Rival Tech & Reach3: Balancing AI in Marketing and Research.

Our CMO, Paula Catoira, is an Ambassador for the CMO Alliance, a global community of passionate marketing leaders. After recently participating in a panel at the Revenue Marketing Alliance’s AI for Marketers Summit, she shared her insights in an article titled "Balancing AI and human creativity in modern marketing." In this piece, Paula dives into the growing influence of AI in marketing, its current applications, and the need for careful human oversight to ensure that AI-generated content still aligns with a brand’s voice and values.

Thoughtful implementation of AI is something that we tackle head-on at Rival. Paula’s views on the use of AI in marketing reflect the use of AI in many fields, including market research. For example, we utilize AI in many of our processes to enhance data collection, streamline analysis, and deliver insights faster. However, we’re intentional about balancing the efficiency of AI with the human oversight necessary to maintain creativity and authenticity. Our Rival Labs division is hard at work pushing the boundaries in AI and future tech to help our customers stay ahead of the curve. By experimenting in a systematic and iterative fashion, we can deliver innovation seamlessly both for our customers and the respondents that participate in their research.

AI as a Fast, Yet Imperfect, Assistant

AI isn’t without its limitations. In her article, Paula emphasizes that while AI can quickly generate large volumes of content—like blog posts, social media updates, and video scripts—it still lacks the “creativity and emotional insight that humans bring to the table.” She quotes one of her fellow panel members, “AI is an extremely fast assistant – who still needs to be supervised and guided.”

This point highlights the necessity for human marketers to review and refine AI-generated content, ensuring it aligns with the brand’s voice and resonates with its audience on a deeper emotional level. This same level of care applies to anyone using AI, in any field. 

Experiment with AI to drive innovation

Paula encourages marketing teams to experiment with AI. But she stresses that AI shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for human creativity,; rather, it should be seen and used as tool that, when used strategically, can streamline processes and free up time for more creative endeavors. 

"While I don’t believe AI will replace us, the humans who deftly use AI will replace those that do not," Paula writes. To facilitate this, for example, Rival has developed training and guidelines for team members, ensuring they are comfortable using AI while staying true to our brand identity and values. 

On the development side, Rival Labs Head of Innovation, Dale Evernden said, “Iteration is the fuel of innovation: every cycle of experimentation brings power to discovery and growth. By embracing the unknown and learning from each attempt, we transform curiosity into breakthrough solutions. In every experiment lies a step forward, a chance for improvement, a refinement toward the making of something extraordinary.”

Addressing the Ethical Challenges of AI

Beyond the technical aspects, Paula touches on the ethical considerations surrounding AI, including bias in AI-generated insights and data privacy concerns. She notes that AI is only as good as the data it’s trained on, which means it’s vital to address any inherent biases within that data. For example, if a dataset lacks diversity, AI-generated content could unintentionally exclude certain groups or reinforce harmful stereotypes. 

In the market research industry, these challenges are particularly pertinent, as the use of personal data must be handled with care and transparency to maintain trust. “That’s why it’s so important to have strong privacy measures in place,” she notes, urging marketing leaders to take a proactive approach to data privacy and ethical AI use.

Balancing Technology with Human Creativity

Paula’s insights are a reminder that while AI has revolutionized marketing and customer insights, the human element remains irreplaceable. It’s the combination of advanced technology and human creativity that can help brands unlock AI's full potential, all while navigating the challenges of bias, ethics, and maintaining authenticity.

At Rival Technologies, we embrace AI to drive innovation while balancing it with human insight. Our approach ensures that the data we collect and the insights we deliver are both accurate and meaningful, all while upholding the highest ethical standards.

Learn more about how we integrate AI into market research responsibly here.