Ideas
According to Nielsen, generative AI is “reshaping marketing.” Or in the words of AMD CMO John Taylor: “In my almost three decades working in technology, I’ve never seen anything move as quickly as AI.”
Sounds urgent, and it is. But urgency can also mean risk for businesses in regulated industries like financial services.
Certainly, there is huge opportunity: to increase efficiency, target more precisely and deliver customers what VShift CEO Al Collins calls “extreme relevance at scale.”
But the risks are great too. For example: pouring time and money into poorly planned pilots. Chancing brand inconsistency by ceding human control to automation. And the potential for costly compliance missteps resulting in monetary penalties and damaged reputation.
The real challenge isn’t whether to use GenAI, but how to use it well. And the best way to answer that is by asking the right questions.
1. Where can GenAI create real business growth, not just efficiency gains?
Efficiency is table stakes. Ask: How can GenAI help us win new clients, deepen relationships or differentiate our offering?
2. Do we have the data foundations to make AI work?
As they say: AI is easy – data is hard. Ask: Do we have the right customer data, harmonized across systems, accessible to marketing and protected for privacy? Can we trust this data – and can we trust AI with this data?
3. How do we keep every output compliant, consistent and on-brand?
Regulation means every message matters. Ask: What guardrails ensure AI-generated content meets regulatory standards and reflects brand voice?
4. Are our GenAI efforts orchestrated across teams, or stuck in silos?
Scattered pilots fragment the customer experience. Ask: How do we coordinate across marketing, product, sales and comms so AI works as one system?
5. What’s our GenAI roadmap for the next 12 months?
Without a plan, pilots fizzle. Ask: Which near-term initiatives will deliver early wins, build leadership confidence, and scale into a sustainable program?
AI doesn’t reward hesitation – or blind experimentation either. By asking (and answering) the right questions now, financial services marketers can create focus, reduce risk and accelerate results – of that, at least, we can be certain.
VShift is a digital strategy, design and technology agency for enterprise-scale brands in regulated industries.