The advertising industry’s relentless pursuit of programmatic efficiency could be leading it toward an unintended, and undesirable, destination: a sea of sameness.
As more brands adopt the same automated tools and data sets, there is a growing risk that they are simply canceling each other out in a marketplace built on the principle of differentiation, according to Laurel Rossi, chief growth officer at Infillion.
In this video interview with Beet.TV’s Lisa Granatstein, Rossi said, when every competitor in a category uses similar AI models and platforms designed for speed and scale, the strategic outputs can become dangerously convergent.
Seek out differentiation
But Rossi said there is a risk software could also now undermine the core purpose of advertising, which has always been to carve out a unique space for a brand in the mind of the consumer.
For her, the philosophy of “homogeneity in, homogeneity out” presents a challenge to an industry facing immense technological upheaval.
“The real future is in how we build tech stacks, how we build programs, how we build the ingredients for getting to highly differentiated places,” Rossi said.
The cost of creative shortcuts
The danger becomes acute when brands rely on the same sources of information to fuel their automated campaigns.
“Unless those inputs are more strategic and unless those data sets are unique, you tend to get the same answer a bunch of times,” Rossi warned.
“Speed and scale has the potential to really stall creativity and also stall differentiation for brands and businesses… And I think around outcomes, in particular.”
This risk is amplified as the industry rapidly adopts AI-powered media buying tools. Platforms like Google’s Performance Max are gaining significant traction, with a report indicating nearly 60% of U.S. ad buyers had used or planned to use such products last year.
While powerful, these tools heighten the need for careful strategy, Rossi suggested.
Scaring up some originality
Rossi is focused on technology that enables a deeper, more strategic approach to campaign construction.
“The tools I’m keeping an eye on these days are the ones that really focus on helping me scare up some originality and also thinking about strategically how to optimize each component so that those components are actually my components,” she said.
In a global programmatic market projected to reach nearly $117 billion by 2029, finding that unique edge could become important. “In the end, that package which is a little bit human and a little bit automation are the ones that return the best outcomes,” Rossi added. “And at the end of the day, that’s what our clients are looking for.”
