The hype about AI is already inescapable, with AI marketing revenue expected to exceed half a trillion dollars this year.
AI is especially relevant if you run a digital marketing agency. But can you run a successful agency in 2024 without AI-powered marketing tools?
The majority of marketing agencies already use AI tools to support them with client work, and this will only increase as machine learning improves.
There’s a lot of concern about AI replacing jobs, and many say the technology isn’t reliable or worth the hype. Is this true, or is it simply the opinion of people unwilling to adopt new technologies to grow their businesses?
Let’s dive deep into how AI tools for marketing agencies are changing agencies' day-to-day workflows and how they do business. We’ll also give you a rundown of the best AI tools for agencies.
What Are AI Tools for Marketing? ❓
An AI tool for marketing is a piece of software that uses artificial intelligence to make automated decisions. The software uses these automated decisions to complete a task without human input.
The software uses machine learning to make decisions based on the information it has previously received.
This means the AI can make decisions about the consumer based on customer data from past behaviors. When Spotify recommends new songs, or Amazon recommends products you will like, Artificial Intelligence powers the result you see.
What Tasks Can AI Tools for Marketing Perform? 🔎
You can use AI to automate dozens of daily tasks your agency needs to do.
What’s the difference between a human and a machine doing the task? AI can perform tasks at rapid speed and on such a huge scale that it would be unmanageable for humans.
Some of the tasks that AI tools can help your agency with include:
- Social media management, creative and copy
- Ads and automating ad variations
- Email automation
- Search Engine Optimization
- Content writing
- Customer service operations
- Customer experience
What Are the Benefits of Using AI-powered Tools for Marketing? ✅
One of the main benefits of using AI-powered tools as part of your marketing arsenal is the efficiency with which you can perform everyday tasks.
Time is money, so making productive use of your time is essential to growing your revenue. Necessary but mundane and repetitive tasks can be time-consuming. Using AI tools can help you free up time to do more meaningful work.
You can also use AI to boost your creativity if you are in a creative rut. Writer's block or designer block is real, so asking an AI tool to give you a new idea is a great way to get the creative juices flowing again.
Making the most of the talent in your team, instead of assigning them dull tasks that a machine can do, is a great way to boost morale and provide the best experience possible for your clients.
Does AI Have a Future in Marketing Agencies? 🤖
According to Hubspot’s State of Inbound Marketing Trends report, 43% of marketers agreed that AI had been the most influential trend for their growth in 2022. Predictions suggest that this trend will only increase this year.
Like it or not, there’s a high chance your agency already uses AI marketing tools like chatbots, content optimization tools, spell checkers, and email automation.
As the technology becomes more complex and machine learning more accurate, the capabilities of AI marketing tools will only improve.
Better access to accurate data will allow agencies to provide more personalized experiences for their clients and customers. It’s no secret that personalized ads receive more engagement, with people twice as likely to click on an ad tailored to their interests.
More customized experiences for the end user mean a higher chance of success and increased ROI on your advertising spend.
More engagement means better success for your client, less wasted ad revenue, and better client retention. Does that sound like a win-win, or what?
To answer the question at the top of this section, yes, AI tools have a future in marketing agencies and can help you do your job EVEN better than you are right now.
While this post isn’t getting too futuristic on you yet, there are some fascinating predictions about the future of AI marketing tools. Future forecasts for AI marketing tools include voice-controlled marketing campaigns and personalized virtual reality experiences. 😮
Best AI Tools for Social Media Management 💬
1. Lately.ai
What is Lately? A tool to create social media posts by repurposing your best-performing content.
How does it work? The tool analyzes the words and phrases the audience most interacts with to create new posts. It can also repurpose blog posts and videos into engaging social media content. You can feed the tool the brand voice and content style so it produces consistent posts. It will also give feedback on messaging your audience.
The tool is available in 6 languages.
Best for: Creating social media strategy and content with ease. Use the tool to nail the brand voice from the first post and get the engagement your clients deserve. Never write random posts for your clients again!
Price: $29 - $129 per month (depending on your usage).
2. CommentGuard
What is CommentGuard? THE tool to manage social media comments and messages at scale.
How does it work? The machine learning algorithms can detect and automatically remove offensive or spammy comments. You can set rules for the tool, so it automatically hides inappropriate comments on your client’s social media accounts.
You manage all the accounts from one inbox, making managing multiple accounts much more streamlined.
Best for: Saving time and staying on top of the comments on multiple social media accounts at once.
Price: $29.99 - $399 per month (depending on how many comments you manage).
Best AI Tools for Video Creation & Video Editing 📹
3. Lumen5
What is Lumen5? A drag-and-drop video-building tool that makes creating video content as simple as creating a PowerPoint presentation.
How does it work? You can use the tool to turn your clients’ long-form content and white papers into compelling videos for social media. You upload the written content, and the AI matches the written content with stock images and captions. The length of each scene is based on average reading time.
Best for: Video marketing and creating compelling and visually pleasing video content.
Price: From $19 - $149 per month (depending on usage).
4. DeepWord
What is DeepWord? A tool to create videos of people talking at scale without using actors or equipment.
How does it work? Select an actor from the portfolio and type what you want them to say. DeepWord does the work and creates a video. You can use the tool to create personalized videos for prospects and existing clients.
Upload your contacts and use merge tags to create personalized videos for each. You then import the videos back to your CRM and can send them out in email sequences.
Best for: Creating personalized campaigns for your clients and their prospects.
Price: A starter account costs $14.99/month, and a pay-as-you-go account starts at $1.80.
5. Synthesia
What is Synthesia? A tool to create videos from text in seconds.
How does it work? You can use the tool to turn PDFs, long docs, and training manuals into engaging videos.
The AI avatars that read the information are digital, and you can create a custom AI for your brand. Closed captions are included, and the tool is available in 120 languages. You can use it without any video editing skills.
Best for: Making informational content more engaging for viewers.
Price: A personal plan starts at $30/month.
6. Maverick
What is Maverick? A tool to create personalized videos at scale.
How does it work? You record the video once and then call out each of the customer names one by one; the tech does the work to create dozens of personalized videos.
Best for: Perfect for agencies with E-commerce clients who want to boost customer satisfaction and build genuine customer relationships. The tool is proven to positively influence the customer experience which drives revenue and engagement.
Also, you can set it up in minutes! No wonder it’s one of Shopify’s top-rated apps.
Price: Plans start at $100/month.
Best AI Tool for Podcast Editing
7. Cleanvoice
What is Cleanvoice? A tool to edit and perfect podcasts by removing filler sounds and stuttering from your recording.
How does it work? The AI detects filler sounds like errmm ahhhh (in multiple languages) and removes them from your recording. It can also remove mouth sounds and long pauses.
Best for: Agencies who use podcasts as part of their marketing strategy.
Price: Depends on how many hours you edit a month - starts at $10 and goes up to $80/month.
Best AI Tools for Graphic Design and Branding 🖌️
8. Looka
What is Looka? An AI-powered tool to design a logo and build a brand.
How does it work? You enter your brand vision into the AI, and the tool provides you with hundreds of logo mockups.
You use the editor to make the changes you desire. You don’t need to worry about the logo looking generic because AI can generate endless options. Once you’re happy with the logo, you can use the tool to build a brand kit and social media templates that are the perfect size for different channels.
Best for: Agencies with clients who want to start promoting themselves on social media but don’t have any brand identity yet.
Price: Depends on your requirements.
9. Beautiful.ai
What is Beautiful.ai? A tool to help you create show-stopping presentations.
How does it work? Use the templates to make your presentation. You enter the content, and the AI creates and designs the slides, even resizing images to fit properly. You can use it across the company to keep all presentations on brand.
Best for: Need to pitch a new client? Beautiful.ai can help you create the presentation that wows them.
Price: A basic plan starts at $12/month.
Best AI Tools for Digital Advertising 📈
10. AdCreative.ai
What is AdCreative.ai? An AI tool to create ad creatives for social media marketing.
How does it work? The AI uses customer data to produce ad creatives that will convert.
You tell the tool the target audience and the platform you want to create the ad for, and it will select the best length and tone for the ad while focusing on the audience's pain points.
The tool can analyze customer data and your best-performing ads and then generates images, texts, and headlines for the ad. It uses predictive analytics to decide what will perform best.
Best for: Creating ads that convert at scale.
Price: Premium plans start at $44/month.
11. Pencil
What is Pencil? An AI ad generator to create new ad variations.
How does it work? The tool uses a data set about past ads to generate ads it predicts will perform for your clients. Pencil claim that the ads the tool produces will always perform in the top quartile in your sector.
You connect your assets, and the tool generates new ad variations in minutes. If you don’t have your own assets, like images and videos, the tool can create them for you.
Pencil works for Facebook ads, Instagram ads, TikTok ads, YouTube ads, Amazon ads, and free ads. It analyzes customer behavior to create the best ads possible.
Best for: Agencies that want to create ads for their clients that perform!
Price: The agency plan is $249/month.
12. Pattern89
What is Pattern89? A creative AI to take the guesswork out of creative decisions.
How does it work? Creative intelligence helps you make the right decision, from color, copy, and even down to emojis; it uses data to determine the variation that will perform best. The tool uses a huge analytics database to predict the winning creative before you spend money on it. It can also help you optimize ads you’re already running by finding updates.
Best for: Agencies that need to create social ads at scale.
Price: Plans are all bespoke.
13. Ocoya
What is Ocoya? A content automation tool for creating social content.
How does it work? Creating creative content in a matter of minutes. If you’re stumped for creativity, the AI-generated graphics, copy, video, and hashtags. You can even schedule posts using the tool. You can use it to run and schedule Ad campaigns and budget efficiently.
Ocoya also has features like link shorteners and background removers to make your social media life as easy as possible.
Best for: Social media and ad managers who are stuck for ideas and want a streamlined way to manage all client content.
Price: From $15 up to $159 per month.
Best AI Tools for Email Marketing 📩
14. Seventh Sense
What is Seventh Sense? A tool to drive engagement with email maketing campaigns. The tool is designed to work specifically with HubSpot and Marketo.
How does it work? Seventh Sense is designed to optimize your email campaigns using send time optimization, frequency optimization, throttling, knowledge transfer, and increased deliverability.
Best for: Agencies who run client email marketing campaigns and want to drive higher ROI for them.
Price: Plans start at $64/month and are customizable to your needs.
15. Smartwriter.ai
What is Smartwriter.ai? A tool to automate the outreach process.
How does it work? Smartwriter automates hours of research and creates personalized emails to your prospects. You can use the tool for LinkedIn personalization, personalized icebreakers, backlink personalizations, and contextual pitches.
When you tell Smartwriter who you want to send an outreach message to, it automatically searches for articles, podcasts, and blogs that person has appeared in so it can write a contextual, eye-grabbing message.
Best for: Agencies that do a lot of cold outreach as part of their digital marketing strategy and want to get replies at scale.
Price: Between $49 and $299/month.
Best AI Chatbots for Marketing 🤖
16. Chatfuel
What is Chatfuel? A chatbot that answers common questions and comments. An easy way to automate conversations with leads.
How does it work? You enter pre-made answers for common questions from leads and for customer conversations and support. You can segment audiences with an internal CRM, which reengages with prospects within a specific timeframe.
The tool integrates with multiple platforms: Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp.
Best for: Agencies who manage social media inboxes and inbound leads for their clients.
Price: Between $59.99 and $119.99/month
17. Spectrm
What is Spectrm? A chatbot to engage and convert customers with meaningful customer interactions.
How does it work? You can design chatbots that reply to customer inquiries and automate journeys across the lifecycle. The AI learns from historical data and personalizes the answers the chatbot gives. Messaging playbooks allow you to launch your chatbots quickly and optimize customer engagement.
Best for: Agencies who manage cold leads and customer engagement across channels.
Price: All plans are bespoke.
Best AI Tool for SEO 🔝
18. Surfer SEO
What is Surfer SEO? A tool to audit existing content and create new long-form content so you rank in search engines.
How does it work? You enter the URL of the blog post you want to audit, along with the keyword you want it to rank for; Surfer gives you a report on how to improve the content so it ranks higher in the SERPs.
Surfer also works for creating new content. Enter the keyword you want to rank for, and it will give you a list of competing posts, along with the top keywords you should include. The tool gives your content a score based on keyword density, format, and images and analyzes it against your competitors.
Best for: Agencies who manage content marketing for their clients. Creating content strategy.
Price: Between $49 and $199/ month.
Best AI Tools for Content Writing ✍️
19. Jasper
What is Jasper? An AI tool that writes your marketing copy for your blog, website, and social media.
How does it work? It speeds up the rate you can create content, assists with the creative process and writer's block, boosts ad conversions, optimizes content for SEO, and switch between writer modes to create the perfect piece of content. You can also use the tool to translate into 25 different languages.
Best for Everyone who writes content! Agencies that run content marketing.
Price: Your first 10,000 words are free.
20. MarketMuse
What is MarketMuse? B2C content research, intelligence, and strategy powered y AI.
How does it work? Use the tool for content audits which will provide personalized data to help you create content that ranks. You can create content plans and use the data to establish what you should write about.
MarketMuse will also tell you what your competitors missed so you can optimize and prioritize the keywords with the most opportunity. The tool also provides structures, questions, and links to include in your article.
Best for: Agencies who create long-form content for clients.
Price: 10 queries a month is free, a standard plan is $49/month, and a team plan is $399/month.
21. Writer
What is Writer? Automates the automatable aspects of content. The tool makes a copywriter’s life easier, from ideation to drafting and distribution.
How does it work? You can use Writer as a brainstorming partner and draft creator. You can train the tool using your best-performing content and brand guidelines; it will then create on-brand posts.
Best for: Rapid content creation that converts.
Price: from $18/month/ user, agencies can build enterprise plans.
22. Briefly
What is Briefly? A tool that provides templates and feedback on your client brief and presentation.
How does it work? The AI writing assistant enables you to produce killer briefs that your clients will love. You input your campaign brief; the AI tells you how to improve it. It helps you focus on your client's goals and avoid misdirected work.
Best for: Driving agency alignment.
Price: Still in test mode; you can get early access here.
Best Tool For Reviews and Reputation Management
23. ReviewsOnMyWebsite
What is ReviewsOnMyWebsite? A review management tool designed to help businesses protect their online reputation.
How does it work? It monitors the web for customer reviews of your business and notifies you as soon as you receive a new review.
You can reply to the review directly from ReviewsOnMyWebsite or use the AI-powered response feature to generate a personalized reply in seconds.
The software offers a review widget you can use to display customer reviews on your website. There’s also a social sharing feature that allows you to share reviews from happy customers on your social media pages in a few clicks.
Best for: Managing your business’s online reputation.
Price: Plans start at $9/month.
How to Use AI at Your Digital Marketing Agency
When you select an AI marketing tool, you want to focus on its ease of use. Selecting a tool critical for your operations, rather than something you think sounds cool, will help you remain focused and only use tools relevant to your business.
There’s nothing worse than signing up and paying for a bunch of tools you never actually use!
As there are so many AI marketing tools out there, how can you be sure you’re choosing the right ones for your business?
When selecting the tools for your agency, ask yourself the following:
- Which tasks do you need the most help with right now?
- What are your priorities?
- How can you implement this tool into your existing workflows?
- Will it be easy and train staff?
- Will these tools really save you time, or are they just a gimmick?
Risks of Using AI for Marketing Agencies
Ethical considerations are one of the most significant risks of relying on AI tools to take care of some of your agency operations.
Some tools have an innate bias because of the way they’ve been programmed and the information they’ve learned from.
Biased data can cause the AI to produce error-ridden results, so you must be careful when adopting new tools and closely monitor their output. Letting the AI do all the work without any human judgment or input could be risky and cause unprofessional work to reach your clients.
Some of the writing AI tools are still far from perfect, so never rely on them to write content for you!
Avoid accuracy errors by fact-checking the output from an AI writing tool.
Data privacy is another risk of relying on AI tools in your business. To avoid any risk, ensure that the tools you’re signing up for have strict data privacy and sharing policies.
Will AI Replace People at Your Agency?
The short answer: NO!
While AI is becoming increasingly advanced and can perform tasks we could never have imagined a few years ago, it’s still in its early stages. AI still has a significant chance of error, so you need to fact-check its output.
Running an efficient agency that doesn’t waste time with simple operations tasks, has a high creative output and successful outcomes for clients is all about learning to work with these tools, not against them. AI tools aren’t here to take your job!
Remember that an AI tool doesn't replace original copywriting or design; you will find it challenging to find an AI that can master your brand voice and fully capture the message you want to convey.
For true innovation to occur, a human touch is needed because people get bored of seeing the same things and remember an AI’s output is based on what it has learned.
Boost Agency Efficiency With AI
Adopting AI tools for marketing agencies will significantly benefit your day-to-day operations if you want to stay competitive and maximize output.
From automating day-to-day tasks to generating ad ideas that use historic data to predict success, AI offers opportunities to get results your clients can’t even dream of.
Check out some of the tools on this list and explore an AI marketing tool that seamlessly fits into your current workflow. You’ll be amazed at how much time you can save and the boost in productivity.
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