The media and advertising industries are on the precipice of a paradigm-shifting change. Generative AI is expected to alter most every aspect of the business, experts say. Key is how organizations use it as a strategic solution to create solutions for advertisers and audiences.
Doing that requires an AI strategy. And the clock is ticking at warp speed. It took ChatGPT just two months to reach 100 million users, faster than Netflix (10 years), Gmail (5 years) and Instagram (2.5 years).
It’s no secret that many in radio and other businesses are frightened about the implications Generative AI may have on their job security. According to a CNBC-Survey Monkey survey of thousands of employees, 42% said they are somewhat or very concerned about the impact Gen AI will have on their jobs. But industry advisor, author, and corporate transformation coach Charlene Li says once workers see how this technology can help them do their job better, they get on board. “When people have the power of this incredible engine and tool in their hands and they realize how much their job could be changed, they suddenly come back and say, ‘I can do this in a completely different way. Why isn't my organization on top of this, why don’t I have the training and the tools, and more importantly, how can I be a part of this,’” she said last week in a keynote at Borrell Miami.
To build a strategy, companies need to assemble a small core AI team that is nimble and can move fast. That doesn’t mean handing the task over to the IT department, LI said. The CEO, COO or head of strategy – someone who understands the company and where it’s going – needs to lead the AI team, which should include reps from HR and business. With a core team that understands the company’s fundamental principles and mission statement, a companywide AI policy should be developed that is responsible and ethical. From there, Li said it’s time to get to work on a training program.
Instead of making a huge list of use cases for AI, think about how it can transform your business, reach your customers in a differentiated way, increase productivity and improve upon your company’s strengths, she suggests. “The limits right now are not bounded by technology, the tools or even by our skills and capabilities. It is only bounded by our imagination. Think big, start small, and move as fast as you can. You have to be prepared to leave your comfort zone.”
AI-Infused Software
Author, keynote speaker, and AI guru Paul Roetzer built a business around teaching local marketers how to embrace AI. The way he sees it, people in the media and advertising fields have been living AI-assisted lives for the last decade or so. Thanks to machine learning, Amazon predicts your purchases, Netflix recommends shows and movies and Spotify cues up podcasts and songs. Now your business, your career, your day-to-day work will be enhanced by artificial intelligence.
One way that will happen is through software with AI baked in. “We are entering an exponential growth curve in the capability that these technologies enable,” Roetzer said in a Borrell Miami keynote last week. “We are under the working assumption that at least 80% of what all knowledge workers do will be AI-assisted to some degree in the next one to two years,” he said. That will impact roughly 100 million full-time employees who think and create for a living: doctors, lawyers, accountants, HR professionals, consultants, advertisers, marketers, and yes, people who work in media. “Every piece of software you use to do your job has to infuse AI into it, or they're not getting another round of funding, or they're just not going to survive the next few years,” Roetzer predicted. “The AI is just going to find its way into what you do, and you won't even think about it being there.”
Late for a Zoom meeting? You’ll be able to chat with the transcript and find out what you missed and what the action items are. Generative AI will enable CRM platforms like HubSpot to build web pages with text prompts. Copilot for Microsoft 360 promises to prepare you for your next meeting, create a slide presentation from a press release, list your fastest growing products and top billing salespeople, among other AI-enabled tasks.
“Every piece of software you use is going to try to seamlessly fuse generative AI right into the platforms,” Roetzer said.
And given the velocity at which technology is advancing, Roetzer said what’s available today “is the dumbest form of AI you will ever have. You are working with the least capable form of AI. Software is now able to learn, it's able to adapt, it's able to make predictions about outcomes, make recommendations, that is the future we're heading into,” he said. “It's really hard to think about what becomes possible when these tools enable things that we can't quite comprehend.”
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