What We Learned Act-On’s AI Growth Summit Keynote: Turning AI Into ROI

by | Jul 18, 2018 | Marketing

The 2018 AI Growth Summit was held 20-21 June with several informative and insightful speakers discussing the impact of AI on sales and marketing. Day 2’s keynote addressed AI in the marketing space and how it can be used to increase ROI.

Here’s a few key points we learned from Suaad Sait, President of Growth from Insidesales.com and Nina Church-Adams, SVP of Marketing at Act-On.

AI drives incremental growth

The one question we have all asked at some point is how does AI impact marketing? Act-On’s SVP of Marketing, Nina Church-Adams’ answer is, AI is helping to drive incremental growth. AI is allowing marketers to leverage data. It allows the data and usage analysis that we’ve been collecting to be used to help change behaviours.

AI is also helping marketers to achieve their goals quicker and smarter. Machines are able to process all that data in great quantities, allowing humans do what they do best. This includes responding to customer demands. AI helps marketers keep up with ever-increasing demands by allowing better insight and personalisation.

Context — following the digital breadcrumbs

Prospects are doing their research. It is now estimated that customers go through 70% of the buyer’s journey before they contact a sales person. In the process, they are downloading an average of seven asset before making a purchase decision. All the while they are leaving behind a trail of digital breadcrumbs.

AI takes these breadcrumbs and gives marketers context when they interact with potential customers.

Because customers are doing so much research ahead of purchasing, Suaad Sait believes that knowing as much about that specific customer’s journey as possible is vital. “Context of what a prospect has already interacted with, such that you can take them down a path going forward as opposed to taking them back 30 days in their research and understanding.”

Going beyond automation with adaptive marketing

Act-On has developed, what they call, ‘Adaptive Marketing.’ Adaptive marketing takes automation to the next step. It turns data into insights and actions with the use of AI. It takes the vast amounts of data and automation and combines it with machine learning and predictive analytics to drive conversion and engagement.

Or, as Suaad Sait aptly expressed, it’s time for marketers to take all the data accumulated over the past ten years out there and use and make intelligence out of it.  In turn, the intelligence can be used to make key decisions that impact the business.

AI in action: predictive send

Predictive send is a real-life example of how AI takes digital breadcrumbs and makes it possible for marketers to engage on a highly personalised level with their prospects. No longer is sending emails by basics such as time zone the goal. With AI, marketers can actually pinpoint what time of day their prospects will most likely interact with their email and content.

This brings email marketing up a notch. It removes a lot of the research and guesswork from the process and delivers the personalised engagement customers are now demanding.

Want to know more?

If you’d like to listen to this keynote address as well as other great insights on AI visit the 2018 AI Growth Summit site.