AI and Marketing ROI: 4 High-Impact Areas to Reinvest Your Time

Kris -

Every conversation I have with marketing leaders seems to land on the same question lately: “What roles can AI replace?” While this might sound practical at first, this mindset often narrows the conversation too much, focusing solely on cost-cutting instead of opportunity.

But here’s the thing. The true power of AI isn’t what it eliminates. It’s what it enables. AI is delivering a massive gift to marketing teams everywhere, in the form of saved time and resources.

The real strategic question is this: What are you going to do with that efficiency dividend?

The Long-Game Cost of Short-Sighted Decisions

AI’s ability to accelerate processes like content creation, image edits, and copywriting is undeniable. And yes, the temptation to “run leaner” by shrinking junior roles is strong. But in my experience, outsourcing these entry-level experiences to machines isn’t just a cost-cutting strategy. It’s a long-term talent drain.

Roles like junior copywriters or designers aren’t just about completing tasks. They’re opportunities for developing the next generation of creative directors and brand leaders. Removing these roles means weakening your pipeline for future leadership. And beyond that, lean teams are fragile teams. They lack the resiliency to handle inevitable shifts like turnover.

Reinventing Your Marketing Team’s Value

Rather than cutting, smart leaders are figuring out where to reinvest the time saved by AI. Here are four areas I encourage marketing teams to allocate their newfound bandwidth effectively:

  1. Fine-Tune Those Automations

How long has it been since your triggered email campaigns or marketing flows were updated? Probably too long. Refreshing these systems based on modern customer behavior could boost ROI significantly.

  1. Level-Up Personalization

Basic name fields aren’t cutting it anymore. AI’s ability to create time allows your team to dig deep into customer data, personalizing in ways that improve engagement and conversion for your top segments.

  1. Introduce Better Metrics

Start building customer-centric reporting methods that measure what really matters, like LTV (Lifetime Value) and revenue per customer. AI gives you the time to analyze and act on this data, making these metrics go from “nice-to-have” to “must-have.”

  1. Double Down on Testing

Instead of cutting testing programs when things get busy, use newly freed resources to experiment systematically, creating compounding growth over time.

Playing the Long Game with AI

You’ve got two choices when it comes to leveraging AI in your marketing strategy:

Short-Term Path

Reduce headcount. Save money. Add efficiency. Sounds great, but you’ll risk building a fragile and less dynamic team.

Long-Term Path

Use AI’s efficiency to double down on strategic initiatives, creating a marketing engine that not just survives but thrives. Reinvest those time savings in ways that propel your team to create something sustainable and scalable.

Smart businesses are already using AI as a means to build innovative teams that create lasting competitive advantages. What will you choose to do with AI's power?

What’s your plan for AI’s efficiency dividend? Subscribe to my newsletter for more tips on how to scale your marketing efforts and drive long-term success.