The AI Efficiency Tipping Point

Artificial intelligence permeates our lives to the point that we no longer consider it “artificial.” It’s just the way things are done. I believe AI benefits far outweigh the drawbacks. However, I also have a sense that AI-generated marketing has an efficiency tipping point.  In other words, there’s a threshold for each business where savings from AI is offset by a decrease in marketing effectiveness. Furthermore, I suspect businesses that find their unique tipping point, and allocate resources appropriately, will produce better marketing messages. Consider the following reasons why finding your business’ AI-efficiency tipping point is important.  

• Concepts and creative materials are only as good as the briefs used to inspire them. AI-generated briefs are grounded in information, while those from experienced human strategists focus on human insight. Furthermore, when a brief is used by an AI-content generator (versus a human creative) there’s no push back. If the brief is off-brand, inconsequential or mundane, the output will be as well. And if the output is vanilla and easily ignored, what efficiencies have been achieved?
  
• AI-generated posts, blogs and emails can be produced quickly, but that doesn’t mean they should be shared as frequently as they can be created. Ironically, AI enables more brands to message more often, ultimately increasing the difficulty for any given brand to break through. Savvy brands will invest in experienced marketers to analyze the data to figure out the best messaging, times and frequency. Brands that delegate content to AI tools without proper guidance from experienced marketers may inadvertently dilute their overall marketing efforts.

• AI platforms often deliver messaging in a very consistent brand tone. Classic marketing theory suggests this is a good way to reinforce a brand’s identity. However, I would argue that consistent brand values expressed with charisma and a range of emotions is more attention-grabbing and effective in the long run. Predictable brand messaging and tone are easy to ignore. To create engagement and ongoing dialogue, a brand needs to express context-relevant sentiment. It’s dangerous to default to a copy/paste mentality for sending multiple daily messages.  
  
• Lastly, I question how quickly employees will develop professional instincts and a sense of craftsmanship if entry-level tasks are delegated to AI. I’m not advocating that young talent only be given the more time-consuming, somewhat mundane tasks that AI can do in a flash. I do question though if professional instincts that come from doing the nitty-gritty aspects of creative will develop as quickly if mentorship isn’t applied in equal measure with AI. Are we inadvertently trading valuable teaching opportunities for time efficiencies?

To be clear, I’m pro-AI. I value the time I save using it. But as a pre-AI marketer and consumer, I’m increasingly annoyed by AI messaging that hasn’t been screened by a critical thinking human. I’m also witnessing small companies assuming that marketing requires less skill because AI does the heavy lifting. While I think each business will have its own specific tipping point, I believe there are universal best practices to using AI.  

• Make sure your brand foundation is solid (ideally, tested) and continually reviewed when using AI for content creation. Send yourself (or an honest friend) your own brand outreach emails, texts and posts. Make sure the communication isn’t too predictable, frequent or forced.

• Invest in human-centered training. If you’re an experienced marketer, make sure you’re teaching younger talent to develop critical thinking skills and instincts. Watch how they use prompts, review briefs and content. The extra time spent will increase the overall efficiency down the road and is good karma. Additionally, consider mentorship beyond your own organization to preserve marketing integrity.
  
• Be realistic. Just because AI can perform a function, don’t necessarily assume it can replace a human on your team. AI is intended to supplement, not replace.

NOTE: This POV is the result of numerous drafts written by a human, augments by AI and reviewed by a gracious colleague/mentor.