It’s time to delineate what is and what is not an AI agent for the marketing function. The ferocious pace of AI technology innovation, coupled with runaway AI hype and a relentless flood of vendors offering AI agents – most with de rigueur anthropomorphized names – creates an environment in which the meaning of AI is dynamic and often lacks fidelity to AI’s technical foundations. Beyond the semantics problem, inconsistent and potentially inaccurate definitions amplify delivery challenges and risks, exacerbating concern that AI capabilities will fall short of expectations. AI has been on an exciting run, but the constant AI dopamine rush is losing its novelty, and like you, we’d like to apply some precision to the wild west of marketing AI agents.   

What is agentic marketing vs. a marketing AI agent? 

 “Agentic marketing” is a concept in which the business function benefits from agentic AI capabilities. A “marketing AI agent” is the underlying technology solution. Forrester defines AI agents as:  

AI applications tuned to act on behalf of an enterprise or individual, performing tasks, making decisions, and interacting with data or other systems autonomously.  

A marketing AI agent meets five MARGE parameters:

  1. Marketing-focused. The agent operates within the marketing function to help marketers do their jobs.    
  2. Autonomous. The agent autonomously connects and conducts marketing tasks.  
  3. Responsible. The agent’s AI models and systems are explainable, accountable, and trustworthy.   
  4. Goal-oriented. The agent reasons, plans, and operates to achieve a desired marketing outcome.   
  5. Executes multiple tasks. The agent evaluates, executes, and observes multiple marketing tasks concurrently or sequentially in an adaptive workflow.  

(Caveat: These parameters will evolve as technology advances.) 

Stay tuned for research on marketing AI agents coming soon. We’ll explore marketing AI agents’ defining characteristics, map the vendor landscape, and offer guidance on how marketers can effectively adopt and get the most out of AI agents while reducing risk and dead ends. Follow-on research will include a tool for marketers to audit their own marketing AI agents. In the meantime, schedule a guidance session or inquiry with us. 

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