Artificial Intelligence in Advertising: Smart or Scary?
Ever since the Terminator movies of the 80’s, people have been pretty cautious of technology, to say the least.
Technology can be both exciting and terrifying, depending on your perspective. The impressive leaps and bounds that modern technology is able to make today has paved the way for advancements in nearly every facet of the business world, and the field of advertising is no exception.
AI and automation have allowed professionals in advertising to reach their target audiences much more quickly and accurately through advanced algorithms that can memorize and predict what exactly a certain customer has searched for and is looking for. This makes an advertiser’s job much easier, as well as much more effective.
Technology has reached a point where it knows us better than we know ourselves. It’s something that sounds more like a sci-fi plot than reality, but it’s true. Because of AI’s ability to take note of the things we search for and the pages we spend the most time on, many platforms are able to predict what we intend to purchase or search for next. Strategically placed ads can then be seen throughout the internet, most prominently on social media. Think of how many times you’ve looked up product on Amazon only to find an advertisement for something similar on Facebook.
A good way to look at this (no pun intended) is to consider the way the human eye operates. We are only able to clearly see what our pupils are looking at while the rest of our field of vision is blurred. We also have trouble deciphering complex visual stimulants. In other words, an ad that is too “busy” with too much text, too many images, or varying colors. Intelligent advertisements take this into consideration when placing their ads.
When applied to advertising, artificial intelligence aims to mimic the human eye. Many forms of technology today have allowed advertisers to study where exactly a person’s eyes are drawn on a certain website or landing page through heat maps. These give professionals an idea of what attracts readers or buyers, which they can then use to adjust their advertising efforts accordingly. The goal is to increase interaction between the ad and the customer. A more engaging experience is one that is more likely to end in a sale.
Artificial intelligence is powerful, and it’s important we consider how we can use it for a greater cause. It allows people to connect with others on a much more human level, as ironic as that is. Advertising has benefitted greatly from these technological breakthroughs. With more precision in their strategies implemented, advertisers can harness the power of AI to reach further and wider than they may have ever thought imaginable.
And hopefully, it never turns around on us like it always inevitably does in the movies.
