Five ways to take your marketing automation further with AI

It’s been said that artificial intelligence is the future, but I’d argue that AI is very much a thing of the here and now. It’s playing an increasingly significant role in marketing efforts and is taking marketing automation to the next level. And during an era when customers are demanding fast and hyper-personalized services, AI-based technologies couldn’t be more critical.

AI-based technologies bolster marketing automation efforts through personalized interactions. Your business can benefit on a multitude of fronts by embracing these game-changing advancements.

Five ways AI can take your marketing automation to the next level

1. Email marketing: Increase open rates from 13 to 18%

It’s easy for emails to get lost in the shuffle of a busy day. After all, inboxes are overflowing with meeting reminders, work correspondence, and plenty of promotions. Enticing a customer to simply open a marketing-related email can be challenging. But with the right tools, you can consider that challenge conquered.

AI-based technologies are helping marketers win the attention of potential customers in numerous ways. For instance, they’re allowing small and medium-sized businesses to improve their email marketing automation strategies by knowing who to target, when, and how frequently.

• Know your target: AI helps businesses understand and foresee customer behavior patterns, and detect which strategies do email subscribers best respond to. It can also help businesses more effectively automate emails to ensure customers are receiving personalized correspondence and promotions relevant to their needs.

Adding a personalized touch to emails pays off. A study from Statista showed that personalized emails had an open rate of 18.1 percent, compared to a 13.1 open rate for non-personalized emails.

• Engage the customer: Of course, AI-generated emails should do more than attract customers, they should also engage them. Email subject lines can be tailored for each customer. For example, while the emails themselves might contain personalized offers.

2. Lead nurturing: AI could lead to economic boost of $14 trillion by 2035

When it comes to gathering and analyzing customer information, we mortals are no match for the pace and efficiency of computers. AI-based programs are capable of processing user data at lightning speed and can be hyper-responsive to customer needs.

Automating the data collection process can help simplify the lead-nurturing process for businesses, while AI can set the course for future marketing strategies.

• Capturing information: AI provides marketers with the valuable information they need to close a sale. It tells us when someone has visited their site, which pages they visited and how much time they spent perusing products.

Marketing teams are using this data to drive sales, and if statistics are any indication, it’s working. AI could lead to an economic boost of $14 trillion in additional gross value added (GVA) by 2035, according to Accenture research.

• Automated actions: As I mentioned earlier, AI-based software doesn’t just benefit businesses in the long term — it can also be of tremendous value in the present. Through AI, valuable customer information is being captured in real time. This information can further be used instantly to tempt shoppers with personalized offers and targeted advertisements. Forrester has predicted that 20 percent of enterprises will begin using AI to make decisions and provide real-time marketing instructions.

3. Cross-selling: Track previous purchases and experiences

Successful businesses strive to equip customers with the tools and services they need. The trouble is, it can be a bit tricky to determine what those needs are.

• AI aid: While automation can help track previous purchases and user experiences, it can also take that information and make predictions on the potential for additional sales. It can determine whether a customer is a good candidate for additional products or services and establish which products a customer might be in the market for next.

Once your sales and marketing teams are made aware of your business’ cross-selling potential, they can make customers aware of those additional offerings.

4. Customer retention: Build on the base of your CRM platform

A happy customer is a loyal customer. AI can help you retain your existing customer base by providing you with a better understanding of client needs. You might think you already have a handle on that front with your CRM platform, but AI can provide a more complete, more actionable picture of your current customers.

In the meantime, customers will appreciate the personalized service with AI-based software offers and are more likely to become repeat customers.

5. Re-engaging past customers: How and why a customer left

Customers come and go, and they’ll come again with the right approach. Whatever the reason for losing a customer, it’s never too late to win them back. Especially with some artificial assistance.

• Helpful insights: AI can provide insight into how and why a customer left, and help determine the best way to reconnect. For example, it can be used to send an email with product recommendations based on a customer’s purchase history, or inform them of any relevant price drops.

If you’ve spent any amount of time looking into customer engagement and sales/marketing success strategies, you’re undoubtedly already familiar with the ways in which automation can help your business. Now, it’s time to build on those benefits by incorporating AI-based technologies into your marketing strategy.

Businesses are becoming increasingly competitive and to remain relevant, AI-based technologies must be embraced.

John Oechsle is President and CEO of Swiftpage. He can be found on Twitter @hjoech.