AI in Marketing: How Businesses Are Using Automation to Connect with Customers

They say that every generation has a tough road ahead of them, and it’s true. Change is constant, and today, change is happening at lightning speed. Moreover, change is one of the very things that humans are wired to resist for the sake of their survival.

For better or worse, the dangers of our ancestors’ daily lives have been overtaken by a more modern predator – stagnation. Teams that refuse to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) into their knowledge base will backslide their skillsets and miss valuable opportunities. Learn how to integrate AI into your organization’s marketing strategy to build meaningful connections and earn lifelong loyalty.

Provide Better Response Times and Even Better Responses

Business hours don’t always sync up with when customers have time to shop. People are busy, traffic is terrible, and information overwhelm can set in quickly. That’s why many shoppers choose online shopping, largely in the small patches of time between work and family life. 

When shopping for a car, this misalignment of operating and shopping hours presents a serious conundrum. Customers have questions, and when the dealer they’re shopping with uses integrated AI, they get quick, accurate answers while the dealership gains more qualified auto dealership leads.

AI chatbots serve as an extension of your sales team, providing on-demand responses to vehicle-specific queries and more. By tapping into your preloaded inventory and elevating the customer experience based on your rules and brand voice. With AI, auto retailers can unify the entire customer journey, maintain engagement, and close more deals.

Transfer Knowledge to Keep Conversations Flowing

Your customer has been chatting with your AI assistant, and now it’s time for the handoff to your sales team. Skip the dreaded recap with your smart AI assistant to ensure a seamless experience. Whether you’re selling cars, cosmetics, or cosmic art, your customers will feel understood.

Chatbots report summaries of online interactions and can store them in your customer resource management (CRM) platform. Marketers can design automations utilizing core demographic data, shopping habits, and abandoned carts to advance the sales process.

Predict Their Next Move to Time the Most Relevant Offers

Infuse previous buying habits with campaigns, sponsored content, and timed offers to deliver relevant proposals. Pre-fill carts with a reorder or even an automated subscription at a discount. Infuse creativity and helpfulness, making your customers’ lives easier by ensuring they’re never without their beloved products.

This approach isn’t limited to retail products because big-ticket items like vehicles and their care and maintenance can benefit from predictions. Predictive analytics aren’t fueled by a veteran marketer’s gut feel since there’s real data science at play. 

The science of predictive analytics helps marketers interpret data into potential customer actions. Repeat actions like shopping, adding to cart, and purchasing help tabulate into a purchase rate. The point where potential customers abandon the process can be analyzed to determine sticking points in the sales funnel. 

Automotive customers have the added benefit of make and model specifications and their manufacturer recommendations. Dealers blending AI into their marketing can keep new buyers engaged with service offers, both during the deal and beyond. Deliver time-based offers for oil changes, mileage-specific maintenance, and trade-in offers, complete with payoff, specific to customer data.

Automate Routine Communications to Smooth Processes 

No matter your industry, there are key communications you can put on autopilot. One major automation you can deploy right now is post-purchase automation. 

After a customer hits “buy now,” they’re engaged, excited to receive their item, and open to hearing from you. Marketers who design an automation to follow up with customers after purchasing can leverage a valuable opportunity. Fueling the anticipation elevates the buying experience, mirrors industry expectations, and eases contact center pressure.

Once a purchase has been completed and transactional emails focused on shipping are on their way, AI automations can shine. Keep clients engaged during the wait, maintaining their excitement until their order arrives. 

Offer tips, suggestions, and education, especially if your product is unique. By increasing their knowledge base you can improve the likelihood of satisfaction.

Respond to Changes in Customer Sentiment to Restore Trust and Loyalty

AI quickly analyzes and interprets thousands of data points, closing the gap that manual analysis creates. AI informs, but it’s people who make the call on your next move; Your team has the data they need to determine what’s next, what to invest in, and how to mitigate serious risks. 

Respond to chatbot inquiries with triggers to elevate shipping issues to your e-commerce team. Design your AI bot to request the order number or tracking number to streamline this process. With this information, your bot can elevate the issue to a representative who can reach out directly with a resolution.

Artificial intelligence can also crawl social platforms, comments, and onsite reviews for trends. Marketers can learn about issues quickly and can advocate for immediate resolution and determine if public relations is needed. If the issue is likely to impact many customers, marketers can prepare messages, revise scheduled campaigns, and equip front-line staff.

Amplify Customer Data into Action to Earn Loyalty with AI

The best benefit of AI in marketing is that you can create human-centered experiences for every customer. Powerful automations are built with the end user in mind by the empathetic, intelligent professionals you work with. When your customers feel more connected to your brand, they’re more likely to repurchase, revisit, and recommend your offer.