“Just go play with GenAI,” said multiple B2B CMOs to their teams in 2024. What felt like a reasonable instruction back then now feels like pure lunacy. GenAI is way too important to the future of marketing (and organizations) to leave it to random acts of discovery. Rather than a typical rant, this piece offers a more deliberate approach to GenAI adoption and its cutting-edge applications.

Start with BHAGs, Not Tool Bags

Saying “Go play with GenAI” to your employees is a quintessentially flawed “ready, fire, aim” approach. You’re giving them a solution in search of a problem. But if you start with challenges or, better yet, BHAGs (big, hairy, audacious goals), magical outcomes await. Here are a few BHAGs for you to consider:

• Create continuously differentiated content that your customers will want to consume
• Transform the notes from hundreds of sales calls into actionable insights
• Make every employee better prepared for every meeting
• Turn every employee into a brand ambassador
• Make every customer experience personalized and continuously enhanced
• Turn every level 3 technical support agent into a level 1 problem solver
• Rethink your sales enablement strategy and execution
• Create a frictionless customer experience that anticipates needs, provides personalized information, and reflects the expectations of younger buyers
• Reimagine every one of your workflows (see next paragraph).

Evolve from Content Creation to Content Workflows

GenAI's low-hanging fruit is content creation, and independent playtime has undoubtedly yielded that. But just writing copy and creating images with LLMs is so 2024. The higher-yield application involves redesigning entire workflows, from strategy to iteration to distribution to tracking to revisions, with lots of human checkpoints along the way, including legal review. Tools like copy.ai help with some of this.

Others write a bit of code to connect their apps. Noah Brier, Percolate founder, has done this for his latest company, Alephic, and I was drooling with envy when he showed it to me.

Build and Sustain AI-Literacy

To achieve some of the BHAGs above, you need a highly AI-literate workforce. This requires a deliberate approach to training. “Many organizations assume people are going to figure this out...but that underestimates how much of a cultural and skill gap there is,” explains Forrester Principal Analyst Lisa Gately, who joined us for a Bonus Huddle last week.

Instead, you must treat AI adoption with the same rigor as other major launches. That means offering formalized and ongoing training.

What BHAG-driven applications are you pursuing with GenAI?

Written by Drew Neisser