AI and automation are shaping everything else; it stands to reason that they’re also impacting B2G marketing. This is a good thing because they can decrease response times, providing real-time information in some cases. They also make certain processes more efficient, for example, answering simple queries and only sending more complex challenges to human customer service staff.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Organisations can leverage AI to strengthen their overall marketing strategy by using advanced AI capabilities such as data analysis and automation, leading to more effective and efficient marketing outcomes.
This post looks at AI’s current role in government marketing, its benefits, challenges, and how you can optimise AI and automation tech to enhance more traditional, digital marketing campaigns.
Introduction to AI Marketing
AI marketing uses advanced AI tools to enhance and automate various aspects of marketing, from analysing consumer data to predicting customer behaviour. By incorporating AI into their marketing strategies, marketing professionals can gain a significant competitive advantage, making their campaigns more targeted, efficient, and effective.
AI marketing tools can automate routine tasks such as data entry, social media posting, and even the analysis of large volumes of consumer data. This enables marketing teams to focus on higher-level creative and strategic work. As AI integration becomes more widespread, marketing departments can leverage actionable insights from customer data, allowing them to understand and anticipate customer needs.
For B2G marketers, AI tech helps deliver more personalised and impactful marketing campaigns while improving operational efficiency. As AI in marketing continues to evolve, marketing leaders must stay informed about the latest tools and best practices to maximise the benefits of AI adoption.
Artificial Intelligence in Action Today
AI-powered chatbots are those handy pop-ups on the right side of web pages that politely ask if they can help with any queries. By answering routine questions, they enable government employees to focus more on citizens with more complex needs. They also free up time for government employees to focus on their core responsibilities, which improves productivity and ultimately improves public sector services.
Predictive analytics is another area where AI proves its worth. Analytics can include forward-looking features that enable you to mitigate supply chain risk, compare your business against competitors to identify areas for improvement, and optimise the next steps in your campaign strategy. Customisable dashboards manage data and provide instant access to information that enables you to make informed decisions on the fly.
Automated content creation used to be very controversial, with purists arguing for the creativity and personality of “real” writing, and realists arguing for the convenience and time saved. However, AI, machine learning, and natural language processing (NLP) are learning how to mimic human writing styles, including greater creativity, and even injecting some personality into the content they create. This is perfect for email marketing messages and even blogs and articles, although humans often tweak content to be more relevant for their specific needs.
Navigating AI Adoption Roadblocks
For all its evolution, there are still obstacles to overcome before AI can be completely embraced by the public sector.
A big challenge is data privacy and security. According to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), if you want to use AI, you must first assess the risks and implement risk mitigation measures to protect against them. This step isn’t a recommendation. You must conduct a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) to avoid falling foul of the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).
Note: Legislation specifies that you must consult with the ICO if you identify a risk that is too challenging to mitigate.
Another primary challenge is integrating AI into legacy systems. Legacy systems simply don’t have the capacity or capability to support AI. Fortunately, the government is on a digitalisation mission and aims to remove all legacy systems and replace them with advanced digital tech. It will need a lot of staff training, but that’s a small price to pay for access to modern software and hardware solutions.
Two additional challenges are maintaining transparency and mitigating algorithmic bias. Transparency, fairness, and accountability are three of the GDPR’s core principles, and they apply to AI if it uses personal data in its activities. As far as transparency is concerned, it’s essential to be open and clear about how and why you use personal data.
Algorithmic bias is when systematic and repeatable errors in machine learning produce unfair or discriminatory outcomes that uphold societal biases, like racism. This is particularly harmful in the public sector, where fairness and equality are major priorities.
AI Types and Their Roles
Different types of AI play different roles in B2G marketing. For example, NLP, with its ability to pick up speech patterns and create content with a “humanised” spin, can be great for drafting press releases and policy briefs.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) or software robotics is perhaps the most widespread form of AI, although people might not know it by its proper name. Mostly, we call it automation because it takes on many of the repetitive, time-consuming tasks, like data extraction, storage and organisation, auto-filling forms, and scheduling things like drip campaigns.
In procurement marketing, RPA is great for automated follow-ups, like reminders for events and following up on qualified leads, turning them into conversions.
Content Creation with AI
AI-powered solutions are transforming how marketing departments produce and optimise marketing content. AI tools can generate high-quality blog posts, social media posts, and product descriptions tailored to specific audiences. These AI-powered platforms analyse consumer data to understand what resonates with target demographics, ensuring that every piece of content is relevant and engaging.
AI-driven content creation tools not only accelerate the process but also enhance the precision and consistency of marketing content. By optimising content for search engines and social media platforms, these tools help boost visibility and drive more traffic to web pages.
Automating Tasks with AI Workflows
AI workflows are transforming the way marketing teams manage their daily operations by automating a wide range of routine marketing tasks. From scheduling and executing marketing campaigns to analysing customer behaviour and processing customer feedback, AI-powered automation streamlines processes and reduces the risk of human error.
AI workflows enable marketing professionals to focus on creative and strategic initiatives. Ultimately, automating tasks with AI workflows leads to greater efficiency, improved accuracy, and more effective marketing efforts.
AI Marketing Tools and Platforms
Popular AI marketing tools include chatbots for customer engagement, content generation platforms for creating personalised marketing content, and predictive analytics software for forecasting customer behaviour.
These AI-powered marketing tools can analyse vast amounts of consumer data, enabling marketers to create highly targeted campaigns and deliver personalised experiences.
Strategic Roadmap for AI Integration
Public sector marketing has just scratched the surface of AI and its components. Before it goes any further, however, it’s a good idea to be specific about its use. For example, establishing ethical guidelines for its collection, storage, and purpose.
Policies and regulations should include risk assessment and mitigation strategies, and continuous monitoring for things like algorithmic bias.
To really optimise AI’s potential, marketers must do two things.
- Embrace a pioneering spirit and go boldly with new tools and techniques, setting up metrics to measure success and learning as you go.
- Build cross-functional teams to get input from different perspectives and ensure that compliance is consistent across departments.
The Future of Government Marketing with AI
B2G marketing is challenging enough, with all the current rules and regulations. Add AI to the mix and … well, it should become easier. But there’s still a quagmire to be traversed, and until marketers come out the other side, the challenges will increase.
The future of B2G marketing is being shaped by the rapid advancement of AI tech. Marketing professionals can expect to see even more sophisticated applications, from personalised content creation to advanced predictive analytics that drive smarter marketing campaigns.
To stay ahead in this dynamic landscape, marketing professionals must develop strong AI skills and remain adaptable to new technologies.
Cadence Marketing, with its parent company, BiP Solutions, has decades of experience operating in the public sector and is better positioned than most other marketing companies to wrangle Artificial Intelligence and put it to productive work.
Contact us and book a free consultation to discuss how AI and automation can boost your bottom line.