TL;DR:
- 55% of APAC businesses view AI as a crucial part of their social media strategy, higher than the global average of 44%.
- AI tools help save time on writing (64%) and improve copy quality (36%).
- Local agencies like KRDS and Gushcloud International are incorporating AI in their social media strategies for functional and entertainment purposes.
In the ever-evolving digital marketing landscape, artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a game changer for social media strategies in Asia. A recent report by Meltwater reveals that 55% of Asia-Pacific (APAC) businesses consider AI an important part of their social media strategy, significantly higher than the global average of 44%.
The ‘State of Social Media 2024’ report, which surveyed around 400 professionals in the APAC region, found that 55% of marketing and communication professionals plan to increase their use of AI tools in 2024. These organisations mainly leverage AI to find inspiration (45%) and create copies (40%).
AI tools are proving to be invaluable for social media teams. 64% of respondents say AI tools help them save time on writing, while 36% say it helps improve their copy. With the increasing use of AI in social media agencies, local agencies are incorporating AI in their social media strategies and planning to continue investing in it as it grows.
Sunny Johar, Managing Director and Head of Digital Strategy at KRDS, highlights two distinct aspects to the use of AI in social media: functional and entertainment. Functional AI is used on a tactical level, such as generative AI for images, while AI for entertainment puts AI at the heart of the idea to create interactive campaigns at scale.
Generative AI for Images
Use generative AI to create unique images for your brand’s social media campaigns, especially if your industry has minimally differentiated products. This can help you stand out from competitors who may be using similar stock images.
AI-Centric Campaigns: Seizing Opportunities
At KRDS Singapore, the team is always ready to add an interactive twist to a campaign with AI. While they have already invested in several functional AI tools, they are also prepared to explore lesser-known tools to deliver a more unique vision when creating AI-centric campaigns.
Johar emphasises that AI is not a replacement for humans but a powerful tool to deliver interactive campaigns. While AI may help employees with certain tasks, it frees up their time to provide more value addition.
AI in Content Production: A Substantial Growth
Content production has increased by 56.7% since the year ChatGPT launched, making content generation easier than ever. However, despite the ease of generating social media content with AI, 51% of companies are concerned about employee bandwidth when managing social media, and 37% cite not having a defined strategy as the bigger challenge.
Incorporating Education into AI Implementation
Education is key when incorporating AI into social media teams and strategies. Yi Hui Toh, Country Manager, Singapore at AnyMind Group, believes that education can be broken down into two stages: adoption and familiarisation. During the adoption stage, use cases will make or break confidence around reception of the technology. In the familiarisation stage, consideration must be made when implementing AI into social media workflows.
Gushcloud International uses AI to assist in data research and analysis to come up with consumer insights. These insights form the basis for campaign strategies. Moreover, their campaign strategists and creatives also use AI tools such as Gencraft and ChatGPT to help with content ideation and content mockup.
How has AI transformed your social media strategies? Share your experiences and thoughts on future trends in the comments below. Don’t forget to subscribe for updates on AI and AGI developments.
