AI, is that the new brand strategist?
Written by
Rik Mulder
How once AI was known for the creative like Adobe Illustrator, today everyone looks at you strangely if you still use that. AI, and now we are talking about Artificial intelligence, has become the sparring partner, email typer or even the employee without a pulse for many companies. And yes, we too are definitely using it. For smart(er) recommendations to debugging code. Especially a lot of analytical thinking. This is just one part of what we do as an agency. And that's where the shoe immediately wrings. Because AI is more than a handy assistant or a fast text writer. It increasingly touches the core of your brand: how you communicate, how you understand your target group and even how you position yourself in the market. And that makes AI a gamechanger for brand strategy.
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But how do you really apply AI effectively in your Brand strategy? In this article, we take you by the hand and look at three concrete applications: personalisation, brand insights and positioning. And yes, we also take a critical look at the downside, as a generic AI voice can cloud your brand DNA.
Personalisation: let your customer be king
AI personalisation is all about one thing: showing the right message to the right person at the right time. You know the drill: Netflix recommending exactly what you want to see, or Amazon dropping your favourite trainer in your mailbox. It works because many customers expect personalised attention. According to IBM and McKinsey, a whopping 71% of consumers expect personalised content from brands, and 67% get frustrated when that's missing. With AI in your arsenal, you can meet such expectations. And maybe you too can fulfil the dreams below:
- Growth through personalisation: Research shows that high-growth companies achieve up to 40% more revenue through smart personalisation. In practice, this means more relevant offers, content ánd ads, tailored to individual preferences.
- Customer engagement: Companies like Netflix and Amazon see up to 75% of their user traffic coming from AI-driven recommendations. In other words, customers stick around longer and buy more when they feel a brand really understands them.
- Efficiency: AI personalisation automates and scales your campaigns. For example, an AI marketing agent can sift through customer data and then send out personalised messages or adjust ads in one fell swoop. This saves you time and gets the creative energy flowing in your team.
Netflix is perhaps the best-known example here: they base 75% of viewed content on recommendations and rankings generated by their algorithms. And this trend is continuing: more than half of brands are now using AI to personalise experiences, and most are seeing an increase in customer spend as a result.
But: beware of the downside. AI-driven personalisation requires a lot of data. The same Twilio survey shows that many consumers are suspicious of data use. 61% do not believe brands are acting in the best interest with their data, and only 15% trust brands “fully” with their personal data. Moreover, 84% of people want control over personalisation settings, and 54% want to know when they are talking to an AI instead of a human.
Do personalise, but transparently and respectfully. Give customers options (settings to adjust) and build trust (explain what you do with their data). That's how you keep the human touch in your brand experience. At least that's how it feels then.
Brand insights: from data to aha
AI can also take your brand research and insights to the next level. Think sentiment analysis on social media, real-time market research or automated customer segmentation. Where reports used to take weeks, with AI you get signals instantly.
- Quick insight: Imagine an AI system that constantly scans social media and reviews, alerting you when a trend emerges or a campaign catches your eye. That way, you can discover in no time what does (and does not) work. For example, a 2022 study by Deloitte showed that companies with advanced analytics achieved 34% more brand awareness than those with traditional methods. That shows how smart use of data can make your brand more powerful.
- Looking ahead: AI is not only reflective but also predictive. Machine learning can discover patterns in buying behaviour and search queries, allowing you to anticipate customer needs. Think of tools that predict which product will soon be popular with your target audience, or which consumer segment you reach best with a new proposition.
- Competitive advantage: With AI, you create mini-market surveys on the fly. IBM describes AI marketing agents as “powerful new tools” that analyse customer data, recognise patterns and make recommendations. They run through data for you 24/7 (think: analysis of campaigns, mentions and customer queries) and suggest optimisations. This keeps you one step ahead.
Many companies today use AI-based insights to get to know customers better. For example, chatbots that not only answer standard questions, but also spot trends in customer satisfaction thanks to artificial intelligence. Multinationals like IBM are using AI extensively for data analysis and market research. They saw their CX teams gain relevant insights 3x faster this way (say CEOs of top companies). And in this world, time is money.
But here too, caution applies: AI is not sacred. The algorithms are only as good as the data and rules you give them. If you unleash AI only on generic data, you will also get generic outcomes. As Sander van Meurs (The New Norm) writes on Frankwatching: “A lot of AI-generated content lacks focus and brand recognition. ... Without brand context, you get generic communication”. Insights are only valuable if they match your brand DNA.
Positioning: find (and keep) your unique place
Also in your brand positioning AI can be a smart sparring partner. With AI tools, you can conduct market research, message testing and set direction faster than ever before. The technology can scan market data and customer feedback, contributing to your positioning.
- Strategic data analysis: AI can use Natural Language Processing (NLP) to quickly analyse how people talk about your brand in blogs, forums or reviews. This allows you to understand the perception around your brand in an instant. LLMs and sentiment analysis, for instance, directly measure the emotional charge behind brand mentions. So you know which brand values really appeal (and where there are chafing points).
- Customised content generation: Generative AI can help tell your brand story, provided you train it properly. Think about automatically creating variations on your slogan, or quickly drafting position statements for various audiences. Beware: AI can spew generic slogans, so feed it the core of your brand first. As IBM states: an AI marketing agent can analyse customer data and write personalised messages, completely autonomously. So see AI as a co-pilot, not a captain.
- Discover differentiation factors: AI tools can also analyse competitive data. This allows you to see where your position is still unclear. A clever application: use AI to find patterns in competitor campaigns or in customer reviews on similar products. This makes you aware of unique points where your brand can excel.
Major brands are already experimenting with AI-driven positioning. A well-known example is Pierre Cardin, which used AI to produce personalised ads, achieving 445% higher conversion rates. (Note: those percentages are from an AI Content showcase.) At the same time, some brands are seeing a conscious move away from AI. Gartner expects some 20% of brands to position themselves as “without AI”, as 72% of consumers worry about misinformation and generic AI expressions. This is ironic: it is precisely brands that convey “human touch” that can thus highlight their distinctive strength. Honesty wins.
Whether you embrace or sweeten AI, one thing is certain: it is changing the game. IBM notes that more than 90% of ad agencies are already deploying or exploring AI, and 61% are already using generative AI in the process. So the question is not whether to go with it, but how to deploy it smartly without losing your own brand DNA.
Aizersterk
AI offers your brand huge opportunities. You can serve customers more personally, respond smarter to trends and find a unique place in the market. If you do it right, you and your team will be beaming while AI picks up routine tasks. Do it wrong, and you end up with communications that make all brands look alike. The golden combination? Man and machine in balance.
In short: experiment mainly with AI, but start with your brand strategy. Train your AI on the core of your brand, your message, tone and values, before letting it loose on campaigns. That way, AI won't become a stranger, but a supportive team member who contributes ideas within your brand framework.
Got excited about the possibilities, but unsure how to get started? Feel free to contact us. We would love to help you deploy AI in a smart, ethical way. So that it strengthens your brand.
