The Affiverse Amplify Summit was a great success, and brought together people from all over the industry to discuss some of the biggest innovations this sector is seeing; innovations brought about by factors like automation and AI, or artificial intelligence.
Therefore, it only made sense that we dedicate a panel to this at the Summit! The Amplifying Marketing Strategies with Automation & AI was the third panel on Day 1 of the Summit, on the 17th of January.
The panel was sponsored by Tipalti and moderated by Affiverse’s CEO and Founder Lee-Ann Johnstone. The experts on the panel were:
- Katie King – UK Author – AI in Marketing and the Founder of Zoodikers
- Dustin Howes – Director of Partner Management at Grovia
- Tom Ollerton – Founder of Automated Creative
- Alex Springer – RVP of Sales and Solutions at Impact.com
With just one hour on the clock, they discussed a range of topics in relation to automation, AI, and affiliate marketing. Let’s take a closer look at what some of the key takeaways of this panel are.
Why are automation and AI so important?
The first point discussed is just why automation and AI are so important, and why they should be included in affiliate marketing operations. This is still a fairly new area but there are plenty of opportunities to take advantage of.
Katie noted that it is always important to keep up with trends as they evolve, as they will help to personalise the consumer’s journey. AI will always be able to crunch data much faster than a human will and this means that it is able to provide a service that others cannot.
Tom also highlighted that automation can be used to take away much of the guesswork used in marketing strategy. This can help to create campaigns that are more effective overall.
Alex added that it can be difficult to apply the right level of automation to operations. At the moment, it needs to be used to meet customers at their level.
Dustin pointed out that automation tools are getting better every day. There is always a new tool or innovation hitting the market, and this means that there is a new way operations can be improved. Brands must have automation tools in place before they get the affiliate involved as this will make promotion that bit easier.
Is AI going to replace humans?
One factor always discussed when considering the advent of automation and AI is the role that it will play in workflow. Is it going to replace humans one day? Our panellists had differing opinions.
Katie thought that was going to take maybe at least 100 years but not any time soon. However, she did agree that it was changing and shaping the nature of the work we do. Dustin disagreed and thought that automation and AI were going to take over in the next ten years, and it will be the future of the workplace.
Alex pointed out that AI is currently only good at asking specific questions. We need to be able to accurately translate the data AI can collect into something that is of use to the business.
Tom described humans as the multiplier. If you remove the human from the processes, you remove the most important part of the technology.
What advice would you give to digital marketers to amplify automation marketing?
We asked our panellists what advice they would pass on to digital marketers looking to amplify their automation marketing, and they had some fantastic answers.
Katie stressed the importance of having weekly or monthly briefs. An employee should be given the task of keeping an eye on any competition and keep learning, so they can continue to evolve the brief and operations as needed.
Alex had the very good advice of before you hit the automation button make sure you are pointing it at what you want. If you are struggling, find an expert to help you refine operations.
Dustin noted that anything you try needs to be extremely adaptive to up-and-coming trends. With this factor being one that is constantly evolving, you need to make sure that you have something that keeps with the times, or you risk being left behind.
Tom also added that you can use automation to understand what works. The world of affiliate marketing is so variable and there are many approaches to various tasks. Automation and AI could be one way in which you are able to narrow down the practices that are working for you the most.
Should you implement automation and AI?
If we can take anything from this panel, it is that there are many opportunities awaiting those who want to introduce automation and AI to their marketing efforts. However, this should be done carefully and with purpose to ensure that we are seeing real and workable results that can be implemented in wider strategies.
Want to know how you can better your performance and make use of some of the biggest and best marketing trends of the year again? Sign up for the Affiverse Elevate Summit, which will be taking place in June!
For now, make sure to check out the full video for the Amplifying Marketing Strategies with Automation and AI panel to gain a full understanding of all our experts discussed.
