Episode 9
Enhancing Customer Engagement with AI
In this episode of Better Marketing, Marketing Magic in Minutes, I dive into how AI can seriously enhance customer engagement, making interactions smarter, faster, and more meaningful. Whether you're entirely new to AI or just looking to sprinkle in some tech magic, we have the lowdown on practical tips to kickstart your journey. Think personalised content that feels like a warm hug for your customers, and insights that help you anticipate their needs before they even realise what they want. Plus, we’ll discuss the importance of maintaining authenticity and ethics in this AI-driven world—because trust is the name of the game! So, buckle up and let’s explore how to make your customer relationships shine brighter than ever!
Remember to download my FREE GUIDE to get started.
Visit www.tracyheatley.com and use the code POD2025 to win a power-hour session with me!
Transcript
Foreign hi, I'm Tracy Heatley and welcome to the Better Marketing Podcast, bringing you marketing magic in minutes.
Speaker A:In this episode, we're going to explore how AI can help you to enhance customer engagement by connecting with your customers in smarter, faster and more meaningful ways.
Speaker A:Whether you're just starting out with AI or you're looking to take your marketing to the next level, this episode will give you simple, practical ways to start using AI to boost engagement and build better relationships.
Speaker A:So let's get stuck in what is AI Driven Customer Engagement?
Speaker A:When I say AI Driven customer engagement, I'm talking about using artificial intelligence to better understand, support and connect with your customers.
Speaker A:This doesn't mean replacing people.
Speaker A:Absolutely not.
Speaker A:It means using tools that help you respond faster, personalize your content, and predict what your customers might want, and often before they even ask for it.
Speaker A:So it's really using the tools to learn and predict about your customer behavior so that you can fill any gaps that might be missing or just improve the whole customer experience for them.
Speaker A:You've probably come across AI in action without even realizing it.
Speaker A:From helpful chatbots on websites to those personalized recommendations that you get when you're shopping online.
Speaker A:You know the things where it might say people that have bought this might be interested in that.
Speaker A:For example, for small businesses, this kind of smart technology used to be way out of reach.
Speaker A:It was something that only the larger corporates and the bigger businesses could use, but now is more accessible than ever before, even for smaller businesses.
Speaker A:So let's talk about personalization at scale.
Speaker A:One of the best ways that AI can improve engagement is through personalization.
Speaker A:You can now tailor emails, messages and even website content based on someone's preference, behavior or where they're at in their buying journey.
Speaker A:For example, someone who's just joined your mailing list might get a different message than a long standing customer.
Speaker A:And it can all happen automatically.
Speaker A:AI helps you scale the kind of personal attention that makes your customers feel like they've got that one to one communication, even if you've got hundreds or thousands of customers.
Speaker A:So here's a quick tip.
Speaker A:The more relevant your messages feel to your customer, the more likely people are to open it, click it, and respond to it.
Speaker A:It's not about being clever, it's about being helpful.
Speaker A:It's about understanding your customer and giving them what they need.
Speaker A:Conversational AI is about keeping that connection going.
Speaker A:So let's talk about chatbots and AI powered messaging.
Speaker A:Now.
Speaker A:Some people cringe at the thought of an AI chatbot.
Speaker A:It could make them feel a little bit aggravated Perhaps if they think, I know that that's AI, or I think that might be AI.
Speaker A:So if you're thinking it's robotic, it's impersonal, the responses are impersonal.
Speaker A:I get where you're coming from, and sometimes it can seem like that.
Speaker A:But when it's set up correctly, you can have a brilliant way to support your customers in real time.
Speaker A:And often at a time of day when perhaps there isn't anybody there.
Speaker A:A human being to deal with that customer.
Speaker A:Imagine someone visiting your website late at night, looking for answers.
Speaker A:A chatbot can help them instantly.
Speaker A:It can guide them where they need to be.
Speaker A:It can answer the common questions or even book a call in for them for the next day.
Speaker A:This isn't about replacing human conversation.
Speaker A:It isn't about avoiding real conversation.
Speaker A:It's about keeping the connection going, even when you're not available.
Speaker A:In fact, it can sometimes be a smart move to let people know you're using AI.
Speaker A:I'm all for this, to be honest.
Speaker A:I think.
Speaker A:I don't think there's any harm in being transparent and letting people know you're using AI, even if it's for the initial conversation.
Speaker A:Especially if you give them the option to transfer to a real person at any time.
Speaker A:Or if your office, for example, is closed and you haven't got anybody available for them to talk to.
Speaker A:At the very least the AI can say that you can get a human to ring them back in the morning.
Speaker A:I'm not suggesting that you word it like that, but you get my point.
Speaker A:I don't think there's any harm in being transparent.
Speaker A:Obviously that depends on your business and it depends on what you're doing.
Speaker A:But my general rule of thumb with everything is to try and be as authentic as you can.
Speaker A:So it's worth considering.
Speaker A:Just make sure that the chatbot feels like your brand.
Speaker A:Make sure it's been trained, make sure it's friendly, it's helpful, and it's as humanized as it can be.
Speaker A:AI is not emotional, but it can recognize emotional trends in humor, maybe with the voice patterns and things like that.
Speaker A:So whilst it's not going to give an emotional response, it can give a response that suits your brand voice and it suits your business values.
Speaker A:And then there's predictive insights and smarter timing.
Speaker A:AI doesn't just react, it predicts.
Speaker A:It can learn patterns and it can predict what the customer requires.
Speaker A:So if it can help you to understand things like when your audience is most likely to open an email, what content they're most likely to click on and also when they're ready to buy.
Speaker A:All these insights mean that you can fine tune your timing and content for better results.
Speaker A:You're not guessing anymore.
Speaker A:You're acting on smart data.
Speaker A:So if you're using email marketing software or social media schedulers, there may already be built in AI features to help with this.
Speaker A:So it's worth exploring even things when you're looking at schedulers within social media platforms and it might tell you when your followers or your target audience has been most active, that gives you a good indication of when to post all that is part of the AI features of that particular platform.
Speaker A:So where to start with AI for customer engagement?
Speaker A:If it all feels a bit overwhelming, don't worry, you don't have to do all of this at once.
Speaker A:So I'm just going to give you a few simple ways to get started.
Speaker A:Number one, Use AI for email personalization.
Speaker A:Even just adding someone's name and sending emails at the best times can make a big difference, but you can use it to really hone in and personalize your emails.
Speaker A:Number two, Try a chatbot.
Speaker A:If you get regular inquiries, look at a free or low cost chatbot tool or solution to help answer some of the common questions.
Speaker A:Even some of the paid for CRMs and things like that are now got that built in.
Speaker A:You know your trial and find the ones that are right for you.
Speaker A:But just see what's available and what's out there and try it.
Speaker A:Number three, Explore analytics tools.
Speaker A:See what AI driven insights your email or your website platform already gives you.
Speaker A:Start small, test things out and you'll be amazed at the difference it makes over time.
Speaker A:I think if you start and you build it slowly, you're building on your existing knowledge, you're using it for time, you're experimenting and then move on and try the next thing.
Speaker A:A quick note on ethics and trust just before we wrap up because this is a really important note and if you ever hear me talking at an event or on this podcast or if you're a client, you'll know I'm passionate about the ethics around AI.
Speaker A:Always use AI to personalise and engage.
Speaker A:Always keep customer privacy in mind.
Speaker A:Make sure that you're only using data that's been given to you legitimately and always be transparent.
Speaker A:Always make sure you're sticking within the realms of data privacy laws that are relevant to you in your country and your business sector, things like GDPR here in the UK and other relevant data protection laws.
Speaker A:If you marketing internationally or you're based internationally, make sure that you're aware of those and what the legislation is for you and your business.
Speaker A:So make sure you're aware of that and always use it ethically.
Speaker A:When customers trust you, they'll engage more.
Speaker A:It's as simple as that.
Speaker A:And you can use AI to help build that trust by bridging that gap between what you think your customer might want and what they actually want.
Speaker A:You can learn all that by implementing AI into your marketing.
Speaker A:It's as simple as that.
Speaker A:Let's wrap up.
Speaker A:To sum up in a nutshell, AI can help you enhance customer engagement by making your communication more personal, helping you respond quicker, and giving you insights to improve your results.
Speaker A:Results if you'd like help building your AI strategy or you need some training on AI marketing, look no further.
Speaker A:You can get in touch with me.
Speaker A:You can book sessions online or book a free discovery call and we can have a chat about it.
Speaker A: my website using the code POD: Speaker A:Not only will that help you get your marketing strategy in shipshape, it will also make sure that you're entered into my monthly competition to win a free Power Hour with me worth 275 pound.
Speaker A:Go to the website.
Speaker A:It's TracyHeatley.com that's T R A C Y H E a T l e y.com and I'm Tracey Heatley.
Speaker A:I'm a chartered marketer.
Speaker A:I'm also an AI Marketing Specialist certified by the cim.
Speaker A:I'm your guide to making marketing better for you and your business.
Speaker A:Thanks so much for listening to Better Marketing Marketing Magic in minutes.
Speaker A:On the next episode, we'll be talking about AI and content creation, how to use it, how to save time, and how to boost results without losing.
Speaker A:Sing your voice.
Speaker A:Until then, remember, better marketing, better business.
