This was drafted in December 2023, and by the time I hit publish in January 2024 there will be new developments in the field of AI. The technology is moving that quickly. I’ve had many conversations with clients, other marketers and AI enthusiasts about how to make the most of it and what role it should play in the workplace.
With my background in prehistoric archaeology, I look back to learning how during the neolithic, farming practices swept across Europe and brought with it a host of new technologies, followed swiftly by the introduction of metal working. Technological innovation isn’t a new concept and humans have adapted and embraced new technologies throughout history. Now we’re in the 21st century it’ll be no different, and AI is just one element of digital transformation.
Growing up with films like irobot and terminator, I haven’t been the earliest adopter of the technology and have approached it with apprehension but once I did some research these machines are a long way off from becoming sentient (I hope!)
I don’t know what the face of AI will be by the time 2025 comes around, but I do think that if you don’t start integrating it into your marketing then you run the risk of getting left behind. Following on from delivering multiple training and thought-provoking conversations, here are my five key tips on how to get started and not get left behind.
#1 Avoid overwhelming yourself
ChatGPT, Bard, Jasper, Gemini, Claude, Copilot…yep the list goes on. I’ve made the decision to stick with one AI to support my production of marketing materials (ChatGPT), and to keep an eye on Gemini because I use a Google worksuite. This has made it more digestible and kept the overwhelm at bay. I have noticed that other digital marketing tools I use (Canva, Buffer, LinkedIn), are all now integrating AI into some of their features. I’m allocating small amounts of time to investigate these features so see if they enhance what I’m already doing.
#2 You need to experiment
I started by opening up ChatGPT 3.5 and just had a go. At first I thought it was rubbish but then I realised it was because I was feeding it rubbish. I refined how I spoke to it, the prompts I gave it and the quality of the output significantly improved. The biggest difference was when I included the persona of who I wanted to read the content, how I wanted them to feel and being specific about what I wanted them to do as a result of engaging with the content.
#3 Create an AI strategy
AI isn’t going anywhere so you need to think about what role it plays in your business or role. My AI strategy is simple. How do I use it to enhance what I’m already doing and set objectives from there. There is no point in using AI for the sake of saying you’re using AI. I generally use it as a creative launchpad to put content together, help me with editing large pieces of content into bitesize social posts, generating original images so I can avoid using stock and creating design assets at scale. These aren’t new tasks to my business, but with AI I have been able to speed up my processes and in all honestly elevate the quality of my content while keeping it on brand.
#4 Use it responsibly
AI is a tool to enhance your creativity and create more efficient processes. It’s not there to replace people. Most AI’s come with a health warning that they haven’t got access to up to date information and that they can’t guarantee against offensive and incorrect content. Like humans, it has unconscious biases and isn’t necessarily representative of the audience you’ll be speaking to. It goes without saying that human errors occur but to use AI responsibly you must check and edit the content to ensure it’s accurate before sharing or publishing it. There’s an ongoing healthy debate around the IP of AI generated content so you may wish to include a disclaimer when content has been assisted by AI. And it goes without saying, don’t put confidential information into open AI.
#5 Connect with AI thought leaders
If you’re reading this then the likelihood is that you’re not an expert in AI, you are just trying to navigate your way through it. My advice is to find the people whose job it is to be at the forefront of the changing landscape. You also don’t have the time to be constantly monitoring for new developments so find the people who are and then share the key updates that will impact people like you and me. LinkedIn and events are a great way to find these thought leaders. Some of my faves are Lucy Batley from Tractions Industries and Molly Mahoney who I saw speak at Atomicon 2023.
AI is changing the way we work so don’t get left behind. Use it to enhance your existing work and to make your life easier. We are in the midst of another major technological revolution and I’m really excited to see the creative ways we can use it to benefit humans in a responsible and ethical way.
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