Search intelligence: A strategic asset for marketers in the age of big data

Go beyond the initial term to think of the problem the audience is trying to solve

After the internet and smartphone revolution, we are now on the cusp of the “intelligence revolution” driven primarily by artificial intelligence (AI), big data and machine learning. The intelligence revolution will fundamentally change the way in which brands build relationships with their customers, enabling them to drive immersive and human-centric experiences.

Consumers today expect hyper-personalised experiences that are more intuitive, contextually relevant, and predictive. With advanced computing techniques like AI, they are able to harness the expanding volumes of customer data to create these experiences. At its core, AI is built on data—a significant portion of which is delivered by search intelligence—which collect and interpret customer intent signals such as requests, emotions, needs and context.

The 2017 Accenture Digital Consumer Survey of 26,000 consumers in 26 countries revealed valuable insights into today’s dynamic digital consumers and their relationship with technology. It showed 84 per cent of 14 to 17-year-olds use or are interested in using the voice-enabled digital assistant (often AI-driven) in their smartphone.

Additionally, tech giants and digitally native companies such as Apple, Amazon and Google are pouring billions of dollars into AI, according to the Artificial Intelligence: The next digital frontier? 2017 study by the McKinsey Global Institute.

In the past few years, consumer interaction with search has advanced dramatically. It is no longer considered “just a search engine”. We’ve entered an era where search is personal, predictive and actionable. It’s not only on our computers, but it’s on our phones, cars and homes. Search engines are becoming more and more intelligent, delivering contextual results based on location, trends and historical data.

Let’s take Bing. Using its technology, Microsoft is making AI accessible to every person and company; infusing it in every application on every device. Bing’s search, vision, speech and image recognition technology is being used to build deeper customer relationships. Bing powers the voices of Cortana (personal digital assistant for Windows 10), Siri (the intelligent personal assistant for iOS) and Alexa (personal assistant developed by Amazon). When consumers search for a product or a service, they are no longer sent a list of links. For example, Cortana shares the most relevant content for a consumer in the most contextually sensible way; providing personalised results and giving consumers answers based on their patterns without them having to ask.

We’re heading towards an era where consumers will interact with technology through a virtual assistant or a bot because more and more people want their brand interactions to be intuitive. Microsoft Cognitive Services—a collection of Application Programming Interfaces and Software Development Kits—allows developers to use a broad suite of AI technology to connect brands with their audiences more naturally. Developers can easily add intelligent features like facial, speech and vision recognition, emotion detection, and more into their applications to help brands build more meaningful connections with their customers.

Search has therefore transformed into a strategic asset for marketers. Coupled with the abilities of AI, it can help marketers understand consumer behaviour and intent in more dimensions. But understanding and planning for search intent is critical to delivering tailored experiences.

So a brand needs to go beyond the initial search term, and think about what problem its audience is most likely trying to solve.

It needs to anticipate what a consumer might need after their original search intent has been satisfied. Search data, combined with AI, enables deep user understanding for marketers because they can now predict what their customers will buy next; which device or channel they use the most for online shopping, the time of day they are most likely to make a purchase, etc. Marketers can draw on these insights to ultimately deliver personalization at scale.

A case in point: a digital assistant may receive a voice query from a consumer asking, "I need a black dress for next week's cocktail party". This query provides both product information and context. The woman needs a black dress for next week; this implies urgency. Based on this, marketers can strategically craft their ads and time it to match this woman's exact needs. If, by a certain day of next week, she has still not bought the dress, they know that they have to continue to show relevant ads for a black dress. Thus, the advertising is personalized, timely and targeted; resulting in more user engagement.

AI together with search has tremendous potential, and the ability to positively impact the brand-consumer conversation. Search is a fundamental tenet of the digital experience that people need and expect. A marketer's approach to search therefore requires greater attention. Companies can build richer connections with their customers, empower employees, transform products and optimize their operations by embedding search in everything that they do.

Neena Dasgupta is CEO & director, Zirca Digital Solutions