Using Generative AI in Digital Marketing: Opportunities & Challenges [Presentation]

Generative artificial intelligence became popular in 2023 thanks to the release of ChatGPT in November 2022. It has become a hot topic for marketers and businesses with each trying to see how they can weave in generative AI in their marketing strategy or day-to-day operations.

On 1st December 2023, I was privileged to give a talk on Using Generative AI in Digital Marketing at the 6th Marketers Conference and Awards 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya hosted by the Top Marketers Club.

What are the opportunities and what are the challenges for digital marketers in Kenya? In this article, I will give a summary of the points that I touched on at the conference. Here is how it started.

What is Generative AI?

Generative AI refers to deep-learning models that can generate high-quality text, images, and other content based on the data they were trained on according to IBM Research. Simply put, it includes language learning models that generate texts like ChatGPT, Bard or text-to-image such as Stable Diffusion, Midjourney, and DALL·E 2 among others.

The generative AI market is projected to reach USD 110.8 billion by 2030, and 80% of organizations have already adopted generative AI or plan to do so in the next three years.

What are the Benefits of Generative AI for Marketers in Kenya

I also touched on the benefits of generative AI. I mentioned that generative AI in marketing offers benefits such as:

• Creating high-quality visuals with fewer resources
• Enhanced content creation
• Personalized customer experiences
• Improved efficiency and productivity
• Improved customer service
• Trend forecasting and predictive analytics.

9 Generative AI Opportunities for Marketers in Kenya

Now let’s look at some of the opportunities that generative AI presents for digital marketers 

• Content Generation

Have you started using AI tools to create content? Generative AI presents opportunities for content generation, including content idea generation, converting long-form content to social media posts, creating content outlines, writing the first draft of content, writing press releases, and conducting content research and data analysis. For content generation, you can use tools like ChatGPT or Jasper AI

• Search Engine Optimization

Also, generative AI  can assist marketers with search engine optimization by conducting competitive and keyword research, creating SEO titles and meta descriptions, generating content, and editing and proofreading drafts. You can use tools like Surfer, Bard and ChatGPT to get keywords and cluster keywords.

• Video Creation and Editing

Moreover, generative AI can be used for creating and editing videos, including explainer videos to introduce new concepts or products, promotional videos for marketing purposes, and product demos to showcase features and benefits. You can use tools like Virbo AI, Synthesia, Designs.ai and Rephrase.ai

• Image Creation

You can use AI text-to-image platforms to create images for your social media posts, blog cover ads and even your infographics. It’s time-saving and you can play with different elements. Some of the popular text-to-image websites include Imagen, DALL-E 2, Midjourney and Stable Diffusion

• Voice Generation

Voice generation using AI allows marketers to create unique audio content with customized brand voices for advertisements and marketing campaigns. It also enables businesses to develop AI-generated voice-overs for commercials, podcasts, and interactive advertisements, as well as realistic voice-overs for animations and video games. Examples of AI voice generators include Replica Studios, Lovo, and Synthesys.

• Chatbots and Virtual Assistants

Generative AI can enhance chatbots and virtual assistants by improving natural language processing, personalizing customer interactions, automating content creation, generating insights from data, creating creative content, automating lead nurturing, analyzing sentiment, providing proactive customer service, supporting multiple languages, and continuously learning. This allows marketers to deliver personalized, engaging, and data-driven customer experiences, ultimately driving business growth and success.

• Sentiment Analysis

ChatGPT’s natural language processing capabilities make it a powerful tool for sentiment analysis, enabling businesses to gain insights from customer feedback, reviews, and social media interactions. Marketers can harness this power to uncover customer sentiment trends, identify potential issues proactively, craft tailored customer service responses, predict future customer needs, track brand reputation, and make data-driven decisions that enhance customer experiences.

• Hyper-Personalization

We are now used to personalization but generative AI takes personalization to a new level by predicting and generating content based on customer preferences, allowing businesses to deliver more personalized experiences that customers are more likely to engage with. This can include creating custom promotional offers, personalized shopping guides, or unique user experiences tailored to each customer.

• Automating Process

AI tools that combine public and private AI models with CRM data are becoming increasingly popular for businesses. These tools can help businesses automate tasks, generate personalized content, and gain insights from data. They are often built on robust AI platforms, enabling them to integrate seamlessly with existing business systems. An example of this is Einstein GPT integrated into Salesforce CRM

Challenges of Using Generative AI in Marketing

Some of the challenges that come with using generative AI in marketing include

• Hallucination

Hallucination in AI refers to the generation of outputs that may sound plausible but are either factually incorrect or unrelated to the given context. It leads to misinformation and disinformation and users may lose trust in the

• Copyright infringement

Also, generative AI models can be trained on copyrighted data without permission, generating outputs that mimic copyrighted works or creating counterfeit products.

• Bias, Stereotypes, Discrimination

 While Generative AI is powerful and versatile, can also introduce biases and stereotypes into marketing campaigns if not carefully considered and implemented.

• Data Privacy Issues and Breaches

As you know, generative AI models often require vast amounts of personal data for training and operation, raising concerns about data collection practices and the potential for misuse of this sensitive information.

• Ethical Issues and Regulations 

Lastly, generative AI is a powerful tool with the potential to revolutionize marketing, but it also raises significant ethical concerns and data privacy challenges. To ensure responsible and ethical use of generative AI in marketing, companies must prioritize transparency, fairness, data security, and compliance with relevant regulations.

Conclusion

To conclude, generative AI is revolutionizing digital marketing globally. It allows you to generate high-quality content, personalize experiences, and automate tasks. While it is promising it has inherent challenges that a marketer needs to know such as hallucination, bias and privacy issues. Marketers must stay informed and tap into the power of generative AI