Are Einstein and Watson going to do all the thinking now?
All major CRM and marketing automation platforms are now equipped with some form of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.). Does this mean we can sit back, relax and let Watson, Einstein and their nameless equivalents do our thinking for us? Or do we still need to employ our human marketing savvy?
Unsurprisingly, the answer is: both. Artificial Intelligence is the device that keeps us afloat in a sea of data. It has become impossible to process the volume of data that is available to marketers today without assistance from artificial brains, but the human factor remains vital.
For example: Your data tells you that your target audience is interested in waterproof jackets and umbrellas. Your A.I. is capable of incorporating the weather forecast in its predictions and analyses. But we all know how wrong weather forecasts can be. A marketer who looks out the window and sees fine, sunny weather will know this is not the time to send an email campaign promoting rain gear.
A.I. for marketing in reality
Artificial intelligence unlocks information that lies hidden deep within masses of data that would take a human an impossible amount of time to dig through and sort. Artificial Intelligence recognises patterns, analyses and learns from its experience through machine learning.
When deployed correctly, A.I. will help you realise a smooth customer journey. From marketing through sales and customer service, your customer will experience no delays or changes.
Breaking down information silos
Artificial Intelligence collects information from all the channels where you connect with your customer. That is why the boundaries between Marketing, Sales and Customer Service are disappearing.
Twitter and Facebook are ideal channels for marketing campaigns and offers. But any questions or complaints about an order also need to be noticed and resolved immediately. You need to eliminate the silo effect once and for all. If your organisation continues to work with separate systems, you will lose the battle for customers’ attention and loyalty.
Getting started with A.I.
Working with Artificial Intelligence is like having a data scientist at the beck and call of every marketer, salesperson and customer service agent. Your data scientist will find and combine relevant data from every interaction with your prospects and customers. As soon as you are confident you are compliant with the new EU privacy laws, you and your intelligent assistant can put your heads together and get to work.
Action plan
- Take stock of your data
Do you know what client data is available in your organisation? Name, email address, gender and age of course; but also hometown or region, online and offline purchasing behaviour, email and website clicking behaviour and interactions via social media or messenger services. - Gather everything in one database
Keep this clean and up to date according to the motto: garbage in, garbage out. Even a genius artificial brain gets only bad results from corrupt data. - Do not forget the human factor
Does your A.I. interpret words, emoji and hashtags the way you want it to? Words can be interpreted in several ways by different audiences. “Sick” has one meaning to a 15-year old speaking slang and another to a doctor. You need to educate and keep monitoring your artificial assistant. - Start now!
Set up an email campaign using variable content based on client profiles and A.I. This will give you new data and enable your Artificial Intelligence to predict the next best action. The more you know, the more relevant and personal your relationship with your customers will become. This will result in customer loyalty and a long term, profitable alliance.
This video shows you how Einstein works within the Salesforce Marketing Cloud. If you need more information or are interested in a demo, feel free to contact us. Are you a Marketing Cloud user that wants to make the most of the platform, but Are you in need of help with the more technical aspects? We also provide training through our CloseContact Academy.
