As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes industries, marketing is no exception. Gary Veynerchuk, CEO of VaynerMedia, offered insights recently into how AI is transforming the marketing landscape and what it means for brands.
Veynerchuk stressed that AI’s impact on marketing is still in its early stages: “I think it’s early. Ready for this: I’m on the record that’s saying Dove, at some point in its consumer brand journey, will make generative people.” He predicts that even brands currently hesitant to use AI-generated content will eventually adopt it to remain competitive.
However, Veynerchuk cautions against rushing into AI adoption without careful consideration. “Our conversations with clients, my conversations with clients are very heavily predicated on the following which is you don’t need to make an official statement yet,” he explained. “Let’s take a beat.”
One area where AI is already making waves is in social media algorithms. Veynerchuk noted: “The biggest AI conversation currently in marketing is the algorithms of the four U pages of all these social networks.” These AI-driven feeds are dramatically changing how content reaches consumers.
Looking ahead, Veynerchuk sees potential for AI to revolutionize ad creation and targeting.
“We have begun thinking about using AI to create God knows how many versions of that ad to show each person,” he revealed. However, he added a caveat: “We do believe it is still a trademark and copyright issue and we will not go full generative AI over production until there’s more clarity.”
Despite the exciting possibilities, Veynerchuk acknowledged concerns about AI’s impact on human creativity and jobs. He draws parallels to past technological shifts: “Everybody told us electronic music wasn’t real music.” He believes both AI-generated and human-created content will coexist: “There will be incredible room for originally created Human Art, but there will be incredible room for generative art.”
As the marketing world grapples with AI’s potential, Veynerchuk advises a measured approach. While embracing innovation, marketers must also navigate legal and ethical considerations. The key will be finding the right balance between leveraging AI’s capabilities and maintaining authentic human connections with consumers.
Featured image: Credit: GaryVee
