For entrepreneurs, AI-generated imagery instruments open up new potentialities for content material personalization and marketing campaign engagement…however solely when utilized in strategic, focused methods.
AI-generated imagery platforms like Flux, Runway, and DALL-E have gotten a precious a part of advertising and marketing, design, and UX toolkits. However with all of the choices out there, it’s generally obscure the place and how these instruments truly carry worth — and the place they fall quick.
In a current Advertising and marketing Towards the Grain episode, Kieran and I talk about widespread challenges groups face when utilizing AI picture instruments, sensible use circumstances for max efficiency, and finest practices for integrating AI imagery into your workflow.
Three Key Challenges of AI-Generated Picture Adoption
AI picture era holds huge potential — however its adoption isn’t with out hurdles. Particularly, three challenges stopping widespread use that Kieran and I typically see are:
1. Hesitation resulting from privateness and safety considerations.
Staff hesitate to have interaction with AI instruments, typically resulting from considerations round privateness, knowledge safety, and AI’s present limitations. Many additionally really feel that AI may not but be “adequate” for his or her wants.
Addressing these considerations begins with clear communication about AI’s strengths and limitations. When groups perceive the place AI can add worth — and the place it could actually’t — they’re extra more likely to have interaction with it in a practical means.
2. Misaligned expectations.
Customers typically count on AI to “do all of it,” resulting in frustration when it falls quick, particularly for duties requiring precision. As Kieran identified, staff generally deal with AI as a “magic field,” which may set them up for disappointment.
By managing expectations and educating groups on how AI works finest, entrepreneurs can shift focus towards the achievable, sensible makes use of that make an affect.
3. A necessity for guardrails.
With such broad potential, many individuals wrestle to search out the suitable purposes for AI. As Kieran highlighted in the course of the present, an outlined, structured strategy — like having clear AI prompts or focused use circumstances — helps ease adoption by giving staff a clearer sense of objective.
Equally, utilizing guided prompts or simplified interfaces for particular duties could make it simpler for groups to discover AI with out feeling overwhelmed.
Three AI-Generated Picture Use Instances in Advertising and marketing
Regardless of these challenges, AI picture instruments can have a powerful affect when utilized to focused use circumstances. In our expertise, AI-generated imagery instruments can be utilized to:
1. Enhance advert efficiency.
For my part, one of the vital efficient purposes of AI-generated imagery is creating tailor-made advert variations. Customized photographs that intently align with particular advert copy assist entrepreneurs ship a extra customized expertise throughout completely different platforms.
In our exams at HubSpot, we’ve seen that this strategy considerably boosts conversions, making it a useful software for effectively scaling our advert campaigns.
2. Improve e mail engagement.
AI may improve engagement in e mail advertising and marketing by producing distinctive photographs tailor-made to every message.
Mixed with AI-generated textual content, these visuals create a curated and related expertise for readers, including a layer of personalization that retains content material contemporary and will increase the prospect of connecting with audiences in a deeper, extra memorable means.
This strategy works significantly effectively when it is advisable to create distinct visuals for various segments or campaigns at scale.
3. Save time on modifying.
AI is equally precious for picture modifying, serving to entrepreneurs shortly regulate visuals to suit completely different viewers wants.
For instance, a expertise firm would possibly use AI to switch product screenshots by including a shopper’s emblem or emphasizing particular options.
This tactic permits manufacturers to ship a extra customized visible expertise with out the effort and time required for guide edits, making it a robust choice for scalable, audience-specific content material.
Finest Practices for AI Picture Implementation
Maximizing the worth of AI-generated photographs means realizing the place and how one can use them. These pointers will preserve your strategy sensible and results-focused.
✔ Outline clear use circumstances. Since AI may be overwhelming, outline particular purposes (like buyer help or advert variations) the place it’s almost definitely to succeed, somewhat than attempting to use it universally.
✔ Give attention to quantity over perfection. AI excels at creating a number of variations somewhat than single “excellent” photographs. In the event you want one flawless picture, stick to conventional strategies.
✔ Educate groups on AI’s strengths and limits. To enhance adoption, set clear expectations and supply steerage on the place AI is most useful, which may also help handle resistance resulting from privateness and reliability considerations.
✔ Preserve it genuine. Keep away from utilizing AI-generated photographs to signify actual individuals or clients, as this might injury belief. Save AI imagery for conceptual or product-focused visuals.
To study extra about how advertising and marketing leaders can combine AI-generated imagery into their groups and workflows, try the full episode of Advertising and marketing Towards the Grain.
This weblog sequence is in partnership with Advertising and marketing Towards the Grain, the video podcast. It digs deeper into concepts shared by advertising and marketing leaders Kipp Bodnar (HubSpot’s CMO) and Kieran Flanagan (SVP, Advertising and marketing at HubSpot) as they unpack progress methods and study from standout founders and friends.