AI keeps making headlines, but the real story is happening quietly in marketing departments across the country. Budgets are shrinking while expectations keep growing. That’s where Kingsley Taylor comes in. With twenty years of transforming digital strategies for powerhouses like Coca-Cola and PlayStation, the Wpromote Managing Director has seen what works – and what doesn’t. Now he’s sharing five steps to make AI actually deliver on its promise.
Five Steps to Smart AI Implementation
While tech giants make headlines with AI breakthroughs, smaller companies are left wondering what it means for them. Kingsley points to Meta as a real-world example. “Meta has continued to grow its revenue on average around 20% year on year for the last 3 years,” he notes. “At the same time, it has cut its overall headcount by 20%.” The secret? Smarter, AI-driven advertising efficiency.
But you don’t need Meta’s resources to make AI work for you. Kingsley breaks it down into five practical steps that any business can follow:
1. Find Your Pain Points First
Skip the AI wishlist and start with what’s actually broken. “You’ve got to assess your current needs and situation,” Kingsley explains. Get your marketing team together and dig into where they’re wasting time or money. Maybe customer service is eating up resources – that’s where chatbots might help. Drowning in content creation? AI could lighten the load. Looking for patterns in your data? AI excels at predictive analysis.
2. Know What You’re Aiming For
Before diving into tools and tech, get clear on your goals. “What is it that you want to achieve?” Kingsley asks. “Are you looking to improve your return on investment? Do you want to go to market faster? Do you want to avoid churn?” Pick your priorities and stick to them.
3. Take a Hard Look at Your Tech Stack
Your marketing tools need to work together, especially with AI in the mix. “Work with your team to audit your marketing stack,” Kingsley advises. Check if your CRM system can handle AI integration. Look at how you collect and organize data – messy data means messy AI results. Even your content creation process matters. As Kingsley points out, “If you have a very tight brand look and feel, it’s a lot easier for AI to replicate that content time and time again and lower your overall cost.”
4. Get Your Team AI-Ready
The best AI tools won’t help if your team can’t use them. “You can’t just expect everybody to know this stuff straight out of the gate,” Kingsley warns. Find your AI champions – the curious ones who’ll dig into new tools and drive change. For bigger companies, that might mean hiring a Chief AI Officer. For others, it’s about picking someone to own the AI initiative. Don’t forget training: “Take advantage of that training and train your team,” he emphasizes.
5. Start Small, Scale Smart
Don’t try to revolutionize everything overnight. “Start small, don’t try and boil the ocean,” Kingsley suggests. Pick one thing – maybe social media content or email marketing. Test it, learn from it, and build confidence before moving on. Try AI for website engagement, audience targeting, or product recommendations if you’re in e-commerce. But always start with one piece and grow from there.
The AI hype isn’t going away, but that doesn’t mean you need to chase every shiny new tool. “If you leverage these five points, I think that’s a really good spot to start on your AI journey,” Kingsley concludes. It’s not about having the most advanced AI – it’s about finding the right tools to solve real problems. Kingsley’s approach cuts through the noise: identify problems, set clear goals, audit your tools, prepare your team, and start small. No buzzwords required.
To learn more about driving digital transformation through AI implementation, connect with Kingsley Taylor on LinkedIn.
