Today’s consumers have ever-changing preferences, relentless pursuit of satisfaction and rising demand for high-quality as well as diverse products. This creates a dynamic challenge for marketers: developing innovative strategies to reach a constantly evolving target audience. While identifying the ideal customer and optimizing campaigns within budget were once formidable tasks, artificial intelligence has transformed the marketing landscape. Thanks to its ability to harness vast amounts of data and uncover hidden patterns in consumer behavior and cognition, AI has equipped marketers with the tools to decipher the mysteries of their target audience.
But where did it all begin? The early 2010s witnessed a turning point in advertising. As machine learning and big data matured, they became powerful tools within reach for marketers. This confluence sparked the automation of ad buying and the emergence of precise targeting ad campaigns. Such a transformation stemmed from the digital revolution, particularly the rise of streaming TV (CTV).
Before CTV, traditional television relied on program ratings — a blunt instrument for determining the right audience. CTV, coupled with neural networks, revolutionized targeting from a different perspective, with the main factor in choosing potential customers becoming their characteristics, such as habits, preferences and location. In particular, cutting-edge technology empowers advertisers to craft effective strategies and optimize them in real time, adapting to the evolving needs of their audience. This capability, in turn, provides advertisers with the necessary reach and makes the campaign as effective as possible.
Over time, the functionality of AI in the field of advertising has expanded, and today, it is successfully used for tasks such as:
Related: 6 Positive Impacts of Artificial Intelligence on Digital Marketing
Tech giants like Google are leading the charge in automated advertising campaigns, where AI handles the entire process — from targeting the right audience and crafting compelling ad creatives to summarizing overall campaign performance. Google’s arsenal of AI tools includes Smart Bidding, which analyzes online auctions to determine the optimal bid price based on conversions or cost-per-acquisition. Similarly, their innovative Generative AI within Performance Max creates unique illustrations based on user requests and can edit existing visuals. Thus, it becomes easier and, most importantly, faster for marketing and advertising specialists to develop personalized ad concepts and scale them effortlessly across campaigns.
Other exciting players who are also developing the use of AI in AdTech include:
Global corporations are wielding AI to revolutionize advertising and marketing. These technologies streamline campaign processes, personalize experiences at scale, optimize ad delivery and even inject creativity through AI-powered AdTech. As a result, projects become more impactful, making AI-driven marketing accessible to companies of all sizes, not just tech giants. But this raises a question: Does this dominance by big players stifle innovation, and can startups still compete in the online marketing landscape? Let’s take a look!
Related: 5 AI Marketing Tools Every Startup Should Know About
In today’s crowded marketplace, capturing consumer attention requires more than just amazement. People crave authenticity and experiences that resonate with their values and needs. Here are some of the most effective advertising strategies startups can leverage:
Examples of companies that apply the strategies mentioned above in AdTech:
The success of these startups proves that even against tech giants, smaller companies can carve out a niche, become trusted partners for advertisers and help them drive repeat business by choosing the right strategy.
