Since AI hit the scene a few years ago, there’s been plenty of speculation about its impact on digital marketing. While it is true that AI has made an impact, now is the perfect time to compare which of those impacts are facts and which are fiction.
Forge Apollo is a digital marketing and AEO agency based in Philadelphia. Let’s break down common myths vs facts about AI in digital marketing.
Myth: SEO is Dead
Some say that search engine optimization (SEO) is dead in the age of AI, because AI’s impact on search traffic means we should abandon that channel and shift all focus to AEO and GEO instead.
Fact: SEO is Alive, But Evolved
SEO is very much still alive, but attitudes and larger strategies around it need to shift. Here are some reasons why you should still care about SEO:
- Traditional search still accounts for 40% of overall website traffic, while AI search is only 0.26%.
- Organic traffic is decreasing due to AI, but visibility in search engines still matters to stay top of mind when a prospect is ready to buy. Search visibility still depends on SEO.
- AI optimization techniques share fundamental techniques with SEO, such as schema markup and structured content. AEO and GEO simply layer on more techniques, such as “chunking” content and a greater focus on digital PR. Learn more in our guide to AEO vs SEO vs GEO.
Myth: AI Will Replace Marketers
Some marketers fear that AI in digital marketing will make humans obsolete by automating everything they do.
Fact: AI Replaces Tasks, Not Roles
AI excels at specific tasks that can free up marketers’ time, not replace them. By using AI to do “grunt work” or as a copilot through larger tasks, marketers can operate faster and have more time for creative and strategic thinking.
These ways to use AI in marketing examples can help your workflow be more efficient:
- Repurposing content for different platforms
- Creating first drafts or outlines of content for writers to work off of
- Spell & grammar checks
- Data entry
- Identifying trends in data
Myth: More Data Means Better AI Outputs
Most people recognize at this point that AI can hallucinate or give incorrect answers and needs fact-checking. However, some marketers believe that the more context and data they feed into an AI model, the better the outputs they will get.
Fact: AI Outputs Rely on Good Data, and Still Need Fact-Checking
AI outputs rely entirely on the quality of the training data, not the quantity. If you feed an AI “dirty data” that is outdated, biased, or unorganized, you’ll get bad insights. Even when feeding an AI clean data, outputs still require fact-checking.
For example, when providing ChatGPT with a podcast transcript and asking it to pull relevant quotes, I’ve seen it make up convincing quotes that were never said. To combat this, I request timestamps for each quote so I can reference the transcript to ensure they are real.
Myth: Creativity is Dead
With AI able to create written, visual, and audio content, some think that human creativity is dead. If you can get creative assets from AI in digital marketing, do you need people?
Fact: Human Perspectives & Experiences Are Still Key
While AI can mimic existing assets and styles, human creativity is still the driver. Genuine human perspectives and experiences are what ultimately drive connection and success in marketing campaigns. AI can’t replicate that human element on its own.
Myth: AI Means Instant ROI
Many marketers and high-level leaders think that using AI in digital marketing or elsewhere in the company is an instant way to unlock ROI.
Fact: Using AI Effectively Takes Time & Effort
ROI does not happen instantly upon activating an AI tool or forcing it into your process. Teams need time to experiment with where AI will most effectively help them and which prompts will best support them. Supporting your team with education and time to experiment is the best way to unlock ROI.
Myth: AI Runs Campaigns Autonomously
Some believe that AI in digital marketing can run campaigns autonomously with a “set it and forget it” setup.
Fact: Campaigns Still Require Human Oversight & Adjustment
While some AI tools can create campaign assets and run A/B tests, they still require human oversight. AI is not infallible, and AI content still requires human edits in many cases.
Meet AI With Facts, Not Fear
There’s no doubt that AI is changing the landscape of digital marketing. The best way to work through this change is to meet it with facts, not myths and fear. Forge Apollo is a digital marketing agency in Philadelphia that can help you both utilize AI and adapt your strategies to account for it. Reach out today to explore your options.
