Empowering your marketing team with AI integration

The value of digital marketing is greater than ever before. 

For all of us within B2B technology marketing, staying ahead of the curve has never been more crucial. Our clients don’t want a strategy that is outdated before it’s been implemented. They want ROI, value, and the ability to seize on the technology opportunities that are out there. 

And AI is, of course, driving much of that profound change.

For senior marketers, team enablement in this exciting, evolutionary time, is a key area of focus. The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) within marketing functions is no longer a futuristic concept, it’s a competitive necessity.

However, successful leverage of AI requires more than just adopting the latest technology – it demands a strategic approach that empowers your people and aligns with your business and marketing goals.

I’d recommend the following practical steps when considering the integration of AI in your marketing team:

1. Ownership of strategy and direction

In the rush to ‘get started’, defining strategy, direction, and ownership can be overlooked. It’s crucial to manage AI tools in a way that aligns with your business and marketing objectives. 

As senior marketers, we must take the lead in defining how AI will be used and ensure its implementation supports the overall business goals.

2. Tool selection and integration with existing systems

Choosing the right AI tools, services, and models is not a 5-minute decision.

Tools should not only meet your current marketing needs but also integrate seamlessly with your existing systems and processes. Consider how suitable AI is from a business perspective: What are the legal implications of the EU AI Act? Have you taken internal IT and/or cyber compliance into account?

We’ve integrated AI-powered services including AI translation, through tools like Zapier. But adoption is not something that can be taken lightly. The process should be carefully managed to avoid disruption, and your team trained how to use tools effectively.

3. Governance

Alongside researching and selecting tools is, of course, governance. This makes it joint second in my list of considerations. 

Before any tool or service is adopted, a governance framework is essential. Indeed, this was one of the key steps we put in place at Revere in FY24 to establish our AI enablement and growth. 

As this governance presentation by Casper Labs details, every organisation “needs an AI governance strategy” in order to comply with both customer, and regulatory, demands.

At Revere, our framework defines the tools, their purpose, how AI is to be used, who has access to what, and how data is managed. We also consider the ethical side, including emerging legislation and how frequently our ‘accepted’ toolset should be reviewed.

4. Training, upskilling, and skill development

Your team’s ability to effectively use AI tools hinges on its collective skills and knowledge. Rollout without proper guidance and training is setting your team up for, I’m sorry to say, failure.

In my experience, identifying advocates for a ‘peer-to-peer’ knowledge-sharing model can be very successful. Individuals with passion and enthusiasm become of massive benefit to the strategic success of AI integration – so it’s worth investing in upskilling your core team.

This LinkedIn report, highlights that teams with access to continuous learning are 47% more likely to feel confident in using AI tools effectively.

5. Overcoming resistance and creating an AI-friendly culture

To overcome resistance to AI and foster an AI-friendly culture, clear communication and leadership are essential. I think we’ve done a decent job of realising this at Revere, particularly with our launch of AI-enhanced marketing.

Team members may fear AI will replace them. I believe this fear can be overcome with reassurance that instead, AI will augment our abilities and talents, rather than remove the need for uniquely human capability.

Encouraging team members to explore AI tools and apply them in their day-to-day work can lead to innovative olutions, efficiencies, and value gains, as well as improved job satisfaction, so everyone wins.

We’ve achieved 100% AI enablement at Revere by being transparent with the role AI must play within our business. I’d recommend educating people and promoting a culture of discovery and opportunity to any business.

6. Measuring the impact of AI integration

It’s not enough to simply integrate AI; measuring its impact is crucial to understanding its value.

Having measurable KPI-focused outcomes will help you track the success of your AI initiatives, whether those are increased efficiencies, monitoring the impact on quality and value of your operations, or enhanced customer satisfaction and engagement.

Plus KPIs help marketers focus on the value and ROI that AI can deliver. 

What next?

I’m excited about the potential AI tools and services have to significantly boost team morale and engagement and their scope to become a competitive advantage for talent retention and acquisition.

AI frees up your team to focus on more creative and strategic work – maximising their human value.

Integrating AI into your marketing team empowers your team to work smarter and achieve better results.

So, take ownership of AI strategy, establish governance, select the right tools, and invest in your team’s skills to unlock the full potential of AI.

I believe that, in this AI-dominated landscape for marketers, the most successful teams will be those that first embrace AI and technology as a catalyst for continuous improvement and innovation…

Now is the time to seize the AI opportunity.