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As technology evolves, so does the way we do our business. In this era of the internet, every market seems to be growing, and online marketing is changing with it. It’s perfectly natural to expect these changes, as the user engagement also goes through a change. All of this can make you feel that your online marketing is doomed right from the start, but this simply isn’t true. With new things come new opportunities for success.
Let’s talk about some of the major game changers when it comes to online and B2B marketing, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning. You’ve probably heard a lot about these already, but if you haven’t, AI is significantly transforming almost every branch of industry there is. Even though AI and machine learning are still quite young and in the process of evolution. So much so that even some of the greatest entrepreneurs of our time don’t agree on how it should be perceived. For Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, AI is an amazing tool which will help us change the world in almost every aspect there is. For Elon Musk, founder and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, the story is totally different. He believes that autonomous AI can jeopardize humanity.
The truth is probably somewhere in between, but we can focus on what we know and try to explain in which way can B2B companies benefit from AI and machine learning. We did a bit of digging around and we’ve come up with this short guide through B2B AI. Hopefully, this article will help you understand how to approach AI and machine learning and use it to your own advantage, so without further ado, let’s dive straight into it.
Predictive Management and Sales
When you think about machines, the first thing that comes to mind is their ability to analyze huge amounts of data. Now imagine applying this to your B2B marketing company. There are numerous ways of doing this. Whether you use machine learning to find out what’s common for all of your customers or you use an AI to answer your customers’ questions, there are quite a lot of ways for a B2B company to benefit from this technology. Quite a lot of smaller companies use machine learning processes to help them streamline their lead scoring. They use it in such a way so they could understand where their efforts should be focused. Machine learning can also be quite helpful when it comes to sales. You could just simply check your social media and you would see a ton of ads aimed specifically at you. All of those ads are calculated through machine learning and served to you, based on your preferences, thanks to the machine learning and AI.
Generating Leads
One of the crucial things for basically any B2B business is to gather information about their customers and potential clients. Without any help from AI or technology, quite a lot of people would have to go through a virtually endless mountain of data just to get the necessary information. With AI, this process has been significantly shortened. Gathering and analyzing a ton of information is what machines do the best, and after analyzing quite a lot of unstructured data you can get the information you’re looking for. While it would take you quite a lot of time to go through various social media profiles, emails, phone calls, and messages, AI does it almost instantaneously, and you can use this information for planning a really effective digital marketing campaign.
Highly Productive Workforce
Quite a lot of people are comparing AI with monsters from science fiction movies. Not just in a physical sense (even though running into a Terminator wouldn’t be fun at all), but in general. People are afraid that AI will replace human workers, and there is some truth behind it. AI and automated processes have already started changing the way we see our work, but the need for human contact and control will always be quite high. Many IT consultants will agree that AI will free up your workforce from the mundane tasks, allowing them to focus their time and creativity on tasks which cannot be assigned to machines. Combining the human workforce with an efficient AI system can boost the productivity in your company while keeping you on a track to success.
Final thoughts
These are just some of the things you can use to your advantage as a B2B company faced with the decision to start using AI. There are loads of useful tips and tricks all over the internet, so do your research. Talk with your team members and with your employees. Try to understand in which way would AI and machine learning best suit your company and your preferences. Don’t be afraid to talk to professionals, and soon, your B2B business can flourish with the help of AI and machine learning.
Guest Post: Chloe Smith is a design enthusiast and a part-time writer always willing to share tidbits of advice. She believes that passion, courage and, above all, knowledge breed success. When she’s not working, she’s probably somewhere cuddled up with a good book, and a cup of lemongrass tea (or more honestly binge-watching the newest Netflix hit show).
