Automation in the Field: Using AI Marketing Tools for Your Horticulture Business

Incorporating artificial intelligence into your marketing strategy can be daunting–especially if you’re new to the world of AI. You may feel like the AI field is perpetually evolving–you simply can’t keep up with these new technologies!

Don’t fret! AI can be your friend when you understand the basics. Being an innovator in the horticulture industry means filling many different roles. Give yourself a break and let your AI stand-in handle some of your business-boosting outreach.

What Is AI in Marketing?

You’re likely already familiar with the most popular AI tools like ChatGPT. You may have a rudimentary grasp of these technologies, or perhaps you’re already an expert. 

Either way, let’s briefly explore the role of AI in marketing.

In layman’s terms, AI for marketing is a suite of tools meant to streamline outreach to loyal or potential customers. Depending on the platform, AI tools can help analyze engagement on your website, locate prospective customers, or automatically create marketing campaigns based on provided prompts. 

Now, you may wonder how AI fits into your growing, manufacturing, or designing profession. Perhaps to your surprise, AI is not limited to traditional advertising or content creation. 

Imagine AI as another automation system in your greenhouse or factory. Just like humidity, temperature, or light management tools, AI can reduce the amount of work you must dedicate to a specific task–whether documenting customer responses or developing a completely new outreach approach!

Types of AI Marketing Tools

Choosing the right AI program takes time–you’ll likely have to experiment with different providers until you find what works.

You’re not bound to one AI system, either. Using multiple can be incredibly beneficial when juggling data collection, content creation, and outreach efforts. Those in the marketing business will refer to this as your “AI stack.”

Below are a few AI tools available for content marketing and management:

• Qualifier.ai: Qualifier.ai is an innovative program that helps locate prospective customers based on a targeted industry or location. The program automatically sends your provided email template to these potential leads to draw engagement–follow-up is automated, too!
• Apollo.io: Like Qualifier.ai, Apollo.io automates email outreach with the additional benefit of data collection. This way, you can gain critical insight into sales conversations to gauge your strengths and weaknesses when interacting with customers.
• Jasper: This AI tool is great for content creation! Jasper can craft email campaigns, blog posts, and multiple other forms of copy. This technology frees time so you can focus on more pressing matters on the farm or in your factory.
• Surfer AI: Navigating SEO without a general understanding can be intimidating. Surfer AI saves you the annoyance of learning the nuances of ranking by writing SEO-friendly articles for you. 
• Perplexity: Perplexity falls more on the customer side. It’s a search tool much like Google, but it’s powered by an AI language learning model. It’s useful here as a marketing tool to get a sense for how search may evolve as new technologies emerge in the consumer market. 
• ChatGPT: Ah, ChatGPT–the all-powerful AI giant. Whether you’re looking for a punny one-liner to add to your marketing email template or an entire marketing campaign outline, ChatGPT is your ally. This tool can also learn from you over time based on your input, making for a seemingly seamless integration into your marketing strategy. 

Ways to Use AI for Marketing 

Marketing is multifaceted, just like the horticulture industry. As a grower, you understand that seeds need nurturing to develop into healthy plants. Soil manufacturers recognize the detail of integrated ingredients working together in tandem. 

Marketing follows the same grain, encompassing direct client outreach, data analysis, content creation, and so much more. In many cases, these moving parts can be overwhelming and waste valuable time.

Luckily, you don’t need to wear every hat all the time. While AI shouldn’t run your business for you, automating specific tasks, such as admin work, responding to emails, and translating customer behavior, is simpler with the aid of technology.

Here are just a few ways to use AI as a part of your marketing strategy:

• Measuring customer behavior: AI can take past customer feedback, engagement metrics, and purchase history to predict reactions to marketing campaigns. 
• Automating email outreach: As mentioned, AI can help you craft or send emails to current or potential customers. Ultimately, you conserve mental energy by passing the baton to your AI ally rather than pondering over a thought-provoking or eye-grabbing tagline.
• Media buying: Knowing where to advertise is another head-scratcher for businesses. Some AI software can analyze your target audience to develop a list of websites and other media avenues where your campaign can thrive. 
• Reduced admin work: Forget hiring an assistant! AI can handle the scheduling, documenting, and customer service aspects of marketing.
• Content creation: Customers flock to a visually appealing and mentally stimulating marketing campaign. AI can create both visual and textual elements based on prompts. However, you’ll likely need to tweak the output a bit before it's ready for distribution.
• Analyzing data: Traditional marketing tools can provide some insight into how customers respond to your campaign. AI takes this further by gathering, transcribing, and analyzing data from multiple platforms to deliver an accurate glimpse into customer engagement.

How to Use AI in Horticultural Marketing

You don’t have to jump on the bandwagon immediately when delving into AI. Making small strides is better than investing substantial time and money into a hodgepodge of products before realizing what you actually need and want from AI. 

No two marketing strategies are created equal. Sometimes, you want a little extra oomph to boost revenue and customer outreach. On the other hand, you may only use AI for writing the best pun for an email subject line (Oh my gourd, this is kind of a big dill!). 

Regardless, effective AI marketing starts by identifying your goals, choosing the best tools, and practicing patience as you master the art of automation.

1. Ask Yourself, “How Will AI Help Me?”

The first step in AI marketing is to establish your goals. 

Are you banking on AI to reel in customers with automated email outreach? Can AI help streamline content creation or blog posting to stimulate customer engagement? Are you sick of the analytical side of marketing and hoping to take a step back?

You can’t develop a successful AI strategy without recognizing its potential role(s) in your intended outcomes.  

2. Determine Which Program Fits Your Needs

Not every AI software will help you achieve your marketing goals. For example, ChatGPT can write emails but cannot send them. However, combining ChatGPT with a product like Zapier allows you to create a customized email assistant that can handle both jobs for you.

Other AI tools allow for even more personalization, meaning you can essentially build an entire “AI doppelganger” based on your unique conversational style and voice. 

Spend time experimenting with demos to find which program will assist you best. You can also explore online resources with information about combining AI tools to master your marketing superpowers.

3. Be Honest About the Role of AI and Ask for Feedback

AI is not a standalone solution to every marketing problem. No program is perfect, and you will inevitably encounter flaws as you implement more and more AI strategies into your business.

AI will always fall short of real human connection and efforts. Even advanced technology can never completely replicate what we have evolved and experienced over our lifetimes. 

For this reason, informing your audience about your AI strategy and requesting their feedback is an important way to establish loyalty and trustworthiness. Doing so ensures you are fully transparent and can continue improving your marketing campaign to better suit customer needs.

Becoming an AI-Powered Marketing Guru

Just like seeds don’t grow into trees overnight, mastering the art of AI won’t happen in one go. Cut yourself some slack as you determine the best course of action for your business. 

You’re going to have different marketing needs as a cannabis grower than a water irrigation system manufacturer. So, while reading up on other people’s success stories with AI is helpful, don’t rely solely on their suggestions and opinions. 

Don’t lose hope! With time and patience, you can improve your business with AI–because ain’t nobody got thyme for frustrating admin tasks!

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