Oodle Answers: Is AI software worth the hype (and the money)?

This is a regular series where Oodle experts answer your marketing questions. To submit your own question, email questions@oodle.io.

Oodle Partner Ryan Hughes: There’s an overused pattern of just slapping AI on everything. Any time some form of MarTech (Marketing Technology) says “AI-something,” I have them give me a demo. And probably 90% of the time it just falls on its face. 

The idea of using AI is sound. The idea makes sense. But if you understand anything about AI and how it works, it’s incredibly complicated. Tesla has invested billions of dollars in trying to figure out AI, and they’re still working on it. It’s very difficult to get AI to answer even simple questions. 

Oodle Partner Mark Hughes: Yeah, there’s no question about that. We advise clients often, your tech stack should be limited, especially to start. It should be limited, it should be finite, and you should be in a place where you can really understand how things are working. 

As we get more sophisticated and as we grow and really understand how your dollars are working for you, that’s when we can start layering on some of the interesting MarTech and automation pieces that can really amplify your overall efforts. 

Ryan: Don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely a place for it. The reality is we all interact with AI every day. I think a lot of platforms just very much overpromise and under deliver. And ultimately, you have a marketing person who has to take the beating for that, so to speak. It’s never fun to be the bearer of bad news, to say, “Well, we signed up for this annual contract for this tool that’s actually not going to give you anything they promised you.” 

Mark: Often, that’s because the organization isn’t ready for implementation. While some of these software programs make promises that are great on the surface, you still need the technical capability to implement them, maintain them and get the most out of them in the form of analytics and optimization. I don’t think there’s ever a place where the human capital involved in that is going to go away. 

‘Oodle Answers’ is a regular series where Oodle experts answer your marketing questions. To submit your own question, email questions@oodle.io.

Learn more by listening to Oodles of Marketing; Ep. 1 – Proving Marketing Value; Every Stage of the Funnel Matters