According to a study by Acquia, 82% of marketers in the UK say AI and machine learning will play a crucial role in their marketing strategy in the next 12 months as they look to improve the experiences they give customers.
This compares to 77% of marketers globally, suggesting that UK marketers are looking to adopt AI and machine learning more aggressively than their counterparts in other countries. Indeed, some 42% of UK marketers said AI and machine learning will form a "big" part of their 2019 strategies.
But while marketers are looking forward to AI and machine learning improving experiences, the same cannot be said of consumers - only 48% of whom are looking forward to AI making interaction with brands better.
While many have predicted that the new technologies will transform all aspects of business - especially marketing - the research highlights how consumers have been left underwhelmed with previous efforts of marketers integrating new tech to improve the customer experience.
Acquia vice-president of EMEA marketing Sylvia Jensen explains: "AI and machine learning will provide incredible opportunities for marketers as they continue to try to improve customer experiences with their brands. However, it is important that marketers understand the best use of these technologies.
"Consumers only become aware of technology and processes when they see it doesn't work and the brand they are interacting with fails to offer a personalised experience. Therefore it is vital that marketers get to grips with how their martech stack works together throughout the buyer's journey.
"Given the wide variety of techniques available, marketers should focus on how they can solve specific challenges within the customer journey and make the overall experience better — and only deploying them where it will actually help to deliver the seamless experiences customers want. Adding technology for the sake of it and not doing it well is only likely to increase the gap between marketers and consumers with regards to that experience."
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