, so you shouldn’t rely too much on AI when communicating or connecting with your consumers.

2. AI’s predictions and analysis can sometimes be wrong.

“Reliable sentiment analysis (i.e. detecting whether a sentence is happy, sad or sarcastic) is really hard for artificial intelligence as well as reliable sentence parsing,” said Pawan Deshpande of Scale AI,

“Reliably recognizing a cup is challenging for existing machine vision algorithms,” he said.

In other words, AI does not have human intuition to understand and perform specific tasks – such as analyzing emotions and intentions. AI can get things wrong without the guidance of human experience and perception.

“The human intuition underlying what data to look at and what questions to ask are the biggest limitations now,” Deshpande said.

3. They require huge set of data and human intervention.

Speaking of data, an AI is only as capable as the data it is given, and this requires massive data sets. Hence, you may need to hire someone well versed in AI to train and upload these large data sets.

Or, your current team will need to train and expand their skills to work with AI.

If the process seems too difficult and expensive for your brand, consider whether and how you want to integrate AI into your strategy.

4. AI lacks human creativity.

AI tools can be used in customer segmentation, recommendations, and other parts of the marketing process. However, humans are still needed to brainstorm creative and innovative content strategies that reach audiences.

For example, with regard to social media marketing strategies, consumers are attracted to content that shows brand value and how it interacts with them. Funny, trendy and relevant content is also popular with the audience.

Only a human marketer can lead with poignant, relevant content that fosters engagement.

A content strategy that relies heavily on AI-generated content and algorithms can be sluggish or disconnected. Consumers want to know that a person behind a brand is sympathetic to their concerns.

Ultimately, AI can be an excellent tool for automating and streamlining aspects of the marketing process, but companies must be aware that AI should not replace the human element.