How to Leverage AI in Marketing: Tips for Small Businesses to Compete with Big Brands

There’s a buzz in the air. One topic is on every marketer’s lips right now and its name is Artificial intelligence (AI). You might be thinking, “I can understand using AI in tech or math, but AI in marketing?” But when you think about it, AI in marketing makes a lot of sense.

AI in marketing is all about using the power of AI tools to automate more tasks, analyze more data faster, and predict likely scenarios based on behaviour, trends, and variables. The tools available right now are completely revolutionizing the marketing landscape, and marketers are reimagining what’s possible.

Big brands are already using these tools to stay ahead. Corporate giants have access to big-money tactics and resources that small businesses can’t even imagine. But AI puts power in your hands to help you level the playing field.

Let’s dig into what AI in marketing entails, the benefits, and how you can leverage it to compete with the biggest players in your industry.

1. Understanding AI in Marketing

Let’s start with the basics. What is AI exactly? While there’s no single definition that includes the specific capabilities and tasks AI can perform, at its core, AI is basically any technology that allows machines to simulate human intelligence, behaviour, or capability.

Okay, but how does that help marketers? What is AI in marketing? Think of the kinds of AI that you’ve heard about recently. Consider the tasks they’re best at. They seem tailor-made for marketing.

ChatGPT can create natural-sounding written content. That’s a huge asset for content marketing and chatbot creation. What about image and video generation AI? Those are the formats that get the most engagement. Marketers always need more of them.

Even the kinds of AI you think of for tech and math applications can be a marketing powerhouse! They’re best at identifying patterns, running numbers, and predicting future events given different variables, right? So, they’re perfect for analyzing customer behaviour to create accurate segments and personalize content, finding the most profitable channels and formats with the highest ROIs, and helping marketers get ahead of predicted trends.

One of the biggest reasons AI in marketing is so crucial in the modern marketing landscape is the ability to automate. All those applications can be done automatically, without any human involvement. That means you don’t need to match the big-name brands’ budget to get the same amazing results.

2. Benefits of AI for Small Businesses

Small businesses need big, fat results on a very lean budget if they hope to compete. Using AI in your marketing strategy can achieve both.

Benefits of AI in Marketing for Small Businesses:

• Cost-Effectiveness: AI tools save time and money by doing any task hundreds of times faster while eliminating the cost of having human workers to do them.
• Personalization at Scale: Using AI to create tailored experiences for customers makes personalization effortless and accurate, creating excellent customer experiences.
• Improved Decision-Making: AI can analyze unthinkable amounts of customer data and provide near-instant, hyper-accurate insights for smarter, more effective marketing strategies.
• Automation of Repetitive Tasks: Using AI reduces manual work by automating tasks like email campaigns and social media management to get more done, achieve better results, and decrease time and money spent.

3. AI Tools Small Businesses Can Leverage

There are several AI tools that small businesses can leverage for better and faster results. Let’s cover some of the most impactful tools to leverage the power of AI in marketing.

Top AI Tools for Small Businesses:

• AI-Powered Chatbots: Small businesses can use AI chatbots to provide amazing 24/7 customer service with minimal effort and cost.
• Email Marketing Automation: AI email tools can analyze customer behaviour to optimize email content, formats, and send times for better engagement and conversion.
• Social Media Listening and Management Tools: AI can track brand mentions, customer sentiment, and engagement to give you the insights you need to crush your social media marketing.
• Content Creation Tools: AI platforms can generate blog posts, social media captions, images, videos, and other marketing materials. It can even analyze search results to maximize your SEO.

4. How Small Businesses Can Compete with Big Brands Using AI

So that explains the uses and benefits of AI in marketing, but how does that help small businesses keep up with their larger-than-life competitors? Let’s break it down.

How Marketing AI Helps Small Businesses Compete with Giants:

• Personalized Customer Experiences: AI helps you provide individualized service and excellent experiences, increasing customer satisfaction and conversions while building loyalty.
• Predictive Analytics: Small businesses can forecast trends and customer behaviour, just like large companies, to stay ahead of coming changes and maximize sales.
• Targeted Advertising: AI-driven advertising platforms (e.g., Facebook, Google Ads, etc.) can help small businesses target their ideal customers more efficiently to deliver the most relevant ads at the right times.
• Customer Insights: Utilizing AI tools to collect and analyze customer data and feedback provides a deeper understanding of what they want and how they react to different content to refine your offerings and services.

5. Overcoming Challenges of Implementing AI

While there have been huge leaps forward, and AI in marketing definitely provides amazing benefits, that doesn’t mean there aren’t challenges and obstacles.

AI Implementation Challenges:

• Budget Constraints: While AI does provide amazing benefits and ROI, you need to find affordable AI solutions your small business can afford.
• Learning Curve: AI is a tool that can be very helpful when used correctly. Understanding how to do that takes time. Small businesses can ease into AI tools slowly to learn how to use them and start reaping the benefits without feeling overwhelmed.
• Integration with Existing Systems: These tools can only help your business if they integrate well with your current solutions. Take the time to find tools that work well with the ones you already use.
• Ethical Considerations: Many AI tools are trained on existing content. Discussions about the ethics of using others’ content without permission are ongoing. Many customers see some AI uses as stealing. Understand how your tools were trained and be transparent with your customers about the AI applications you use.
• Data Privacy and Compliance: All this analysis and generation requires data. Where does it come from? How do you collect customer data? Do they know what information you have? Are you in compliance with all applicable laws? You have to consider these questions carefully and be open and honest about the answers.

Key AI in Marketing Takeaways

AI is a game-changer for small businesses. It can help you increase your output, accuracy, and efficiency a hundred-fold with ease. That means you can compete with the big multinational brands and even thrive in today’s marketing and eCommerce landscapes.

Take the time to do your research and choose the right tools for your business. Then, take it slow. Start small while you learn how to use them effectively. You can increase your use of AI for marketing slowly and steadily as you learn how to get the results you want.

Explore AI tools and start integrating them into your marketing strategy today. Looking for a little assistance with your marketing strategy? McAllister Marketing is here to help. Book a free consultation with one of our marketing experts.