The use of artificial intelligence in advertising is fast becoming passe - Unilever, L'Oréal, H&M and Lego, among others, have already officially abandoned such a tool.
Companies will not give up on artificial intelligence because they would simply lose their edge. But in many areas, customers do not want to hear about it
There is increasing talk of the 'only human' phenomenon to counter the current boom in artificial intelligence. Analysing and processing data, positioning products and services, generating posts and photos, finally acting as an assistant, tracking competitors and even shooting music videos and commercials - the number of AI applications is growing at a rapid pace. And this is unlikely to change. But some companies don't want to boast and flaunt this at all. This has already been experienced by the advertising market, where there is a backlash against artificial intelligence.
In some market segments, product prices may increase by 10-20 per cent Even so, consumers and companies will still increase purchases. The driving force will be digitalisation, the shift towards ESG and funds from KPO.
Experts say that the perception of generative AI among some marketing teams is starting to change. E.g. cosmetics brands do not want to generate idealised human characters in order not to put pressure on female customers. This was recently announced by the Unilever-owned brand Dove. It has indicated that there will be no models created by the technology in the brand's adverts and promotional material. In its latest campaign, 'The Code', Dove shows that artificial intelligence asked to create images of 'gorgeous women' presented people with flawless skin, without wrinkles, and with almost unrealistic body proportions. The racial theme was controversial - blondes, with European features and fair skin, dominated among the 'most beautiful', and their eyes were almost always blue. Firdaous El Honsali, vice-president of Dove, announced in an interview with The Drum magazine that the company's message is to show beauty that is real and free from digital distortion. - 'We will stay away from unrealistic appearance templates because we know the impact it has on women,' he pointed out.
As part of the campaign, the brand conducted a survey showing that one in three participants felt pressured to change their appearance by the content they encountered online, including content that was merely 'generated'.
A similar ban on AI has been implemented by L'Oréal - the company prohibits the use of artificial intelligence to represent human hair and skin tones. The company's CEO Daryl Lee has repeatedly pointed out that the brand, which is one of the extremely innovative brands, does not, however, shy away from the use of AI as such, because advanced tools of this type - for example, through the personalisation of purchases - facilitate the selection of cosmetics. Lego is also actively experimenting with artificial intelligence - the Danish tycoon uses algorithms in product design or sales processes, among other things. But when it comes to creating content around the brand, the company is already very basic and relies exclusively on 'human artists'.
Low-tech companies are on the rise in the European Union, according to the latest startling figures from Eurostat.
Experts see this new phenomenon, but argue that there is no question of a retreat from genSI in business. Błażej Chyła, CEO of Quantum Neuron, explains to us that such distancing from this technology, mainly in the beauty industry, is understandable. - Global concerns are constantly accompanied by the phenomenon of so-called cognitive empathisation - we empathise with those we feel similar to. A much safer narrative for such brands is to communicate clearly about minimising the use of AI. Let's face it, this is also a rather convenient pro-client narrative. By communicating in this way, corporations win a few PR points, comments Chyla.
According to him, however, the trend is not broad. - We are still before the dawn of the true adoption of this technology in business. Companies are examining resources, studying customer perception and looking at where and how to introduce AI to simplify certain processes, and where artificial intelligence, at this point, will be more of a ballast, our interviewee continues.
Artificial intelligence will not disappear from advertising either. Grzegorz Liputa, co-founder of FindReklamę.pl, argues that digital advertising will even faster than before be driven by AI. - Also traditional media, such as billboards, which increasingly come in the form of LED screens, are able to adapt the content of the ad to the prevailing conditions. This happens in real time, almost without human intervention, and fulfils a fundamental need of consumers today, namely personalisation," he explains.
In his view, human creativity will remain important, but AI will facilitate the creative process. - Artificial intelligence has been with us for some time and we will not get away from it. Besides, I don't see why we should, when in many aspects it definitely makes the work of advertisers as well as marketing specialists easier, adds Bartosz Ferenc, CEO of Sembot.com.
Companies will not abandon this technology because they would simply lose their edge. Aleksandra Potrykus, country manager at Mood Media, notes that customers expect personalised recommendations and experiences that match their individual needs and preferences. - Personalisation is becoming a key success factor in today's modern retail, so investing in AI-based technologies is essential for brands that not only want to stay in the market, but be leaders in their industry, she emphasises.
Hence, it is no surprise that - as Microsoft's Work Trend Index 2024 report indicates - more than half of business leaders and decision-makers on the Vistula no longer want to hire employees without the ability to co-operate with artificial intelligence. What's more, as many as 55 per cent of those surveyed would prefer to offer jobs to people who are less experienced, but with AI skills, rather than more experienced but without such qualifications.
However, it should not be forgotten that this technology, in addition to optimising business, also raises many challenges and risks. Hallucinations of bots, data security issues that companies feed such generative systems or the aforementioned racial biases are just some of the problems. With as many as 66 per cent of companies moving towards more AI in their decision-making processes, as Progress data shows, great caution is required. Analysts warn: the effectiveness of algorithms reflects the quality of the resources with which it has been trained - if care has not been taken, the results provided may be incomplete, incorrect or even discriminatory. - Data bias can manifest itself in different areas of the business. It is not uncommon, for example, in the human resources and payroll department,' claims Jakub Andrzejewski, business development manager for Poland at Progress. And he cites the story of one well-known retailer, which recently discovered a flaw in its automated recruitment system.
- It turned out that the algorithm was ultimately filling vacant technology positions with men, ignoring qualified female candidates, Andrzejewski points out.
Source: parquet.com
