Forget the AI hype. Huang and Rust (2020) in the their seminal article “A strategic framework for artificial intelligence in marketing” give you the no-BS framework to actually use AI in marketing. They break it down into three levels: Mechanical AI (automation), Thinking AI (insights), and Feeling AI (emotional connection). It’s not about replacing humans, it’s about supercharging your marketing game across research, strategy, and action. Think of it as upgrading your marketing department from dial-up to fiber optic.
Now, let’s dive deeper into each of these AI capabilities:
- Mechanical AI: This is your workhorse for automation. When it comes to AI in marketing, think of mechanical AI as the tireless intern who never complains about repetitive tasks. It can crunch massive datasets, generate reports, and handle the tedious stuff that frees up your team for more strategic work. Consider automating email campaigns, social media scheduling, and basic customer service inquiries. This frees up your team’s time and mental bandwidth for higher-level tasks that require human ingenuity. But be warned: Mechanical AI is only as good as the data you feed it. Garbage in, garbage out.
- Thinking AI: For AI in marketing, this is your brainiac for insights. It can sift through mountains of data, spot patterns you’d never see, and help you understand your customers in ways you never thought possible. Think of it as your market research guru on autopilot, constantly analyzing data to identify trends, predict customer behavior, and optimize your marketing spend. But remember: Thinking AI needs guidance. You need to ask the right questions and interpret the results in a way that aligns with your business goals.
- Feeling AI: This is your secret weapon for emotional connection. It can analyze customer sentiment, personalize interactions, and build relationships that go beyond transactions. Think of it as your empathy engine, helping you create marketing that resonates on a human level. Imagine chatbots that can detect frustration and respond with compassion or personalized product recommendations that consider a customer’s emotional state. But don’t get creepy: Feeling AI needs to be used ethically and transparently. Customers want to feel understood, not manipulated.
The real magic happens when you combine these three AI capabilities in a strategic framework. Huang and Rust propose a three-stage approach:
- Research: Use AI in marketing to gather and analyze data about your market, customers, and competitors.
- Strategy: Use AI to segment your audience, target the right customers, and position your offerings effectively.
- Action: Use AI in marketingto execute your marketing initiatives across the 4 Ps (product, price, place, promotion).
By integrating AI strategically across these stages, you can create a continuous cycle of insights and actions that evolve with market dynamics.
2. What This Means for Marketing
- Three AI Capabilities: Each AI type has a specific marketing function – know which to use when. Mechanical AI for efficiency, Thinking AI for insights, and Feeling AI for emotional connections. It’s like having a marketing Swiss Army knife.
- Three-Stage Framework: AI isn’t just for execution. Use it for research, strategy, and action. This means that AI can be integrated into every stage of your marketing process, from gathering and analyzing data to developing and executing campaigns.
- Strategic vs. Tactical Use: Don’t just automate with AI. Use it to make smarter decisions. Think of it as a strategic weapon, not just a fancy spreadsheet. This means using AI to gain a deeper understanding of your customers, predict their behavior, and make better decisions about how to reach them.
- Emotional Intelligence Matters: Feeling AI can understand customer emotions, leading to better engagement and satisfaction. In the age of personalization, empathy is your competitive edge. This means that AI can help you create marketing that is more relevant, more engaging, and more likely to resonate with your target audience.
3. Sound Bites
- Mechanical AI: “Mechanical AI can automate data collection…” (Translation: Let the machines do the grunt work.)
- Thinking AI: “Thinking AI is good at recognizing patterns…” (Translation: Find the insights hiding in plain sight.)
- Feeling AI: “Feeling AI provides relationalization benefits…” (Translation: Build relationships, not just transactions.)
4. Action Items
- Leverage the Three AI Capabilities: It’s like having a marketing Swiss Army knife. Don’t limit yourself to just one type of AI. Experiment with different capabilities to see how they can best support your marketing goals.
- Adopt a Strategic Framework: Don’t just wing it – have a plan. Develop a clear strategy for how you will integrate AI into your marketing process. This will help you ensure that your AI initiatives are aligned with your business goals.
- Embrace Emotional Intelligence: Customers want to feel understood, not just sold to. Use AI to personalize your marketing and create experiences that resonate with your customers on an emotional level.
- Bridge Strategy and Execution: AI insights are useless if you don’t act on them. Make sure your team can translate data into action. This means having the right people, processes, and technology in place to turn AI-driven insights into tangible marketing results.
5. The Big Questions
- How can your organization balance the use of Mechanical, Thinking, and Feeling AI for a cohesive marketing strategy?
- In what ways can Feeling AI improve customer satisfaction and brand loyalty in your industry?
- What steps can you take to ensure high-quality data inputs for AI systems?
- How can your marketing team integrate AI-driven insights into broader organizational strategies?