Artificial intelligence could actually be hurting your bottom line, with a new study showing that mentions of the groundbreaking technology are making average customers distrustful of brands.
There’s no denying that AI has become the next big thing in tech. AI chatbots like ChatGPT and its many copycats have been rolling out at break-neck speeds over the last few years, integrating with everything from social media to business software.
However, this new study shows that customers have definitely not come around yet, pointing to a disconnect between providers and their potential clients.
‘AI’ Mentions Lower Emotional Trust
According to a study published in the Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, you might want to reconsider your marketing when it comes to AI. The data found that customers are actually less trusting of products that mention the technology, leading to fewer purchases.
“When AI is mentioned, it tends to lower emotional trust, which in turn decreases purchase intentions. We found emotional trust plays a critical role in how consumers perceive AI-powered products.” – Mesut Cicek, author of the study
The data was nothing if not conclusive when it came to this hypothesis. The study evaluated customer feelings “across eight different product and service categories, and the results were all the same: it’s a disadvantage to include those kinds of terms in the product descriptions.”
Should You Ditch the ‘AI’?
Yes, the use of AI likely got you a lot of attention from investors during your funding round, but the reality is that mentions of AI are clearly a bit off-putting for customers in 2024. Whether it’s because of the many AI errors that have plagued users over the last few years or the sci-fi-based fear that robots are taking over the world, people are just not ready for this kind of technological advancements yet.
So, what should you do when it comes to mentioning AI in your product descriptions? The study notes that removing mentions entirely is unrealistic, but that you need to be careful of how you breach the subject with your customers.
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“Marketers should carefully consider how they present AI in their product descriptions or develop strategies to increase emotional trust. Emphasizing AI may not always be beneficial, particularly for high-risk products. Focus on describing the features or benefits and avoid the AI buzzwords.” – Mesut Cicek, clinical assistant professor of marketing
Suffice to say, you can’t completely ditch the “AI” when it comes to describing your product, particularly if it is, in fact, powered by AI. But with public sentiment where it is today, we’re in a clear “less is more” strategy for the time being.
How to Use AI for Work
While AI mentions may be causing distrust for the average consumer, the productivity benefits for work are still quite substantial. In fact, whether you need professional headshots or high-quality video, there are AI tools that can help you make them in a few seconds flat.
If you want to learn more about how to use AI, be sure to check out some of our other guides to the technology, including how to use new features for Claude AI or how to use ChatGPT to analyze documents.
