Catalyzing Creativity: How AI Empowers Better – Human – Marketing

Has any life sciences marketer ever been told, “We thought you might like to relax next year, take it a little slower, get a little less accomplished. Does that sound OK? And how about some extra resources? We thought that might be nice as well.”  

If so, we’ve yet to meet them.  

More likely, you’re finding yourself in a familiar position this November: trying to figure out how to, as ever, do more with less. 

Except these days, it’s actually possible, thanks to AI.  

But many people still don’t connect it with expanding the possibilities of marketing creativity. They think it can speed up a process or generate some iffy copy, but that’s about it. And that’s where they’re missing the point. In this article, some of our experts weigh in on how AI is making marketing better.  

Personalization, Powered by Data 

“AI isn’t just accelerating workflows,” says Abid Rahman, SVP, Innovation, EVERSANA. “It’s about transforming processes entirely, enabling more personalized, efficient and impactful interactions by creating approvable personalized content.” 

Drew McCormick, Head of Data & Analytics, EVERSANA, agrees: “Thinking about AI purely based on efficiencies understates the goal. AI is more than just LLMs or GenAI. It’s also predictive analytics that can help you find the ‘needle in a haystack’ patient from claims, and it’s also the ML algorithms that can identify patients months before diagnosis that are most in need of life-saving treatments.”  

AI can help marketers analyze massive data sets and uncover patterns they never would have been able to see, unlocking the potential for powerful human-centric insights. When you’re able to talk directly to the people who need to hear what you have to say, and in words that will resonate, that’s better marketing.  

AI can also power new processes altogether. For instance, while generative AI might be the type of AI that people are the most familiar with, the applications of it are wider ranging than most marketers may realize. For instance, we’ve used AI to create personalized videos based on text prompts, without the limitations of traditional production processes.  

Assist, Not Replace 

It’s important to notice that not even the most bullish AI fans are calling it perfect. We see examples every day of the imperfections that arise when users expect too much from AI tools. But what they can do is orchestrate and organize. They can give marketers big-picture awareness, real-time knowledge and the ability to explore almost limitless concepts.  

Shane Mayer, SVP, Managing Director, EVERSANA INTOUCH, points out, “Marketers are going to be able, through natural language processing, to do much more in-platform, from automated creative briefs to data analysis to derivative content and journey creation, all from the seat of the marketer.”  

John Kenny, EVP, Managing Director, Strategic Planning, EVERSANA INTOUCH, adds another example, speaking from experience, explaining, “AI can really help by building a marketing simulator for brand marketers, making it possible to test assumptions, and improving overall forecasting.”  

Ethical, Always 

When any new technology is implemented in healthcare, it’s absolutely vital that it be done responsibly by partners who deeply understand industry regulations and can avoid pitfalls. Consider the digitization of patient records or when pharma brands ventured into social media. AI is no different. Concerns here include data privacy and the potential for inherent bias in algorithms or training data. Marketers should work closely with their compliance departments. Ensuring transparency, educating organizations on how the tools work and what they do (and don’t do), and having a diverse and empowered governance group keeps an eye on how any AI tools are employed are some ways to address ethical concerns and build trust not only within the organization, but with partners, providers and patients. 

We’re all working to build the future of life sciences marketing, every day. These new tools will help us do more, better, faster when we learn how to wield them.