{"id":1840,"date":"2025-08-08T14:45:47","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T18:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/t2mio.com\/blog\/?p=1840"},"modified":"2025-08-08T14:45:47","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T18:45:47","slug":"from-hype-to-human-rethinking-ais-role-in-branding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/t2mio.com\/blog\/from-hype-to-human-rethinking-ais-role-in-branding\/","title":{"rendered":"From Hype to Human: Rethinking AI’s Role in Branding"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since ChatGPT launched artificial intelligence into the public\u2019s consciousness, AI has been loudly revolutionizing everything from e-commerce search to data analytics. In 2025, the range of AI tools on offer<\/a> to brands is increasingly diverse and powerful, giving businesses more options than ever about how they incorporate AI into brand strategy.<\/p>\n

However, whereas AI was the new kid on the block in 2023, things move fast at the cutting-edge. With as much as 57% of text-based web content now of AI origins, consumers are feeling increasingly sceptical of anything brands have to offer.<\/p>\n

When used correctly, AI can supercharge growth and provide deep insights into consumer behavior, and it can still generate customized content to engage your users. On the other hand, overusing AI, or using it in the wrong place, can alienate your customers and damage your brand reputation. In 2025, AI isn\u2019t a one-stop shop for brand-building: brands must strike a balance and use AI strategically to benefit from one of the most powerful new technologies since the internet itself.<\/p>\n

2025 Consumer Attitudes to AI<\/h2>\n

The first step in effective integration of AI across your marketing funnel is understanding consumer attitudes to its use. Knowing when and where AI can amplify engagement, and when it hurts authenticity, means you can take advantage of AI\u2019s full potential while avoiding its pitfalls.<\/p>\n

Recent research from Atom.com<\/a> has found that around half of consumers consider the usage of generative AI in content creation to harm perceptions of brand authenticity. Notably, it\u2019s slightly less in younger consumers who are more willing to accept genAI content, and AI content doesn\u2019t harm authenticity for 56% of 18 \u2014 34s. Meanwhile, a majority of consumers prefer human customer service agents to AI chatbots.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not all negative, however, indicating the need for nuanced integration of AI in branding and customer experience. 92% of consumers<\/a> find that AI integration enhances their shopping experience, and McKinsey found that three-quarters of consumers expect some degree of personalization from brands.<\/p>\n

The crucial distinction for consumers hinges on whether consumers perceive AI usage as genuine and authentic, and they\u2019re quick to see through cheap gimmicks. For example, within personalization, relevant product recommendations are valued more highly than personally addressed communication.<\/p>\n

Balancing Act: How to Use AI in Branding in 2025<\/h2>\n

As powerful as AI tools are for branding and marketing, they must be used delicately. Here\u2019s where AI is having the biggest impact for brands in 2025.<\/p>\n

Naming and Brand Background<\/h3>\n

Your business name is one of the most important early decisions you can make, and yet it\u2019s often rushed by founders who aren\u2019t yet sure of their brand\u2019s direction and identity. AI and the integration of semantic search on naming and domain platforms now allows entrepreneurs to describe their business idea in their own words, effectively providing an agency-level experience at a fraction of the cost.<\/p>\n

AI can aid entrepreneurs in discovering the building blocks of their brand \u2014 the key assets that customers will come to associate with your product or service.<\/p>\n

Prioritizing the Personal<\/h3>\n

Customized experiences, powered by personal recommendation engines like Netflix\u2019s, and tailored website content can have a huge impact on customer experience as well as conversions.\u00a0 For example, personalized webpage banners allowed the Czech consumer electronics brand HP Tronic to increase conversion rates by 133%<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Likewise, generative AI shouldn\u2019t be seen as a shortcut to building marketing content, and brands should be attuned to the risk of AI content becoming increasingly derivative and generic. Generative AI\u2019s most powerful impact is its ability to create content at scale and, when combined with data analytics, its power to create customized content<\/a> that celebrates your customers\u2019 individuality.<\/p>\n

Capturing Customers with Dynamic Brand Elements<\/h3>\n

AI tools can now supercharge your brand\u2019s visual identity by generating logos and color schemes to fit every platform or context. For example, AI could generate customized logos based on where consumers are shopping from, or adjust color schemes to adapt to the tone of the products they\u2019re searching for.<\/p>\n

While brands shouldn\u2019t allow dynamic brand elements to get in the way of consistent customer experiences, AI can now ensure your brand\u2019s visual identity looks its best across every touchpoint and matches customer expectations for every context.<\/p>\n

Data Analytics<\/h3>\n

Behind the scenes, brands can worry less about how customers perceive AI while leveraging its analytic power to get to know them better than ever. By analyzing customer behavior, preferences, and real-time trends, AI helps marketers personalize campaigns, predict future actions, and allocate budgets more effectively.<\/p>\n

These insights go beyond surface-level metrics, revealing deep patterns that humans might miss. Whether it’s optimizing ad performance or identifying new market segments, data analytics turns raw information into strategic action.<\/p>\n

Case Study: Coca-Cola\u2019s AI Christmas Ads<\/h2>\n

In late 2024, Coca-Cola released three AI-generated ads, inspired by their timeless \u2018Holidays are Coming\u2019 campaign, updated for the modern era. The usage of AI sparked significant criticism from both the creative industries as well as consumers. However, when consumers were shown the ads without the context that they were created with AI, they were received far more positively.<\/p>\n

Similarly, research into the integration of AI in e-commerce search has found that consumers respond more positively to semantic search when there\u2019s no mention of the AI technology at its foundation. Evidently, consumers are ready to appreciate both genAI in marketing content, as well as its functional applications in search and discovery and product recommendation. They remain, however, skeptical of the brands that use it.<\/p>\n

That doesn\u2019t mean that we, as brands, should hide our usage of AI. In fact, transparency is crucial to retain authenticity among consumers when using AI. Rather, brands should integrate AI only when it\u2019s genuinely valuable, be open about its usage and highlight a consumer-brand dialogue that ensures customers feel heard.<\/p>\n

Human Branding, Aided by AI<\/h2>\n

AI\u2019s impact on branding can\u2019t be overstated. From hyper-sophisticated data analysis to content-at-scale and dynamic visual branding, the current generation of businesses has more tools than ever to engage, delight, and capture their audience.<\/p>\n

Of course, more opportunities for brands also lead to more competition. In this climate, you have to ask how you can use AI to stand out. With the tendency for AI content to become derivative and generic (AI trained on AI trained on AI), brands need to integrate a human touch at key moments, such as social media or in customer service, and integrate AI sensitively according to customer expectations.<\/p>\n

Brands can learn from Coca-Cola\u2019s approach, using cutting edge technology to continue the work of a consistently powerful brand. In the words of Dominik Heinrich, head of AI design at Coca-Cola, \u201cAI is an opportunity to be more human again.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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