Have you ever set up and played with a Jenga tower?
As the game progresses, some blocks can be removed easily, with no impact, others are really sensitive to any movement and can bring the tower down with a crash.
Problem is, the difference is really hard to tell.
This is a bit like marketing.
There are a lot of variables, all with differing impact on the outcome, and all differing again, depending on the circumstances of what has gone before, and the manner in which the remaining blocks, or variables, are arranged..
What is important for one customer, in one situation, may be irrelevant to another, or even to the same customer in different circumstances.
Experience with Jenga, and careful testing of the ‘stickiness’ of different blocks before you pull them out can deliver you a win. Similarly, in marketing, the more analytical tools you can bring to bear that account for the minor variations, and differing configurations of the variables, the more likely you will be to get a favourable outcome. Increasingly, this task will be done by machine learning and pattern recognition, that accommodates the specific circumstances of the ‘marketing tower’, in this case, the customer.
However, AI will never completely replace the wisdom of experience, creativity, and domain knowledge, which the truly successful will continue to observe, gather, and ultimately, rely.
Photo credit: Wikipedia
