Personalisation has been a mainstay of marketing strategies for years, even decades.

From banking to shoe shopping to the ritual of coffee on the way to work, the expectation is that a brand will tailor its service to me. 

But while marketers have long been engaging with personalisation tactics – well aware of the competitive advantages in conversion, retention and ROI – many have been unable to leverage personalisation’s full potential.

Now that’s all changing with the emergence of AI and generative AI (Gen AI) as a critical enabler in reshaping personalised customer experiences. Rapidly advancing AI and ML applications are leading to exciting innovations in customer journeys. And customer expectations are shifting in turn.

How is AI supporting marketers to level up their personalisation strategies?

According to findings from Optimizely’s global survey, 86% of executives say that their marketing strategies often demand more advanced personalisation than their current capabilities allow. The biggest blocker? Data.

Wielding inaccurate, unreliable and outdated data in personalisation risks doing more damage than having no personalisation at all. Yet in the urgent quest for tailored experiences, marketers have often been forced to attempt to craft effective messages, offers and recommendations off the back of flawed information.  

AI now allows brands to analyse vast datasets instantaneously to predict customer needs and preferences with remarkable accuracy. Using AI to ensure marketers have a complete 360-view of a customer will play a crucial role in ensuring that digital experiences are relevant, engaging and aligned to each individual.

Accurate and credible data means multinational chains like Starbucks can offer a morning-only discount on a new seasonal latte to a latte-lover before they commute to the office, while media giant BuzzFeed can create personalised quiz content for individual readers on their lunch break.

Advanced analytics are just one piece of the AI personalisation puzzle. Marketers can employ AI to build multi-channel, one-to-one customer journeys — and all in real time. Whether it’s product recommendations, targeted marketing messages, customised communication or something else, Gen AI can produce content at a speed and scale that matches the dynamism of customer preferences as they evolve.

The complexity of segmentation, A/B testing, experimentation and adapting assets according to customer feedback can be delegated to AI, while marketers get on with the creative work of engaging with and responding to customer motivations.

Beyond this, AI-powered virtual assistants will greatly enhance real-time interactions with customers. The days of clunky and unhelpful chatbots are over. While they aren’t perfect just yet, current systems are able to understand and respond to queries, anticipate needs and offer intelligent personalised recommendations so buyers can get the information they need quickly and without major headaches. 

What’s more, brands are experimenting with conversational chatbots that go beyond reliable problem-solving to engaging in rewarding interactions that foster emotional loyalty. Victoria’s Secret is one example where a chatbot is being employed to provide shoppers with a more “inclusive experience” via product recommendations that consider personal life experiences for nursing moms, breast cancer survivors and more.

 Beware: A fool with a tool is still a fool

Right now, the best way to use AI in marketing is to treat it as a co-pilot. It can automate processes. It can source, sort and analyse data. It can generate intelligent insights and action them. And it can help spark creativity and generate ideas.

However, the results are far from perfect. Misinformation and bias have been a recurring issue for many Gen AI platforms. Its limitations are especially important to be aware of when it comes to personalisation – a strategy where success hinges on trust between a brand and its customer.

But as long as humans are still involved in the process — and anything generated is cleaned up and rigorously checked — brands can avoid many of the potential pitfalls. To get the most out of AI’s capabilities, marketers must be intentional and think ‘customer-first’ rather than ‘efficiency-first.’ Marketers should ask: “How can AI be used to drive business value for our customers?”

 Getting this process right will help companies adopt additional AI capabilities in a meaningful way as the technology continues to advance.

What lies ahead for AI and personalisation?

Expect to see more and more existing platforms incorporate AI into their workflows. Today, marketers still have to switch between tools as many AI and Gen AI products are standalone. But convergence is happening as we speak. 

Additionally, Gen AI is only set to get better at written content, as other media types follow suit. Marketers will soon be able to take a prompt and create high-quality content like product descriptions and emailers faster than ever before.

As large language models (LLMs) move beyond text, Gen AI will open up a whole host of new channels for marketers and CX teams to exploit. From videos to apps, and even interactive digital experiences, the pace at which teams will be able to create hyper-personalised and compelling customer experiences will rapidly increase.

As marketers learn to leverage AI effectively, brands will be able to cultivate deeper and more meaningful connections with their customers, setting a new standard for personalised experiences across the board.

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