How will AI impact marketing? Key insights and next steps

AI is no longer a futuristic concept. It’s an everyday tool that has reshaped marketing. What used to require hours of manual data analysis and campaign fine-tuning can now be automated, optimized, and personalized in real time. The question isn’t whether AI will change marketing; it’s how can brands use AI to gain a competitive advantage.

One key driver of AI’s rapid adoption is its clear business impact. In today’s crowded markets, companies are always looking for an edge. AI adoption skyrocketed with major advancements in 2023, particularly in natural language processing and predictive analytics.

These tools are what set AI apart from traditional marketing tools. AI can analyze enormous datasets, recognize patterns that might go unnoticed by human marketers, and adjust strategies. This capability gives you hyperpersonalized customer experiences, smarter ad targeting, and marketing campaigns that continuously improve based on actual performance data.

Rather than replacing marketers, AI acts as a force multiplier, handling tedious tasks while giving professionals deeper insights to craft more impactful strategies. The brands that harness AI effectively won’t just keep up; they’ll pull ahead. As AI technology evolves, so too will the possibilities for marketers willing to embrace its full potential.

In this article, we’ll explore how AI is changing marketing and delve into how marketers benefit. We’ll also discuss why empathy, creativity, and the human element remain vital in this landscape.

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How AI is Changing Marketing | E04

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, marketer, or tech enthusiast, you’ll uncover strategies in this video for doing market research, creating content, and scaling your operations using AI. Packed with real-world examples and actionable insights, this video will help you harness the power of AI to stay ahead in today’s competitive landscape.

The driving forces behind AI adoption

Have you ever wondered why AI usage has increased since 2023? Several factors catapulted AI from a nice-to-have to a must-have in many marketing departments. 

First, computing power has become more accessible. Cloud-based platforms and specialized AI hardware have lowered the barriers to running complex algorithms at scale. This accessibility has made AI easier for businesses of all sizes to embrace.

Second, organizations recognize that AI use in marketing directly correlates with revenue and customer retention. A 2023 report revealed that 65 percent of executives plan to increase their AI spending for marketing and customer experience initiatives. The stat reflects the fact that marketing with AI is no longer experimental; it’s mainstream and growing at a breakneck speed.

Third, consumer expectations have evolved. In an era when personalization is no longer optional, AI offers the precision and speed to deliver hyper-relevant customer experiences. Whether it’s a personalized email at the right moment or a chatbot that can answer complex customer queries, AI helps bridge the gap between mass marketing and one-on-one engagement. Marketers who invest in AI can more effectively meet modern demands for quick, customized interactions. 

Key areas of AI transformation in marketing

The impact of AI on marketing can be felt across multiple touchpoints. Here are the primary areas in which AI drives transformation.

1. Marketing automation

Marketing automation is one of the most-talked-about aspects of how AI changes marketing. Traditional automation might involve simple email workflows or basic scheduling. AI-driven automation, however, takes all of this a step further, learning from user behavior to refine and optimize campaigns in real time.

• Segmentation: AI tools can segment audiences based on criteria such as past purchases, browsing behavior, or demographic traits. Rather than merely separating customers into broad categories (such as “20–35 years old” or “urban professionals”), AI can cluster people by nuanced behaviors, such as a preference for luxury goods or responsiveness to discounts.
• Content creation: AI can draft subject lines, social media posts, and even blog articles. While your staff should still review these drafts for brand consistency and emotional resonance, these tools dramatically reduce the time spent brainstorming and writing initial copy.
• Campaign management: Automated workflows respond immediately to user triggers. For example, if a prospective customer downloads a white paper, AI can instantly initiate a drip campaign that shares relevant case studies, followed by a personalized product demo invitation. 

The result? A smoother, faster, and more data-driven marketing process that frees up staff marketers to focus on creative strategy and relationship building. As more companies adopt AI for marketing automation, the bar for efficiency and personalization rises, making this a crucial area in which to stay competitive.

2. Data-driven decision-making

AI’s strongest marketing feature is its ability to turn raw data into actionable insights. With AI, predictive algorithms analyze large volumes of information, from web traffic metrics to CRM records, to forecast how campaigns might perform or to identify new audience segments.

• Advanced analytics: Predictive lead scoring, for example, can assess how likely a contact is to convert based on historical and real-time data. If, with such analytics, your marketing team notices that leads from a certain region or industry have a 50 percent higher conversion rate, they can allocate resources more effectively.
• Campaign performance forecasting: Before launching a campaign, your team can use AI to simulate possible outcomes by analyzing ad spend, audience size, and time of day. This proactive approach helps marketers fine-tune their strategies, drastically reducing the guesswork often accompanying campaign planning.
• Real-time adjustments: Instead of waiting for a quarterly review, your organization can use AI to provide continuous feedback loops. If performance dips because of market changes or shifting consumer preferences, AI can flag these issues and recommend immediate adjustments, such as budget reallocation or tweaked messaging.

Modern marketers embracing data-driven decision-making are better positioned to spot opportunities, mitigate risks, and improve ROI. By merging AI insights with human intuition, brands can stay agile in an ever-changing market landscape.

3. Personalization & customer experience

Few things demonstrate how AI improves marketing better than personalization. AI’s capacity to analyze interactions at scale, while individualizing the outcome, can drastically enhance customers’ experiences.

• Real-time targeting: AI algorithms create content based on the user’s behavior. For instance, if a visitor repeatedly clicks on sports products, the website can automatically showcase sports-related products or blog posts on subsequent visits.
• Tailor-made interactions: AI can make recommendations by blending historical purchase data with browsing patterns. Examples include streaming services that suggest TV shows you might love and e-commerce websites that recommend products frequently bought with the product you’re viewing.
• AI agents & conversational experiences: One of the most exciting evolutions in personalization is the emergence of AI agents. These virtual assistants can handle everything from lead qualification to advanced customer queries. This capability not only enhances user engagement but also significantly reduces the workload of your support team.

You can see AI agents in action when using Jotform’s Customer Service & Support AI Agents. These agents are trained on your company’s data, enabling them to ask customers clarifying questions and offer detailed, accurate responses.

With Jotform AI Agents, you can transform your static forms into conversational experiences, with no coding necessary. They streamline data collection and empower your customers with instant, AI-driven support. Here’s how to set one up:

1. Start: Create a fresh agent from scratch, use a template, or duplicate an existing one.
2. Train: Provide your AI agent with relevant documents or URLs so it can learn your product, service, and policy details.
3. Customize: Using the agent builder, customize your agent’s personality, tone, and conversation style to fit your brand. 

After these three steps, you’ll have an agent that blends personalization, efficiency, and reliability; makes interactions natural; and swiftly resolves questions. With Jotform AI Agents, your business can stay one step ahead through more intuitive customer interactions.

4. Chatbots & customer interaction

Chatbots act as the first line of interaction on everything from product inquiries to troubleshooting. While they share traits with AI agents, chatbots excel with more structured or routine dialogue.

• Routine query handling: Chatbots can instantly respond to FAQs, such as “What are your shipping times?” or “How do I reset my password?” This assistance frees staff to concentrate on more complex or high-value customer interactions.
• Automation & human touch: Many teams fear that they will lose the personal feel of customer interactions if they use AI. Advanced AI chatbots are surprisingly good at simulating human conversation, but to address your team’s reservations, you can always build in a human handoff option. If a conversation grows complicated, a representative can step in.

With the Jotform AI Chatbot Builder, turning your website into an interactive experience is as easy as embedding a few lines of code. To make it even easier, Jotform also offers ready-to-use chatbot templates that can be quickly adapted to fit your needs. 

If you’re running a WordPress site, simply install the Jotform AI Chatbot for WordPress plug-in to integrate advanced conversational capabilities.

5. Content creation & optimization

AI doesn’t just excel at mechanical tasks; it’s also surprisingly adept at creative roles, albeit in an assistive capacity.

• AI-driven copywriting: GPT-based writers and other tools can produce large volumes of blog posts, social media content, or email subject lines in a fraction of the time a human would need. They gather insights from previous successful campaigns, trending keywords, and competitor benchmarks to refine their drafts.
• SEO optimization: AI-powered keyword research and on-page optimization tools can automatically update meta tags, headers, and internal links to better align with search engine algorithms. Marketers, in turn, can spend more time on strategic tasks, such as building backlinks and developing innovative campaign ideas.

While these tools can dramatically expedite content creation, it’s essential to remember that AI lacks emotional nuance and empathy. The optimal approach involves a hybrid model: Let AI handle the data-intensive first draft, and then have human copywriters and editors polish the content, also reviewing it for authenticity and creativity.

6. Predictive analytics & forecasting

Using predictive analytics, AI can help marketers anticipate future trends and shifts, rather than merely reacting to what consumers do today.

• Predictive insights: By correlating historical purchase data, seasonal trends, and social media sentiment, AI can identify which products or promotions will likely trend next month. This data arms marketers with an invaluable head start on campaign planning.
• Risk management: AI can analyze fluctuations in consumer feedback and macroeconomic indicators to warn marketers if a particular product line or marketing channel is at risk of underperforming. This proactive measure can help companies pivot or adjust their budgets before a minor issue becomes a crisis.
• Opportunity identification: AI-driven forecasting does more than focus on preventing losses. It also capitalizes on emerging opportunities. For instance, if your data shows a growing interest in eco-friendly products, AI might recommend a line extension or targeted campaign before competitors catch on.

These forward-looking capabilities can mean the difference between maintaining the status quo and truly thriving in a fast-evolving market. When combined with staff guidance based in empathy and creativity, predictive analytics can lead to marketing success.

7. Programmatic advertising

Staff working on programmatic advertising can use AI to automate media buying, ensuring that ads are shown to the right audience, at the right time, and with the best possible price.

• Real-time bidding: AI-driven platforms can evaluate multiple ad exchanges in milliseconds, bidding on impressions that match your target demographic. This precision helps maximize returns by minimizing wasted impressions.
• ROI & cost-effectiveness: Programmatic technology constantly analyzes performance metrics (such as click-through rates, conversions, and user engagement) and adjusts bids in real time. This optimization guarantees that your budget is directed toward high-value opportunities, increasing your overall marketing ROI.

Right now, nearly 90 percent of US digital display ad dollars are spent on programmatic advertising. As more marketers realize the cost benefits and improved targeting of these solutions, programmatic approaches will continue to grow, solidifying the use of AI in marketing campaigns at scale.

The future of AI in marketing

With AI capabilities expanding rapidly, it’s natural to wonder how AI will impact marketing in the next five to 10 years. According to industry experts, we’ve only scratched the surface of AI’s potential. For example, advancements in natural language processing will make customer interactions feel even more fluid and intuitive. Sentiment analysis tools are also expected to become more sophisticated, enabling brands to gauge what consumers say and how they feel on a deeper level.

Moreover, as AI continues to evolve, marketers will need to adapt their skill sets. Marketers will likely need to shift from having a purely creative or data-focused role to learning a hybrid role for which they need proficiency in AI tool management and strategic thinking. Upskilling in AI ethics, machine learning fundamentals, and prompt engineering will become increasingly important. Think of this shift as the next frontier in marketing with AI. Marketers who understand the technology enough to maximize its capabilities will be better positioned to lead campaigns that resonate with audiences.

However, it’s also crucial to remember that AI isn’t a silver bullet. Technology alone can’t replicate human empathy, emotional intelligence, and creativity. While AI can handle the heavy lifting in data analytics, routine customer queries, and some content creation, genuine relationship building still requires a human touch. Brands that balance AI-driven automation and authentic human interaction stand to gain a significant advantage in a competitive marketplace.

Another major theme for the future is privacy and data security. As AI systems ingest more personal data to deliver hyperpersonalized experiences, they also shoulder greater responsibility for protecting that data. Marketing teams must collaborate with legal and IT departments to ensure compliance with regulations such as the GDPR (the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation) and the CCPA (the California Consumer Privacy Act), and be transparent with customers about data usage.

Ultimately, AI’s continued evolution will democratize advanced marketing capabilities. Tools such as the Jotform AI Agents allow even small businesses to adopt enterprise-level technology with minimal friction. This leveled playing field can spur innovation across the board as organizations of all sizes experiment with new, creative ways to connect with their audiences.

Next steps to implement AI in your marketing strategy

AI isn’t just another marketing buzzword. It’s transforming how brands interact with their audiences and decide their strategies. AI is changing marketing in virtually every corner of the discipline, from automating repetitive tasks to powering advanced personalization. By combining machine efficiency with human creativity, organizations can achieve new heights of engagement, loyalty, and growth.

• Start small: Identify one or two processes that can be automated (e.g., email segmentation and chatbot support), and pilot an AI tool.
• Train and upskill: Invest in courses or workshops covering AI fundamentals, prompt engineering, and data analysis best practices.
• Leverage existing platforms: Tools such as Jotform AI Agents are easy to set up, enabling businesses to transform static forms into conversational, intelligent experiences.
• Experiment and iterate: AI models improve with data and feedback. Continuously monitor performance metrics, gather user feedback, and refine your strategies.
• Maintain the human element: Whether it’s adding a step for a personal sign-off in automated emails or building in a seamless handoff from a chatbot to a human agent, don’t omit genuine relationship building.

By taking these steps, marketers can maximize the benefits of AI while preserving the authenticity that drives long-term customer loyalty. As AI continues its swift march forward, the organizations that embrace its potential, while retaining human empathy and creativity, will be best positioned to lead in the evolving digital marketplace.