
Are We Forgetting Empathy in this Ever-Changing World of AI?

In today’s technological world, AI dominates so much of what we do and, increasingly, in how companies market and automate their products and services. However, with advances in AI-powered marketing, are we forgetting the most important factor in all marketing tools? It is not just algorithms that will unlock the future of marketing, but a focus on empathy.
When most people think of AI in marketing they often fall into one of two categories; AI bringing a plethora of utopian breakthroughs and promises; or AI bringing a dystopian nightmare of soulless advertising and automated robot-like interactions with customers. While either of these options are always possibilities in our increasingly uncertain world, what is certain is that AI has an untapped transformative potential.
However, its successful implementation in marketing hinges on us remembering that we are still human, and those on the receiving end of our marketing require empathy for our messages to get across successfully.
With so many AI tools popping up everywhere promising increases in efficiency and effectiveness in all areas of our businesses, it can be a bit overwhelming for business leaders seeking genuine AI transformations. Questions such as “how do I know which AI tools are best for my business when there’s so many available?”, or “how do I ensure AI integrates seamlessly within my existing team and the business overall?”, regularly come up when discussing this subject with clients and business leaders.
We believe that while AI is great for taking on time-consuming or complex tasks, its greatest power lies in amplifying human insights and intuition. We’re already seeing various agencies adopting these more empathetic approaches
What is AI Capable of Doing for Marketers?
We’ve seen various systems being developed which collate multiple AI-powered studios and companies to create a centralised platform for users to enjoy a marketing view with perspectives from multiple disciplines.
Companies such as WPP, Endava, Dentsu, Omnicom, and many more have created their own platforms which mirror real-world marketing workflows which are underpinned by data structures driven by proprietary AI models. Having these multiple perspectives from differing AI companies and datasets allows one to build-up a comprehensive ecosystem which can aid in fostering a more empathetic and insightful approach to marketing.
Empathy and Marketing Augmentation
Empathy and automation co-exist on a sliding scale. What we mean by this is that while AI excels at tasks requiring precision and scale, the most powerful and impactful marketing initiatives depend on understanding and connecting with human emotions.
Even with the infinite amount of data that AI tools have access to, AI alone cannot replicate human emotions, and even with the greatest advances in AI in future, these improving replications may never be 100% like-for-like. This is why on one end of the scale, AI can gather and generate all the consumer data required for a specific marketing campaign, while on the other end we still require humans to interpret this data and generate the “Why” behind that data, which helps us to further interpret consumer behaviours. Below are some examples of this coexistence of data interpretations between AI and humans:
- Crafting a Brand Story: While AI analyses data to identify keywords and attributes, it still requires human empathy to connect all these elements into an emotive narrative that resonates with people.
- Developing a Campaign: AI can optimise targeting and personalise ad copy based on this targeting, but it’s still human empathy that enables us to understand underlying motivations behind consumer behaviour, and subsequently craft messages that really resonate.
- Building a Great Customer Experience: Although AI can power chat bots and automate customer services, it is human empathy that allows us to anticipate customer needs and resolve complex queries. Additionally, think about how frustrating it can be when you’re faced with a chat bot that seems to have very limited responses!
Summary:
The future of marketing will rely on us choosing to harness the power of both AI and human empathy. By applying human empathy to the data provided by AI, we can further-enhance our understanding of customer needs, unlock new creative possibilities, and deliver ever-more meaningful and engaging customer experiences. That’s how we get away from the buzz and hype of drone-like automated systems and unleash the true potential of AI.