Is AI out for social media marketers’ jobs?
Although it sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie, the growing development and application of artificial intelligence in digital marketing make this possibility more tangible than it seems.
AI data analysis tools, copywriting bots, and other kinds of AI automation software have increasingly been gaining traction in the field of marketing that they are only detectable by an AI detector. Although their first appearance was largely underwhelming, people should not underestimate the promise (and examples) of improvements in AI technology.
But is it possible for artificial intelligence to change the sector as radically as eliminating jobs related to social media advertising?
Let’s talk about the future of social media marketing in terms of a potential AI takeover.
What is AI?
Artificial intelligence, or AI for short, is a type of technology that is based on programming computers to effectively supplement, improve, or even replace manual human input.
Apps and other types of software using artificial intelligence can learn to get better at a particular task. Once it gets put to use, AI continually develops and improves its performance while executing the tasks it was programmed to do. It does this based on the data it collects from prior and ongoing attempts in order to optimize its efficiency.
AI has the ability to rapidly make performance improvements, and it does so much faster and more efficiently than humans.
What was once inconceivable has now become a reality; AI-powered tools and social media management tools (like Hopper HQ) are being used to enhance social media marketing efforts.
What is AI Currently Good For?
Within the scope of digital marketing, AI currently has several useful applications that many people hardly even think about. The following are just some examples of this:
- Digital assistants and chatbots
- Automated data analysis
- Voice assistants and voice search
- Task and time management tools
- Creating Instagram bio links that double traffic and conversions
However, developments are currently being made to target the following marketing-related tasks as well:
- Copywriting for advertisements
- Creating buyer persona composite images
- Email newsletter and subject line development
- Automatic ad buying
- Full-fledged content writing
Although the above tools are still being worked on, some of their best prototypes can actually produce impressive results even today.
Will AI Take Over Social Media Marketing Jobs?
AI has come a long way since its debut as a scientific strand. However, there are still some arguably irreplaceable human traits whose existence is essential for quality social media advertising.
For example, creativity. AI tools draw their “creativity” from tons of data they have collected through previous encounters with examples of creative outputs.
Nevertheless, original intent and innovation is still in the hands of humans, i.e. digital marketers. They remain in charge of modeling creative solutions and strategies to create ads for — you guessed it — other humans.
Another important part of social media marketing is human connection. Artificial intelligence cannot establish true human bonds because it lacks emotions and actual lived experiences.
AI-based systems are only capable of what is specified in their programming, and they lack the empathy and moral underpinning needed to properly address and relate to human issues. Human connection and relatability are the cornerstones of successful digital marketing.
Finally, although many developers believe that this can be improved in the future, AI-powered tools lack critical thinking skills. This means that they are still unable to produce sound strategies or develop new plans based on the data they compile.
Trends in Social Media Advertising Worth Looking Into
AI-generated tools should be perceived as assets to help us out with the campaigns we run and fuel with coffee and creativity. Over the past decade, we are preparing innovative ways of using user-generated content to improve our brand reputation and increase sales.
Social media marketing tools keep surprising us with out-of-the-box solutions that make our processes faster, better quality, and cost-effective. A new idea that emerged on the market is to connect user-generated content across different social media platforms and pair it with your product.
The idea is simple: software collects content published by your customers and connects it to your brand with a call-to-action button, inviting other users to check you out. That way, you can automatically collect branded content and use it for social commerce without perplexing hassle.
Alternatively, you can feature the same user-generated content on your website, increasing conversions from viewers to customers automatically. This is a sophisticated way of letting your quality speak for itself, with little to no effort in running social media campaigns.
Preparing for the Future of Digital Marketing with AI
As it stands, social media advertising is still very much reliant on human input and talent.
However, efforts and resources are progressively being directed at enhancing AI-powered systems to someday be used to perform many of the tasks that a typical social media marketer does today.
To prepare for a future that will be more AI-driven, digital marketers should always strive to stay ahead of the curve by remaining up-to-date on trends emerging in this field, and update their social media portfolio accordingly.
Additionally, in order to find ways to remain relevant, work alongside AI, and adjust to any potential changes affecting jobs, social media advertising experts should be ready to offer solutions and, of course, enhance their own capabilities as needed.
Final Thoughts
Artificial intelligence may render certain marketing positions obsolete in the not-so-distant future. The current course for its development is to make it better at automating some marketing-related tasks in order to make other kinds of human input more efficient.
Although it is unlikely that any of that will happen overnight, the build-up to this change is happening as we speak, and it is best to be prepared for it.
Therefore, if digital marketers want to continue being effective and relevant in the future, they need to be aware of the employment implications that artificial intelligence can, and probably will have on the field of social media advertising.
