Marketing

This Month In Marketing: AI Thrives As Cookies Survive (May 2024)

Every month, the Marketing Manager blog compiles everything you need to know to stay on top of marketing news and trends.

Gen AI In The Workplace

McKinsey released findings on generative AI’s impact on the workplace, highlighting its potential to enhance journalism but also revealing a concerning trend: over half of heavy AI users plan to quit within 3 to 6 months. These users prioritize flexibility and relational factors over pay and emphasize the need for higher cognitive and social-emotional skills. McKinsey suggests addressing disengagement by redefining tasks, focusing on outcomes, and managing both people and AI effectively.

 

Bright Forecasts

Financial analyst Brian Wieser revised his U.S. ad economy growth forecast to 5.6%, attributing the improvement to increased GDP forecasts. Ad-market expansion rates also support this optimism, indicating recovery from recession. Wieser predicts continued growth through 2028, with a baseline of 4-5% annually.

 

Marketplace Value

Attest’s report reveals a decline in marketplace dominance in online shopping journeys, with search engines gaining traction. Despite concerns about data accuracy and customer experience, marketplaces remain significant for ad spend. The report also highlights increased mobile shopping and the preference for online shopping among younger consumers.

 

Retention ROI

A new report indicates B2C brands prioritize acquiring new customers over retaining existing ones, despite the potential for higher ROI in retention. Challenges like data silos hinder effective personalization. Email remains the primary engagement channel, but mobile app and SMS show promise. AI’s importance in cross-channel marketing is growing, offering opportunities for personalized experiences.

 

Trillion Dollar Tech

Bloomberg predicts that generative AI will become a $1.3 trillion market by 2032, growing at a compound annual rate of around 43%. The market will boost sales across various tech sectors, with significant growth expected in training and hardware markets. The article highlights the increasing adoption of semiconductor accelerators and the eventual shift towards deploying generative AI workloads on the public cloud.

 

Advanced AI Strategies

A Braze study underscores the widespread use of AI in marketing but notes room for growth in leveraging it for strategic customer engagement. Marketers face challenges such as focusing on KPIs and lack of tech for executing creative ideas. AI is seen as a solution to automate tasks and enhance customer engagement, with successful AI adoption linked to exceeding revenue goals.

 

Publishers Planning Ahead

Publishers are prioritizing first-party data solutions in preparation for a cookieless future, with investments in data-collection technologies and alternative ID providers. Most publishers are prepared for third-party cookie deprecation, but discrepancies exist between C-suite leaders’ and junior employees’ assessments of preparedness. A unified platform is recommended to ensure organizational alignment.

 

Personalization Pays

Marigold’s Consumer Trend Index study reveals consumers’ appreciation for personalized offers from their favorite brands. Consumers are increasingly likely to engage with tailored offers, particularly those related to birthdays and past purchases. First- and zero-party data are essential for effective personalization, with consumers willing to exchange data for discounts and other offers.

 

Data Difficulties

A Salesforce report highlights retailers’ widespread use of generative AI for personalization but points out challenges in data accessibility and integration. Many retailers struggle to unify data silos, impacting the effectiveness of AI outputs. Retailers plan to use generative AI primarily for customer service and marketing but face obstacles in achieving a complete customer data profile, risking ineffective or biased AI results.

 

Personalization Priorities

A new study indicates increasing competition in the marketing landscape, with 73% of marketers expecting heightened competition. Data-driven decision-making is on the rise, with 92% of marketers relying on data, and personalized marketing experiences are a priority for over half of marketers. Adoption of AI is another key focus, with top uses including content optimization and automation, although concerns about job security affect AI adoption rates.

 

The Search Continues

New research highlights the growing importance of AI-driven search experiences, particularly through chatbots like Perplexity. Perplexity’s ability to refer users to brand sites is seen as a new pathway to optimization for marketers, emphasizing the need for mastering multiple search platforms to capture revenue opportunities.

 

Seeing Is Believing

Ignite Visibility’s survey reveals a significant increase in marketers integrating creative assets into content, particularly videos, which are considered the most valuable asset for user engagement. Creative assets contribute to improved user experience, increased engagement, and better SERP rankings, with short-form videos showing high ROI potential.

 

Stay of Cookie Execution

Google’s Q1 2024 earnings report announces a further delay in the phase-out of third-party cookies, citing ongoing challenges and the need for regulatory review. Marketers continue seeking alternatives and preparing for a post-cookie future, emphasizing the importance of first-party data strategies.

 

Missed Data Signals

A recent study highlights marketers’ challenges in collecting and leveraging behavioral data throughout the customer journey. Despite its critical importance, many marketers struggle with marketing automation, audience management, personalization, data analysis, and reporting. A more holistic data strategy that incorporates multiple touchpoints in the customer journey is recommended for better prediction and understanding of customer behaviors.

 

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