The rise of Generative AI in digital marketing, 8 examples of how brands are leveraging the technology

Generative AI has become a significant force in the evolving realm of digital marketing, offering new possibilities and efficiency. AI technologies aren’t new, but in 2023, the technology underwent a major evolution that could lead to a significant shift in the creation, personalization, and distribution of marketing content.

At BuzzBrothers, we have been exploring the impact generative AI has on customer interactions, creative strategies, and product and service development — ensuring our clients’ digital marketing strategy stays relevant in a rapidly moving environment.

Let’s go through eight inspiring examples of how brands are leveraging the technology.

The transformative role of Generative AI in customer experience.

Generative AI is revolutionizing customer engagement by going beyond automated responses. AI-driven chatbots, for example, have evolved into sophisticated tools capable of delivering tailored advice, product recommendations, and empathetic responses. Understanding customer data enables these systems to predict needs, customize interactions, and elevate the overall customer experience. This level of personalization enhances customer satisfaction and builds brand loyalty, evolving toward a new standard in customer service.

Example 1: Walmart uses generative AI to enhance the shopping experience, introducing a shopping assistant, AI-powered search, and an interior design feature for customers. The shopping assistant offers interactive help, while the AI search understands context. The interior design feature uses AR and allows users to redecorate rooms with AI recommendations. Walmart emphasizes its flexibility in using various AI models and its commitment to generative AI technology.

Example 2: L’Oréal introduces BeautyGenius, a personalized beauty advisor powered by generative AI, at CES 2024. Beyond a mere gadget, this innovation promises to revolutionize the beauty experience with tailored advice. BeautyGenius utilizes over 10 integrated LLMs for an in-depth individual diagnosis, surpassing typical chatbot capabilities. The smartphone app offers personalized vocal beauty guidance, including product recommendations and video tutorials, integrating cutting-edge technologies like augmented reality, computer vision, colour science, and inclusive datasets.

Creative advertising and AI-Driven storytelling

Beyond customer service, generative AI is impacting advertising and storytelling. Brands increasingly use AI to generate creative content, including advertisements or personalized content. The technology allows marketers to produce original and engaging content at an unprecedented scale and speed. AI-driven storytelling, fueled by audience data analysis, creates narratives that resonate deeply with specific demographics, leading to more effective and emotionally compelling campaigns.

Example 3: Uber India celebrated its 10th anniversary with a campaign using generative AI technology. The campaign created personalized videos for drivers and riders, highlighting their Uber journey, kilometres travelled, and 5-star ratings. These videos thanked them for their role in Uber’s success. They expressed gratitude for trusting the brand, emphasizing Uber’s impact on Indian mobility.

Example 4: Guerlain’s team employed AI to showcase Maison Guerlain’s history, associating milestones with artistic and architectural references. They used a custom AI model, combining various tools to generate the “Flacon aux Abeilles” from different angles. Periods were represented through prompts, guiding AI to create images with specific elements, resulting in a unique film celebrating generative art’s imperfections and aesthetics.

AI avatars and social content creation

Regarding customer interaction, generative AI is bringing a new perspective with AI avatars equipped to interact with users in a human-like manner. Brands leverage AI avatars as brand ambassadors, customer service agents, or interactive characters in marketing campaigns. This new approach to content generation provides a more personalized and engaging experience for the audience.

These virtual influencers are gaining popularity worldwide. Compared to CGI digital influencers, AI-generated influencers democratize influencer marketing, offer a more realistic aesthetic, and provide greater brand control. However, their success depends on compelling storytelling and purpose beyond just appearances.

Example 5: Anne Kerdi promotes Brittany. In her posts, she highlights the region’s beauty, shares her discoveries, knowledge of the heritage, and even features traditional Breton recipes. She actively engages with comments as well.

AI influencer agencies are on the rise. Aitana Lopez, from The Clueless, a Spanish influencer agency based in Barcelona, is part of this trend.

Example 6: Chinese e-commerce platforms like Taobao are witnessing a surge in AI-generated livestream influencers. These AI clones, created by startups and tech giants, replicate human streamers, reducing brand costs. The technology has improved, with just one minute of video required to generate an AI avatar. While these virtual streamers may not replace top human influencers, they are cost-effective for mid-tier ones. Major tech players like Alibaba, Tencent, and JD are also entering the AI livestreaming space. However, challenges remain, such as the inability to physically interact with products.

Innovations in product and service development

Generative AI is playing an increasingly significant role in developing new products and services by offering brands new capabilities to innovate and tailor their offerings. By using different types of AI solutions, companies can analyze vast amounts of data to identify market trends, consumer needs, and preferences. This data-driven approach enables brands not only to create products to meet market demands but also to innovate in unconventional ways.

Example 7: Mango has developed a conversational generative AI platform named Lisa, to design its collections and identify consumer trends, also handling customer service. The platform, integrating technologies like ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and Microsoft’s OpenAI, streamlines complex tasks such as designing prints, analyzing customer feedback, and spotting emerging trends. Developed in nine months, it enriches Mango’s brand responses with both external and internal data, training large language models (LLMs) with Mango’s unique DNA

Example 8: G-Star Raw utilizes AI to create 12 unique denim designs, setting a new direction for denim fashion by merging technology and design. One piece, the AI Denim Cape, showcases the possibilities of AI in fashion and is displayed at a store in Amsterdam, with the collection launching on g-star.com at the same time.

Generative AI holds significant potential in digital marketing, influencing customer interactions, creative advertising, and product development. These examples illustrate how brands currently leverage the technology.

However, as industries embrace Generative AI’s benefits, we must be careful to maintain the right balance between its creativity and efficiency and the human touch necessary for preserving authenticity and original points of view.

I don’t think Generative AI will ever do our work for us. Instead, let’s view it as a new opportunity to continue creating compelling stories and successful digital marketing strategies. New technologies have always been leveraged by the industry to enhance communication and sales. This one will be no exception to the rule; on the contrary, it could be one of the most significant!