Five Risks Of Using Generative AI In Programmatic Advertising

"In fact, 99% of marketing and business leaders are using AI in some fashion, according to a 2024 survey from the Marketing AI Institute. The reasons for the growing adoption are obvious. GenAI automates repetitive tasks like creating ad copy, allows marketers to produce content at scale and can provide inspiration for campaigns. Companies are also seeing results: Bain and Company found that retail marketers are seeing 10% to 25% higher returns on ad spending from AI-powered campaigns."

"Programmatic and other digital ads rely on emotional depth to resonate with audiences, drive engagement and increase conversion rates. However, GenAI lacks emotional understanding, so advertising content generated by AI tends to feel generic, turning off users. There's only one way to mitigate this risk when using GenAI to create copy, headlines and other ad content: Have a human review everything thoroughly. Even if a marketer doesn't create the content on their own, adding some human touch is still a must."

"The risk of low-quality content is amplified when used to create images, videos and voiceovers. Moreover, ads generated by AI may have a so-called " uncanny valley " effect, making some users feel uneasy. Spotify recently launched a generative AI feature that allows advertisers to create scripts and voiceovers. There is major upside here in terms of convenience, but brands may struggle to stand out if the platform's advertising ecosystem gets filled by ads voiced in a more or less similar way."

Generative AI is widely adopted across marketing, automating repetitive tasks like ad copy creation and enabling content production at scale. Retail marketers report 10–25% higher returns on ad spending from AI-powered campaigns. AI streamlines campaign ideation and execution, but it can produce emotionally shallow, generic content that reduces engagement and conversions. Human review and creative input are necessary to preserve emotional resonance. AI can also generate low-quality or fake content and produce uncanny-valley images, videos, or voiceovers. Platform-provided generative voice tools risk homogenizing ads and diminishing brand distinctiveness.

Read at Forbes