5 AI Insights That Will Take Your Print Campaigns to the Next Level

Artificial intelligence is transforming print marketing, making it more targeted, personalized, and effective. From direct mail to brochures, AI helps businesses deliver the right message to the right people at the right time.

Here are five ways to use AI to take your print campaigns to the next level.

1. Predicting Customer Behavior and Preferences

AI algorithms are great at analyzing large sets of customer data to predict behaviors and preferences.

By examining past interactions, demographics, and buying patterns, AI can help you identify which customers are most likely to respond to specific types of print marketing. This allows for highly targeted print campaigns that resonate more with your audience.

Example: A direct mail piece promoting a new service can be customized to target customers who have previously shown interest in similar offerings, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

2. Personalizing Print Content for Maximum Impact

Personalization is key to capturing attention.

AI can automate the process of personalizing print content based on customer data. This can range from adjusting the wording in a brochure to creating custom offers on postcards. AI can help you segment your audience by their preferences, behaviors, or purchase history, and tailor print materials accordingly.

Example: You could send a personalized coupon to a frequent shopper or a birthday card with a special offer to customers on their birthday.

3. Improving the Timing and Frequency of Print Campaigns

AI can also help determine when and how often your print materials are sent out.

By analyzing past customer behavior, AI can determine the ideal timing for delivering print materials.

Example: If certain customers tend to respond to promotions sent during the holiday season, AI can schedule your next batch of holiday-themed direct mail campaigns accordingly. Additionally, AI can help you find the right balance of frequency, ensuring your customers aren't overwhelmed with too much communication but are also not left out of important updates.

4. AI-Driven Content Testing for Better Results

AI can be used to test different content variations in your print materials to see what resonates best with your audience.

By analyzing customer interactions with various versions of a flyer, postcard, or brochure, AI can provide insights into which headlines, images, or calls to action generated the most responses. This type of content testing, powered by AI, helps you optimize your campaigns and ensures you’re not guessing what works but using data to back up your decisions.

5. AI for Multi-Channel Marketing Integration

AI doesn’t just help with print materials—it can also integrate your print campaigns with other marketing channels.

By combining insights from digital touchpoints like emails, social media, and your website with your print campaigns, AI helps create a seamless, multi-channel customer experience.

Example: A customer who receives a direct mail piece might see a follow-up email or social media ad that speaks to the same offer or promotion, creating consistency and reinforcing the message.

Getting Started with AI-Driven Insights in Print Campaigns

Integrating AI into your print campaigns doesn’t have to be complicated.

Start small by using AI tools to analyze customer data and segment your audience more effectively. Experiment with personalization in your direct mail pieces or other print materials. Track and measure customer interactions with your printed pieces using digital tools like QR codes, and use those insights to adjust future campaigns.

By harnessing the power of AI, you can make your print marketing smarter and more effective, ultimately improving customer engagement and driving better results.

The AI Marketing Canvas: A Five-Stage Roadmap to Implementing Artificial Intelligence in Marketing

by Raj Venkatesan & Jim Lecinski

This book offers a direct, actionable plan CMOs can use to map out initiatives that are properly sequenced and designed for success―regardless of where their marketing organization is in the process.

The opening chapters provide marketing leaders with an overview of what exactly AI is and how is it different than traditional computer science approaches. Venkatesan and Lecinski, then, propose a best-practice, five-stage framework for implementing what they term the "AI Marketing Canvas." Their approach is based on research and interviews they conducted with leading marketers, and offers many tangible examples of what brands are doing at each stage of the AI Marketing Canvas. By way of guidance, Venkatesan and Lecinski provide examples of brands―including Google, Lyft, Ancestry.com, and Coca-Cola―that have successfully woven AI into their marketing strategies. The book concludes with a discussion of important implications for marketing leaders―for your team and culture.