What AI is missing when it comes to branding
Forbes recently shared an article about the $65 million funding received by Typeface, a generative AI application for enterprise content creation. The startup lets companies upload their existing content such as web pages, blogs, Instagram posts, brand logos and other visual assets (a brand's personalized data set according to the company) and combines it with public data to train Typeface's AI model to generate future content.
On the surface, for people who don't have a deep understanding of brand, this likely seems amazing.
But with the above brand inputs only, there are HUGE gaps in the creation of MEANINGFUL content. Let's explore some of the myths on which this and other similar types of AI are based that are sending us in the wrong direction.
MYTH: Your Brand is your written and visual content
Have you heard the phrase, "bad inputs = bad outputs"?
When the wrong inputs go into AI, the result is bad output. Or very minimally, irrelevant output.
A Brand is NOT the words that exist online. Nor it it the visual imagery associated with the Brand.
A Brand is a FEELING. The feeling that stays with a HUMAN after they are no longer in the presence of that Brand.
Sure, feelings CAN be generated by copy and visuals. But not without a HUMAN experience.
A lot of companies, especially small companies, are going to see these types of automation and assume it's going to build their brand, based on the inaccurate assumption that CONTENT builds a brand. But that's not true.
PEOPLE build a brand.
The more you remove people from the equation, the LESS of memorable you are. And the less influence your Brand has.
MYTH: MORE Content = Digital Influence
This leads me to the second myth we're busting today...that MORE content is what drives influence in the digital space.
Let's go back to the first myth and explore the inputs a little more.
Let's say, to date, the type of content your company has created is based "brochure-ware". You know, those things that, 10 years ago, we would print out and bring to a meeting or a tradeshow to physically HAND to people.
Most companies are STILL creating THAT kind of content.
So, if that is your input into the AI "solution", your output will be more of the same.
More of the same stuff...that doesn't work.
Let's make a safe assumption, and assume that most companies are targeting the creation of one piece of content a day. Times that by Google's current estimate that there are 334 million registered companies in the world, and that means there are 334 million pieces of content generated daily JUST from a corporate perspective. Add individual users into that and we've got to be getting close to 1 billion pieces of content generated daily. Let's just leave it at that, because honestly, my brain can't comprehend 2.5 quintillion data bytes (which is the current estimate of the amount of data generated daily).
How many pieces of content do you currently generate that give you the sales or other results that you're looking for?
How many engagements do you have from target clients on your content?
How many pieces of content start a sales conversation?
Straight up, how is your content directly feeding your funnel?
Most content ISN'T.
So, the answer isn't in generating MORE content that does more of the same.
It's to break the rules and do something different.
MYTH: Lack of Skilled Labor can be fixed by AI
In the Forbes article, one of the challenges outlined by Typeface CEO Abhay Parasnis is that, "the skills needed for marketing can take years to acquire, which can make finding the right people challenging".
Facts.
But I fail to see how we fix the problem but teaching AI to create images on Photoshop.
Now, I actually think, when it comes to tech tools created for design, that a computer can probably master that faster than a human. So sure, go ahead and let the AI create images.
Can they be as beautiful as something created from the human consciousness? That's a topic for another day. The thing is, they can get DONE.
But we're forgetting some very IMPORTANT things about Marketing Skills. That they're not all related to design and content.
We're also assuming then, in a world where Parasnis says this is a huge challenge, that most businesses HAVE knowledgeable strategic marketing resources available that have created the INPUTS that are going into the machine. And that's a bad assumption.
The solution doesn't actually FIX this problem. It actually AMPLIFIES the problem, because it's creating more and more content that ISN'T based in solid marketing strategy. It just contributes more and more to the content overload that DOESN'T build a brand.
Who has the expertise?
This leaves me wondering, are the "right" people doing the solution creation?
According to the article, "VC's were ready to invest before Typeface was looking to raise funds, largely due to the caliber of the talent on the startup's team that includes engineers who worked on the AI-powered coding assistant GitHub CoPilot, Microsoft Azure and Adobe."
Based on a simple LinkedIn search of the company, there is ONE person on the team that has any marketing background, and then only marketing for tech companies. It's possible they have an advisory board with more marketing experience, but that hasn't been disclosed.
I just wonder, what is the problem we're actually solving here?
You might think that the "problem" is creating content. That if we could just create more content, companies are going to be in good shape.
But just look at the myths above. The problem isn't creating content.
If it's anything, it's creating content that CONNECTS with people.
And THAT is not something that can be fixed by inputting your old content that DIDN'T connect with people.
It's not that I'm against AI. It's just that I think the world wants to promote tech instead of actually solving real problems. Typeface DOESN'T solve your marketing effectiveness problems...it just creates more content that doesn't contribute to where your brand is going (if you even know where that is).
If you are looking for AI solutions for your marketing, you need to ask yourself, "WHY do I need this?" "What is the problem I'm trying to solve?"
And don't just pick something because Microsoft and Google funded it.
Pick it because it actually HELPS you achieve your goals 💖
If you're looking for a discussion partner who has more than 8 years of experience in marketing in a single field, happy to chat it through 😊
