Case study: Generative AI at a Global Bank

In an increasingly competitive and digital market, companies are constantly seeking innovative solutions to distinguish their brand, communicate their value, and engage with their target audiences effectively. This case study discusses how we led a unique, hands-on workshop aimed at empowering global marketers at a global bank with the knowledge and tools to leverage Generative AI (GenAI) to support their brand.

What is Generative AI?

Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that generates new data, including text, images, audio, and video. It works by generating outputs similar to its training set without explicitly replicating it. It's used in systems like ChatGPT, Bing AI, Bard, Midjourney, DALL-E, among others.

Despite its probabilistic nature and its potential to generate errors, GenAI's primary goal is to provide human-like responses rather than focusing on absolute accuracy. The heart of GenAI lies in its foundation models, which are highly extensible and allow any application to access advanced AI capabilities without incurring the cost of developing these capabilities.

Early studies indicate that GenAI can lead to performance improvements of 30 to 80 percent for individual tasks, such as coding, writing, marketing, and producing business materials, representing a significant increase in productivity.

The Challenges of GenAI

Despite its advantages, GenAI is not without its challenges. "Hallucination," where the AI makes things up, is one such issue. There is also the potential risk of exposing confidential company information. This represented a particular challenge for our client. As a global bank, employees are restricted from using tools such as ChatGPT.

The Workshop: Navigating the Landscape of Generative AI

Taking an innovative approach to exploring the vast potential of Generative AI (GenAI), the workshop utilized custom prepared workbooks, each brimming with a variety of AI-generated responses to the same set of marketing prompts. In lieu of direct access to AI tools, participants were given a unique opportunity to compare and contrast AI's diverse responses, fostering a deep understanding of its capabilities and applications.

The workshop unfolded in a series of structured, thought-provoking sessions:

1. Marketing Copy: Participants began their journey by evaluating AI-generated marketing copy. They compared the different ways AI responded to the same marketing scenario, highlighting the nuances in creativity, relevance, and engagement.
2. Press Release Analysis: In this session, participants dissected AI-created press releases. Diverse responses to the same brand update provided an interesting perspective on how AI communicates brand news.
3. Social Media Exploration: This segment delved into the realm of social media content. By comparing how AI generated content for various platforms, participants gleaned insights into AI's approach to creating personalized, timely, and relevant content.
4. Brand Imagery Inspection: This visual-centric session had participants compare AI-generated brand imagery based on the same prompt. The exercise underscored AI's ability to interpret and translate instructions into a wide range of visual content, each unique yet aligning with the brand's identity.
5. Tagline Evaluation: The workshop concluded with participants examining AI-crafted taglines. Different interpretations of the same brand essence made for interesting discussions about AI's ability to create catchy, impactful phrases that resonate.

The process of comparing and contrasting AI responses underscored the unpredictability of GenAI, sparking interesting conversations around harnessing its creative power while managing its inherent tendency for variance. The comparative approach of the workshop also emphasized the importance of understanding and evaluating AI outputs, rather than simply correcting or refining them.

The workshop was a vibrant fusion of intellectual exploration and creative discovery. By presenting GenAI's capabilities in a tangible, hands-on manner, participants walked away not only with a theoretical understanding of GenAI, but also with practical experience in evaluating and leveraging AI in marketing strategies. The insights gained from the workshop will undoubtedly serve as a solid foundation for their future encounters with AI in the world of marketing.