Getting Under the Hood of AI

For good or bad, AI is taking the world by storm.

It’s transforming industries, and redefining our daily lives, but despite its rapid growth, integrating AI effectively into any business remains a challenge whilst also posing several questions, such as:

• Can AI tools benefit our business?
• Why should we integrate AI into our business processes?
• What are the benefits of implementing AI tools?
• Which AI tools are leading the way?
• Where would we start?

To explore the answers to these questions, Wish’s Chris and Jon ventured to London in July to attend a far- reaching Agency Hackers AI conference at the Royal Institution, to hear prominent industry speakers define the many new opportunities offered through AI business integration.

So, we wanted to share some of the findings and key takeaways from the event here.

Creating Prompts

One of the main takeaways from the sessions was the importance of using very specific prompts to ensure accurate outcomes, for example if you were working with an AI tool on a press release, you may get descriptive around the tone of voice, brand message, and target audience. When used correctly, AI platforms can be very helpful tools for businesses across many industries.

To maximise the benefits of AI, it is essential to clearly set out the objective for each task. This means that by providing the AI platform with a more detailed brief, the output will be significantly more relevant and accurate.

Below you can find an example prompt that may be used to have a piece of content reviewed:

“Act as a highly skilled editor with a proficiency in the English language.

Your task involves a comprehensive analysis of a text provided to you. Here are the key actions you need to undertake:

 Highlight Spelling Errors: Scrutinise the text for any spelling mistakes. For each error, quote the erroneous word, propose the correct spelling, and mention the line number for easy reference.

Identify Grammatical Errors: Examine the text for grammatical inaccuracies. For each, quote the part of the sentence that is incorrect, offer a grammatically sound alternative, and include the line number to streamline the revision process.

Identify Redundant Sentences: Pinpoint and list any sentences that do not contribute meaningful information or clarity to the text. Provide the line number and suggest a justification for considering it redundant.

Assess Choice of Words: Evaluate the text for any words that may not be the best fit within their context. Recommend more suitable words or phrases, ensuring to explain the reasoning behind your choices. Include the line number for each.

Present your analysis in a structured format that segregates your feedback into the categories mentioned above. Ensure your format is easy for reference and amendments.

Accompany your corrections and suggestions with rationales that provide insight into your editorial decisions, aimed at enhancing the quality and clarity of the text.

Your ultimate goal is to refine the text into its most effective and error-free version, using your expertise to illuminate areas of improvement.

All should be based on UK English, not American English. 

Here’s the text to be analysed:

Here you would add in your content.”

Now, having the copy you have slaved over reviewed by AI may seem daunting, but the thing to remember is, you don’t have to make all changes that the AI tool might suggest! It may be incorrect or offer suggestions you don’t agree with. But think of it as an assistant, playing devil’s advocate, offering suggestions to make your content even better than it was already.

 

Image / Video Generation: Exploring Creative AI Tools

There are many options for AI image/video generation on the market; however, there are still some issues surrounding the reliability of the images created. AI systems must source their created content from existing content, which can pose a copyright risk.

Dove has launched its ‘Real Beauty’ campaign, becoming the first beauty brand to ban AI-generated images in its marketing, as detailed in this Forbes article. This move highlights concerns about product reliability and credibility when using AI-generated images.

It’s worth exploring various platforms to see what they can create. Some examples include Free Flo AI and Opus Clip. However, we feel there is still a long way to go, and at the end of the day, you can’t beat human creativity! We would suggest using these tools in addition to, rather than replacing human creativity. They can be a great way to move on from a blank page and get the creative juices flowing.

 

Call Listening AI: Enhancing Productivity and Accuracy

Using AI for call listening can significantly enhance productivity by generating transcripts, highlighting any key points discussed, and suggesting any potential follow-up actions. This may be used for example on daily Zoom / Teams or Google Meetings, or even for client online or in person meetings. However, always double-check the AI-generated content for accuracy, as it can sometimes be lost in translation.

Some tools used for this are Otter AI and Fireflies AI. As an example use case within an agency, these tools may be used to speed up the onboarding process for new clients to a business, helping to generate strategy documents to support ongoing marketing activities, based on the discussions during the meeting.

These AI tools can also remember past discussions, so by building a library of these conversations and analysing new client calls, AI can identify any recurring themes and concerns, enabling marketing teams to suggest more personalised recommendations for their marketing strategies.

However, as always, there are a few downsides to using this type of software, as writing up notes following a client meeting is actually a valuable way to refresh your memory and really get to grips with exactly what is required.

In addition, some people may not be impressed or comfortable if an AI bot joined a call – if you try using this kind of AI tool, we would certainly recommend making other attendees aware of this beforehand to check they were comfortable with the additional AI attendee!

 

Workflow Tools: Streamlining Daily Tasks

Cutting out mundane admin tasks is great for productivity, and incorporating AI workflow tools into daily tasks will help lighten the load, enabling you to allocate more time to focus on more work-related tasks.

For example, platforms such as Make AI and ChatGPT enable users to set up personalised email responses to enquiries, carry out competitor research, and research potential customer audiences. These tools can help create reports and analyse data, allowing teams to make more data-informed decisions effectively.

By using AI, businesses can potentially lower response times and therefore improve overall efficiency.

But how does an AI response email differ to a generic auto-reply email?

That’s a great question – the answer to this is personalisation, whilst linking back to what we discussed earlier about prompts.

So, let’s say you are a company who fit out offices, you have a strong website that attracts lots of enquiries, but you waste a lot of time dealing with enquiries that are not genuine or don’t lead to a project.

You need to qualify your leads more effectively. Using Make AI, a business could link their contact form enquiries with their / a personal email account and ask specific questions, amongst the usual data capture questions, such as the below with sample responses:

 

Postcode: LS22 5HY

Type of project: Full office fit out

Budget guide: £20,000

In a few words, what is your vision for the project: Create a stylish workspace for staff and clients.

 

The AI generated response could then use this information within its reply, for example:

“Hi Georgina

Thanks for your enquiry, your project sounds of great interest.

I see you’re based in Hunsingore, that’s a lovely village near Wetherby, isn’t it? We do cover that area so could certainly support with a full office fit out project.

Your budget offers a great starting point to work to, please could you let me know if the £20,000 figure mentioned excludes VAT?

Many of our clients also contact us seeking a stylish workspace for both staff and clients, so we have some great examples we could discuss with you.

Please can you let me know a suitable time to meet – would online be ok initially?

My contact details are below if needed. Hope to hear from you soon.

Many thanks

John Doe

Makebelieve Office Fit Outs

Makebelievefitouts.com

T: 01234567891″

 

The email would come from that users email account so as far as the recipient is concerned, it’s a human response. But to avoid any issues, the responses could always come to you initially, to proof read and ensure it makes sense / isn’t saying anything unusual – for example, if someone added in the vision part “just call me”, you wouldn’t want the response to say “we work on various projects with a ‘just call me’ theme so have lots of examples to discuss”….

Overall, there are various tools and methods that could assist with streamlining routine tasks within a business, but that question lingers – is it right for your business?

 

AI Policy: Establishing Guidelines for AI Use

Should you choose to integrate AI into your place of work, it is crucial to have a robust AI policy in place. Using resources like Responsible AI can help you create tailored templates to define for example who uses AI, how it can or should be used, allowed tools, and when it is appropriate.

To assist organisations in developing comprehensive AI policies, the Responsible AI Institute offers an AI Policy Template. This template provides a detailed, industry-agnostic framework that organisations can adapt to establish foundational AI policies. The template includes:

• AI principles and objectives
• Data management protocols
• Risk management strategies
• Procurement guidelines

It’s a great starting point, but you should really think about your own company, the clients you work with, and the data you manage, to establish the most suitable policy for the business.

Data is a key consideration, as with the likes of the GDPR in place, all businesses should ensure their data obligations are being met.

 

Establishing a Dedicated AI Research Team

 So, as we’ve established, businesses currently have a unique opportunity to potentially leverage emerging AI technologies, enhancing processes to deliver better overall services. To capitalise on this potential, setting up a dedicated research team focused on AI technologies may be advisable. This is something we have done at Wish, with a dedicated team responsible for exploring available technologies that may benefit our clients and our agency processes.

 

Key Responsibilities:

Researching Emerging AI Trends and Technologies:

The AI research team could be tasked with continuously monitoring the landscape of AI. This would include staying informed on the latest developments, trends and other AI subfields. By understanding these trends, the team can identify which technologies are most promising and relevant to the business’s strategic goals.

Evaluating the Feasibility and Impact of AI Applications:

Not all AI technologies will be suitable for every business. The research team could assess the feasibility of different AI applications, considering factors like technical requirements, potential ROI, and alignment with existing processes & capabilities.

Piloting New AI-Driven Solutions:

Once promising AI applications have been identified, the research team can take the lead in developing and piloting these solutions. By creating proof-of-concept models or small-scale implementations, the team can test the real-world viability of these technologies. Successful pilots can then be scaled up and integrated into broader business operations, alongside written documentation or updates to the AI policy.

Collaborating with Stakeholders to Ensure Alignment with Business Objectives:

An AI research team will need to work closely with the various departments, including IT, marketing, operations, and finance, to ensure that AI initiatives are aligned with the overall business objectives. A collaborative approach will support in overcoming potential resistance to change and in ensuring that AI-driven solutions are effectively implemented and adopted across the business.

Establishing a dedicated research team to explore AI technologies is a proactive step towards innovation and competitive advantage. By focusing on emerging trends, evaluating opportunities, piloting solutions, and ensuring alignment with business objectives, an AI research team could play a critical role in transforming how your business operates and delivers value to clients.

 

Embracing AI

Fundamentally, AI is becoming part of the digital infrastructure and we’re starting to see AI tools within already existing and widely used platforms. It was quite a ground breaking announcement only recently, that Apple will be integrating Chat GPT within their iPhone 18 models.

Whether you’re an advocate of it or not, AI tools are here to stay, so it would be worthwhile investing time in exploring the available tools and understanding how they can potentially support your business.

 

Key Takeaways

To summarise what we’ve discussed here, the below list highlights our key takeaways from the AI event:

• Importance of Specific Prompts: Using clear and detailed prompts is crucial to achieve accurate AI outcomes. Specificity in instructions leads to more relevant and precise results.
• AI in Creative Processes: AI tools can assist in image and video generation, though they should supplement rather than replace human creativity due to concerns about reliability and originality.
• AI for Call Listening: Tools like Otter AI and Fireflies AI can enhance productivity by generating transcripts and highlighting key points from meetings. However, accuracy and user comfort should be considered.
• Streamlining Tasks with AI: AI workflow tools can automate mundane tasks, improve response times, and support data-driven decision-making. Personalisation in AI responses adds value beyond generic automated replies.
• AI Policy Necessity: Establishing a robust AI policy is essential when integrating AI into business operations. This includes guidelines on usage, data management, and risk mitigation.
• Dedicated AI Research Team: Setting up a dedicated team to explore and pilot AI technologies can help businesses stay ahead by continuously evaluating emerging trends and aligning AI initiatives with strategic goals.
• AI’s Role in the Future: AI is becoming integral to digital infrastructure, making it crucial for businesses to explore available tools and understand their potential benefits.