• by Martin Rugfelt , August 20, 2014

You have probably used the term “connected customer” or told your CEO about how many devices your target customer is operating on, countless times in the past. It’s no longer a secret – we as marketers know that we need to solve the puzzle of how to advertise in an increasingly mobile world. 

On the other side of the equation, as a consumer, you might automatically think this means more of an opportunity to be “spammed” by brands that have absolutely no relevance to you. Although spamming is still an unfortunately popular tactic, it’s not a sustainable strategy as we move into an era that demands better stories, relevancy and engagement from brands.

How can marketers be smarter when marketing to their audiences?  What used to be seen only in the movies, is now a reality. Artificial Intelligence (AI) integrated into mobile applications allows for a smart lens over consumers’ mobile interactions. AI can also help marketers bring to life several tools that make for smarter marketing behavior, such as:

1)     Humanization: Asking a mobile shopping app for recommendations typically results in offers that are motivated by advertising or marketing goals, which likely doesn’t benefit the shopper. A mobile shopping app that mimics the qualities of a seasoned sales person can allow users to interactive with a highly graphic interface that provides the best possible recommendations.

2)     Discovery: Discovery solutions vary tremendously. Consumers may find a new product through research, by using referential past searches or talking to their friends. One discovery method using AI is based on a series of Q&As, resembling a typical interaction we might have with a sales person. Another method might use multiple signals based on past and current customer behaviour to power a deep profiling effort that provides instant results without research.

3)     Personalization: A number of mobile users don’t have time to shop, keep up with trends, or monitor good deals. By combining deep personalization, advanced recommendations and discovery with a virtual assistant, mobile apps would be able to alert the shopper when something relevant turns up and advise them in real-time.  This type of “smart” retail app makes it possible for brands to create a personal relationship with customers could lead to an increasingly brand-focused Internet.

The more a marketer knows about its audience, the better they can intelligently understand its needs and provide it with relevant information. These new technologies, in conjunction with existing ad technologies, are a massive improvement in relevancy and consumer trust in ads. Spamming, mis-targeting and guessing what individual customers want are no longer viable marketing strategies. Many of the largest tech companies have already invested in machine learning and AI to predict what their customers want – before they even know it themselves. 

Since constant connectedness means more data is available to collect and analyze, smarter marketing strategies can be put in place to make room for more hyper-targeted services. Consumers want and trust well-informed, relevant and timely options that don’t interfere with private digital spaces. Successful marketers are already respecting consumer’s time and consideration like never before — and not just on the big screen.