The Future of Digital Marketing

In an industry where change is an almost daily occurrence, with companies updating algorithms, new platforms launching and our customers attention becoming ever more difficult to capture, we find ourselves struggling to keep up with the constant change. However, if keeping up is our only goal we will always feel like we are one step behind.

We believe that in order to provide the best service to our customers it is important to look at the future and prepare for the change that is coming. Being a champion for change will provide us with a strong competitive advantage that will allow us to move forward with conviction.

Technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain have the potential to revolutionize the digital marketing industry. You may already have that sinking feeling in your stomach, but don’t worry, we are going to break both concepts down and tell you all you need to know to make sure you are well equipped for what is to come.

What is Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the science of making machines smart. Making machines “smart” means refers to a machines capability to achieve a desired goal by mimicking human functions. Basically, smart machines can learn, reason and act for themselves.  The Goal of AI is to create systems that can function intelligently and independently.

Artificial Intelligence really is an Umbrella term that encompasses a wide variety of technology that includes machine learning, natural language generation and processing, deep learning and neural networks. These technologies in turn are all fueled by Big Data. It is also important to understand that these technologies aren’t science fiction anymore and that Artificial Intelligence is already a major part of our everyday lives. Services like as Netflix and YouTube recommendations, self-driving cars and companies like the Washington Post, who use the Heliograf AI to write entire articles, are all leveraging the power of Artificial Intelligence.  

Will I be replaced by Artificial Intelligence?

The simple answer, No. Artificial Intelligence in fact will make your job less repetitive and much easier, it will not replace you.

We understand that these new technologies can sound intimidating but here is what you need to know. Even though Artificial Intelligence is growing at a rapid pace most tools are still purpose built to solve specific problems.  Why is this important?

Well these purpose-built Artificial Intelligence systems or Weak AI systems are used for automation.

Automation refers to the process of replacing an activity previously performed by a human either partially or completely with the use of a machine. This happens because Machines will outperform humans in all tasks that are frequent high-volume tasks due to the large amounts of data available to them and their ability to process data.

Humans however will remain valuable when it comes to solving new or unique problems. Therefore, only jobs that can be reduced to frequent high-volume tasks will eventually be automated. This means as long as you know how to solve unique problems or learn how to leverage these systems to help you solve problems you will be a valuable potential employee for any company.

How will Artificial Intelligence affect Marketing?

Artificial Intelligence is already making its way into marketing with systems that can write short email replies and perform A/B testing easily and autonomously already available. This however is just the beginning.

Artificial Intelligence will help Marketers perform better across the board as it will affect the development of marketing strategy, help create intelligent content, personalize consumer experiences, help leverage data to make better decisions and help create multi-channel, cross device campaigns.

Specific use cases for Artificial Intelligence include, web-design, engaging users through intelligent chat bots, creating data driven content, optimizing marketing campaigns, constructing buyer personas and many more.

What is Blockchain?

“What is Blockchain?” “Why have you never heard of it?” Well then let’s get into it. It is time to look at the revolutionary technology behind Bitcoin and why it is important for Marketing. The most common definition for a blockchain would describe a blockchain as a distributed, decentralized, public ledger. This sounds confusing so let’s break it down.

At its most basic level a blockchain is a chain of digital blocks. Each Block is made up of digital information and can be compared to a single data sheet. Blocks are then linked together through cryptography which creates the blockchain. Therefore, the blockchain can be viewed as a database that stores digital information (blocks).  

The goal of blockchain is to allow digital information to be recorded and distributed, but not edited. A Blockchain maintains its security and integrity by storing a copy of the entire blockchain on each computer in the network making it almost impossible to hack as a hacker would have to manipulate every copy across the network simultaneously.  

How will Blockchain affect Marketing?

Like Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain Technology is being implemented in every industry imaginable including Digital Marketing. The project we will have a look at here is the Basic Attention Token (BAT).

BAT has identified intermediaries within the digital adverting space as a problem. Advertisers pay these intermediaries who pay Publishers a fraction of the income to bombard consumers with advertisements. Consumers are therefore paying to be bothered by ads, as these advertisements and trackers are downloaded, research suggest it is almost $23 per month.

How is BAT looking at solving the problem? The BAT team have already launched the Brave Browser with a built-in Ad and tracking blocker and a ledger system that rewards sites for user attention. The next step is for the team to create a decentralized ad exchange. What this means is the browser will privately monitor your attention and reward publishers for good content or ads this data will never leave your machine. Users will have the ability to choose to receive ads and if they do so they will share in the rewards as well.

What this means is advertisers will transact with the publishers directly and the 3rd party costs will be eliminated. Users will also be rewarded for their attention instead of paying to be distracted. Whether this will achieve mainstream adoption or not is yet to be seen but the Brave Browser already has 8 million active monthly users.

The BAT project is only a single example of how marketing could be affected by Blockchain technology and this could cause a major shift in how we reach our customers. We are excited to see how this technology evolves into the marketing industry and will be keeping our finger on the pulse.  

How do we prepare for this change?

Artificial Intelligence will not only make reaching our customers easier but revolutionize the way we do it completely. To find out more about the effect of Artificial Intelligence on marketing and just to learn more visit https://www.marketingaiinstitute.com/ai-beginners-guide/home.

The use of Blockchain Technology in marketing will attempt to take away the dependence on third party companies that take a large portion of your ad spend. The current school of thought is looking to reward users for their attention and ensure companies that the users who view their ads choose to do so which should increase consumer engagement. To find out more about the current project visit https://basicattentiontoken.org/.

Conclusion

Digital Marketing is an ever-changing field but if we embrace the change and keep our customers best interest at heart, success will follow.