Unlocking the potential of Generative AI: Embracing AI in Your Marketing Strategy

The Kindred team have enjoyed experimenting with Generative AI tools including ChatGPT, Bard and Jasper over the last few months. Through our work with clients to support marketing and business strategy, we are beginning to get a good feel for it's current strengths and limitations from our own perspective. It is assumed that over time, that some of these limitations will be reduced as the technology improves. Below are some of our findings so far that we thought maybe interesting for other marketers, business leaders and strategists too.

Expect interesting input, not foolproof advice

While Generative AI can generate business ideas and estimate costs, it can't beat human creativity. It does, however, speed up the idea-generation process and stimulate unconventional thinking. You can unlock new opportunities by asking the right follow-up questions or prompts. To guide it, you need to asknot just any old question, but the right follow-up questions.

The greatest benefits are realised by experienced marketers and strategists

Some of our junior team members participated in a few experiments. We watched how they asked questions and what outputs they came up with. Overall there was a big difference in the quality of output between the two groups. The more inexperienced team members more likely to settle with the results more quickly. Quite often the output from the junior strategist was more cliche, less nuanced, not quite accurate or not necessarily practical. We all know it loves to make assumptions when it doesn't have enough data. The knowledge and insights provided by ChatGPT and Bard serve as a worldly friend. They can do the work typically done by junior strategists at a fraction of the cost and time. But to separate fact from fiction, careful judgment and scrutiny are required. By leveraging ChatGPT's writing capabilities, strategists can create engaging stories and get quicker results. Instead of replacing their expertise, it complements it.

AI and human strategists use data differently

While ChatGPT and Bard process vast amounts of data, they lacks access to proprietary information and struggle with analogical reasoning. Skilled strategists know how to navigate uncertainties, challenge conventional wisdom, and create unique approaches. The framing of problems and solutions remains a delicate art that only experienced human strategists currently possess.

Generative AI’s sweet spot

Overall we have found that AI is most effective at the beginning and end of your strategy process. AI excels at generating a high volume of ideas, but it takes a skilled strategist to separate the gems from the cliché and to refine the ideas to be more practical, nuanced and likely to succeed in the real world. Right now, AI's creativity can only be unleashed to its full potential with the right prompts and guidance.

Diversity of data and inputs is critical

Using the right data to train generative AI is just as important as asking the right questions. A lack of diversity in the training data or inputs provided can result in biased or skewed results. You need a diverse and representative dataset to avoid reinforcing or creating bias.

Responsible use and ethical considerations

Because we care about doing the right thing for our clients, their customers and the wider community, we're focused on this point. As with any powerful technology, the responsible use of Generative AI is essential. Considerations around data privacy, intellectual property rights, and the potential impact on society must be carefully addressed to ensure ethical implementation.

Human guidance is vital

AI proves invaluable in refining and polishing ideas during the final stages of strategy development or idea execution. However, the middle part, where critical decisions are made, still requires an experienced human strategist. Success trajectory is shaped by strategic thinking and domain expertise.

It's clear that ChatGPT and similar tools help seasoned strategists generate ideas and tell stories more effectively. Discerning human judgment and strategic minds can't yet be substituted. As airline pilots use autopilot sparingly, marketers must embrace AI tools as complementary allies, not losing sight of their own judgment.