- AI is not about to go mainstream for consumer marketing.
- The real opportunity is for IT to implement AI for marketers so they can sort through all the data they have to uncover opportunities.
- Even with AI marketers need to ask the “right questions”.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]If there is one consistency I have found working with CPG marketers its that most are overwhelmed with data and turning piles of data into actionable insights has been a challenge[/inlinetweet].
Imagine, for a second, a brand marketing manager being able to ask AI “what is the volume of our best selling product?” or “who is our most profitable customer?”. There is real potential to uncover hidden gems within marketing management, but unfortunately it seems we are a long way from getting there.
I once asked for some basic sales numbers for a CPG marketer and it took most of the day to get them in a messy Excel spreadsheet that took me over a day to clean up into meaningful data.
We have been hearing about big data for a long time, but what’s preventing big data from being really useful is two things. First, the data is often hard to get and second, you need people who ask the right questions and can interpret big data into actionable and meaningful insights. There is a substantial gap in these areas as company culture tends to eat good marketers for breakfast.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]Even with big data and AI marketers still need to focus on the basics: delivering a good product at a fair price.[/inlinetweet] The basic brand promise is continually broken which explains why private label sales are increasing so rapidly. How many marketers actually get on a plane, go into a store and talk with retail people about their product or observe where it’s merchandised compared to competitors?
IT departments should be viewed marketing as their customer and as such they should be experimenting with AI, but [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]marketers also have to focus on the basic brand and product promise and realize that their audience only wants a relationship that involves delivering a better product experience. [/inlinetweet]
