Ad Tech and the Future Don Draper

Well yes, this article is about Ad Tech, Mad Men we could say the Mad Tech but clearly it is to try to make the point on the state of AI and if yes or no is it coming after human creativity and if it might become as much creative as Don Draper himself.

We all know how Artificial Intelligence (AI )and Machine Learning (ML) are slowly taking over many technological fields. They are in digital marketing, healthcare, recruiting, insurance, and manufacturing. Over the years, AI and ML have become advanced enough to enter all these areas and perform even better than their human counterparts. 

For instance, tech giants Facebook and Google have employed programmatic ad platforms to reach more people around the world. Without the use of programmed ads, this goal of reaching millions may not have come to a realization. 

Artificial intelligence in business

As a result, it makes us wonder where else AI in the form of ad tech may come into use. It is widely being used now more than ever. We may start to witness the rise of AI in marketing, planning, producing, strategizing. It may even start thinking about the bigger picture. But, does it mean marketing and media professionals will lose their place in the system?

Then and Now of the Advertising World

We have seen this happening before in automation industries. The technological advancements for factories have led to machines working instead of humans. It helped raise new job profiles in other areas; however, some of the profiles are obsolete now. Now, you may not experience an encounter with the terminator, but there may be a decline in the number of marketing teams because of machine learning. 

Talking about the old golden times, we saw the graceful advertising giant Don Draper. The AMC’s classic Mad Men gave us this poster personality in the form of Don, which led to the initial advertising agency. 

The Draper and co. Agency at Sterling Cooper and then McCann Erickson came with schematic ads for whiskey, cigarettes, and office scenes. These ads made a huge place in viewer’s hearts as these were the introductory cinematic ads for them. This golden era of advertising and marketing is not the same anymore. 

As per Bedford Group, client tenure at agencies was over seven years on average. Meanwhile, today’s average client does not stick to one agency for more than three years. Worsening the situation an AdAge report reveals that the revenue of U.S. agencies experienced the weakest since the last recession with only 1.7% rise. 

The reason behind this may be cuts in the budget and the higher cost. According to Business Insider, about 50,000 will lose their jobs in the U.S. ad agency market by the end of 2021. The reason behind this may be the low budget of clients to maximize their profits. 

Is AI an Efficient Replacement to Humans?

The companies are trying to find cheaper alternatives and distributing solutions to save up on expenses. As they can no longer rely on the inflated agency systems, they are using their resources towards low costing solutions. Many are employing small agencies, freelancers, and in-house professionals to handle various projects. 

They see it as a great use of resources instead of paying high-profile agencies to work on the whole project. Moreover, the companies are ready to work a little extra in finding ways to cut costs wherever possible. Therefore, they are looking for ways to improve efficiency and maintain a competitive edge at the same time.

Artificial intelligence technology

We have come to a stage of digital transformation and automation with the integration of AI and machinery into these areas. What started as robots and automation in the factories to replace manual labor is now beginning to enter the marketing field. The efficiency of these factories in terms of time saved and boost in output increased; however, it no longer had a place for assembly line workers. 

Similarly, there is an integration of AI in the medical field. We see artificial intelligence working in diagnosis, radiology, operations, and monitoring to help physicians. However, they may not replace the physicians any time soon, but they are a massive part of contributing to an accurate diagnosis.

Benefits of artificial intelligence 

We can conclude that technological advancements have made these fields grow over the years. Therefore, we can expect the same trend in the marketing world. With the new transition in demands, prices, and technology, companies realize how they may need to change their ways. Besides, most of the new users are online, which changed the whole business arena.

As a result, the companies will flow in the direction of demands. Currently, we see companies allocate most of their budgets to digital marketing. Earlier, these operations were barely automated; however, they changed with the new tools from tech giants.
For instance, Facebook and Google garnered millions of users along with accessible data. This gold mine of data proved to be of immense value to the digital channels. Therefore, they spend billions of their resources in achieving similar numbers. 

Moreover, the tech giants put their platforms to use with new tools to provide detailed insights. This helped the marketing channels optimize better to reach more people. Besides, there is a rise in fully automated campaigns at the price of billions. These tools helped the marketers reach new goals with lesser efforts. Besides, it took less time in managing these campaigns on auto-pilot. 

Rise in Martech

Now we see Martech stepping it up to the next level. Marketers see a rise in affordable options with improvements in technologies. Therefore, they can get in-house automated campaigns eliminating the need for advertising agencies. 

Facebook and Google are now synonymous with advertising and replacing human labor, even in digital marketing campaigns. So, there is a significant change in the manual requirements with constant machines replacing them. Moreover, there is an increase in advanced Martech products and services for various needs. 

Today’s AI is equipped with programs to create ad copies, designs, and write articles with improved quality. This has made ad agencies obsolete that cost higher than AI solutions. AI is fully capable of tailoring data for digital channels without any manual help. Moreover, there is a lesser room for error with these automated solutions. 

The companies may choose to use fully AI integrated solutions or mix them up to get the best results. These companies may move to the Martech industry as an alternative to traditional human labor. Besides, it may be a cost-effective solution without compromising the quality of work or results.

According to Statistica, the value of the Martech industry increased by over 20 percent between 2018 and 2019. With the current COVID-19 situation, the numbers indicating growth are expected to rise due to the increase in digitization.
As per a Gartner survey, CMOs in Western Europe and the U.S. spent 80% of their marketing budget on digital platforms. Furthermore, they may spend even more on the Martech tools to cut costs and increase efficiency. 

We are still far away from the synthetic humanoids sitting with us in various situations; however, there is a massive shift in marketing industries using AI and ML for automation and efficient tech solutions. In the coming time, we may witness Martech taking over all the marketing agencies and manual labor.