Category: Martech

Martech

The Future of Marketing: Machine Learning & Ultra-Personalization

on January 8, 2018

A few years ago, everyone was raving about robots and their ability to perform extraordinary tasks with ease; back then, it did seem very futuristic.

Artificial intelligence, nowadays, however, is no longer a novelty. In fact, the use of AI — a system that allows machines to perform the same tasks a human would — is now very common.

How is Machine Learning the Future of Marketing?

One aspect of AI, machine learning, has the capacity to learn and adapt to enhance its performance. A number of companies have already adopted machine learning in their processes to improve their profits and increase customer interaction. Some companies use it to drive sales, others use it for customer support, while still others use it in their marketing campaigns.

Machine learning can also help you analyze brands and get a deeper understanding of what your customers need.

Demandbase, for example, conducted a study recently that saw 80% of all marketing executives believe that AI will revolutionize the way we approach marketing by 2020. Seems a bit soonish, given that only 10% of marketers are using AI today.

If majority of the companies surveyed agree that artificial intelligence will only continue to advance in the coming years, why aren’t more of them investing in it now? Indeed, why wait until everybody is doing it when you can take advantage of the value AI provides to companies?

The integration of artificial intelligence in the marketing industry will provide marketers with a wide range of benefits from improved decision-making to seamless campaign optimization.

AI will also help marketers run more efficient campaigns using machine learning tools. The most exciting feature regarding machine learning, however, is how it allows for personalization in marketing.

Why Do We Care about Personalization?

Conversion is crucial for any online business. The more visitors are turned into buyers, the more your profits will increase. The Content Marketing Institute reports that highly personalized website experiences deliver better conversion rate optimization.

Machine learning is indeed reinventing all existing products ranging from YouTube to Google Maps and providing users with new experiences. Google Assistant is the best example of personalization regarding machine learning. This innovation not only suggests websites that are similar to your preferences but also uses speech recognition to help you get a better handle on the real world.

Personalization is key to standing out in an industry that keeps getting more and more competitive by the day. With it, companies can keep up with the billions of platforms and search engines that are used by millions of users on a daily basis.  

The Benefits of Ultra-Personalization with Machine Learning

AirBnB provides a great example of how you can ultra-personalize with machine learning to not only better your service but also increase your profits. It has grown exponentially over the past few years thanks to its ability to personalize booking services using machine learning.

Machine learning helps AirBnB manage over 3 million listings and more than 200 million guests by processing data at a faster rate. It also aids company directors in making better decisions for their guests.

For example, AirBnB notes guest preferences regarding price, location, and amenities, among others, to aid in providing the company with an idea of what a particular guest wants. As such, guests get the best packages, and the company saves time while gaining a deeper insight of the locations they should include in their App.

Embracing this innovation in its early stages allowed AirBnB to branch out to ventures such as concierge services, tours, and restaurant bookings, just to mention a few.

Eliminate Marketing’s Imprecise Nature

With machine learning, marketers no longer have to throw campaign seeds on vast acres of fertile soil and wait for them to take root. Machine learning has enabled them to analyze customer behaviors and suggest the products that will most likely capture their attention. The trial and error methods of the past are not only time consuming but also bear less fruit when it comes to conversion rates compared to machine learning.

An owner of a boutique yoga studio, for example, can now view ads speaking directly to and about their business as opposed to general announcements regarding fitness website builders.  AI empowers companies to precisely target the right customers with the right products with unsurmounted efficiency.   

Say the Right Thing to the Right Audience

Just as explained above with personalized campaigns, machine learning also enables marketers to craft taglines, slogans, and marketing messages precisely as opposed to using feelings or hunches. It not only helps marketers craft what to say to the audience but also shows the expected reaction. Platforms such as Twitter have been used by marketers to monitor chatter and gather responses regarding a particular service or product.

As such, copywriters and brand specialists can tweak ads in real time to respond to trending replies or comments, enabling them to surface the right message.

Give Customers What They Want Before They Need It

Trends and consistent purchase patterns have helped thousands of companies forecast demand for a long time. However, machine learning does one better by giving customers what they want before they even know they want the product or service.

While they will still be suggestions, the information presented will be concrete. Take for example the Family Hub™ Refrigerator by Samsung. It not only keeps track of your food levels using three cameras and AI, but it also recommends recipes based on the ingredients on-hand.

This refrigerator can even organize your family eating schedule and notify you when you need to visit the grocery store. Amazon and Alibaba, as well as thousands of other industry leaders, are employing the same technique with wonderful results.

Conclusion

Machine learning tools will not only add ultra-personalization to your marketing experience but will also better your interaction with your clientele. A general message for everyone is no longer an option for marketers; in this age of artificial intelligence, an ultra-personalized experience is vital in making your customers feel valued and understood.

Guest Author: David Kosmayer is CEO and Founder of Bookmark, an AI-powered website builder disrupting the web design industry. David created his first company at 22 just coming out of college. Marketing Extensions Inc., an online affiliate and marketing agency, was born from the basement of his parent’s home. This company grew under his leadership into a 55-person team, topping $60M in revenue in less than a decade. David is highly focused, dedicated and passionate about building successful companies.

Martech

Ways Of Identifying And Preventing Bad SEO

on October 1, 2017

In today’s world of online marketing and the outlandish amount of visibility it provides, it can be easy to fall into the trap of just dabbling in SEO and thinking it will pay for itself in a matter of days. The truth of the matter is that all and any work that gets put into SEO can end up becoming a problem in three seconds flat. Without constant monitoring, all the work we put into optimizing our site can go down the proverbial drain and actually do more harm than good. This is why it is imperative to familiarize ourselves with common problems and learn how to deal with them.

Spotting The Problem

Before jumping the gun, it’s important that we’re aware of the areas that tend to be problematic and are able to spot them. The first and obvious way to notice bad SEO is the sudden drop in traffic, the other would be a warning from Google themselves. If your site has grown an abundance of broken links, spamming or content milling, rest assured that you will be warned. The same goes for keywords they tend to fluctuate and should be monitored at all times to adjust to the market. And, the most malicious of all – fake link removal requests. Simply put, someone is trying to trick you into removing quality links from your site, tanking it in the process.

Perform Regular Link Audits

This will be your first line of defense, checking your links on a regular basis will help prevent future headaches. It can get tedious, but safety should always be our primary concern. By performing regular audits, your business will have enough time to adjust to any problems that might occur and to deal with them effectively without impacting your SEO ranking. Otherwise, we expose ourselves to that awkward “boss conversation” when Google decides to give as a little one-on-one. Link audits only work if they’re carried out constantly, if you get an unnatural link warning – it’s already too late.

Monitor Site Speed

As one might be aware, a site’s speed directly influences its SEO ranking. Keeping an eye on said speed should be on top of the priority list to ensure smooth sailing. Any changes in site speed should be looked into thoroughly to determine the culprit. If lucky, it will be a fluke or something you can mend. If not, if nothing can be found, then the site might have fallen victim to a practice called forceful crawling. This malicious tactic essentially overloads your server which can even lead to crashes. This is a giant red flag and contact your webmaster right away to figure out what’s going on and find the culprits.

Look Into Webmaster Email Alerts

When setting up everything with our Google overlords, there is a nifty little option called Email Alerts. This little option is easy to set up and gives site owners a real-time notification every time something out of the ordinary happens. These include malware and spyware attacks, any kind of server side problem or any penalty from Google themselves. Aside from the last one, all the others provide owners with enough time to act on these threats accordingly instead of finding out about them two months later when they already see a drop in their rating.

Root Out Content Scraping

One of the biggest no-nos of Google’s ranking policy is the spreading of duplicate content. With this being such a glaring issue, it is extremely important to hunt down duplicate content and have it taken down right away. There are a number of tools like Copyscape or businesses like Websitesthatsell SEO Company that specialize in these kinds of cases. Another option is to file DMCA and be extremely thorough with the details. After all, this site is a business, there is no reason to pull any punches when faced with attacks like these that could literally capsize everything – hit them where it hurts.

Rinse and repeat

Now that these are out of the way, remember to do this often. Everything online is in a state of perpetual fluctuation, there is no telling what tomorrow might bring. This is why constant overwatch is mandatory to keep a business afloat, both for good and bad SEO. It’s a never-ending fight, or if you’re more of a Greek mythology person, it’s the equivalent of Sisyphus pushing his boulder up the hill. However high we may rise, the world will always try to pull us down, and it’s up to us to see whether we’ll buckle under the pressure or soldier through it like our main man Sisyphus.

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