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GenAI or BI: Which “Intelligence” Should Marketing Agencies Prioritize in 2025?

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    The marketing industry is perhaps one of the industries that have been most impacted by recent technology advancements. I'm not just referring to GenAI either. Business intelligence (BI) is equally important for the marketing industry's future. Yet, it is not as sexy as the glamorous promises that GenAI has the potential to deliver. These are just two of the technologies that I believe are essential to effectively transform our industry in the next few years.

    BI and GenAI - Standalone Stars or Better Together?

    Before we can answer this question, we must address the invisible elephant in the room.

    Are marketing agencies using software systems seamlessly integrated to manage projects, accounting, and other key functions often done by end-to-end agency management systems?

    If not, there cannot be true BI or quality GenAI as data about marketing agency operations would be stored in multiple siloes. You cannot have multiple versions of the truth when it comes to how an agency is performing.

    Even before deploying an end-to-end or integrated martech stack, agencies need to standardize their business processes. When standardizing business processes, senior leaders should be asking - how do they onboard and train new employees, how do they win new business and onboard new clients, how is financial reporting done, and how do we evaluate project success?

    If an agency is using an end-to-end agency management system or has built a seamlessly integrated martech stack then project, operational, and finance data are unified and likely ready to reap the value of BI and/or GenAI.

    Going back to the question that titles this section, today these technologies are usually viewed as standalone stars. But like any software in a martech stack, being a standalone star eventually will mean not fully realizing the value of the solution for agencies. This could either lead to these types of programs being replaced or being undervalued when a new standalone star upends traditional ways of running an agency.

    Each technology has tremendous value for agencies, with BI delivering actionable insights from unified data. This information can be used for internal senior leadership and client reporting to inform strategic planning and decision-making. GenAI is like the spotlight for quality agency BI as it elevates key insights into assets that agencies can use to improve internal operations, win new business, or elevate client projects.

    GenAI and BI are definitely better together, yet many agencies are caught up in the window-dressing elements of GenAI. For example, the next class of GenAI video generation.

     

    Moving from Window-Dressing to Breathing Life into Information

    The days of hype being enough for GenAI to capture interest are winding down. Our industry's ability to slowly embrace digital transformation has meant that new technologies that do not deliver real business value often stay on the sidelines.

    GenAI is not going to replace anyone's job. As can be proven despite the latest LLMs, businesses in every industry still need human + AI. We are nowhere near AGI in any industry, especially not in marketing.

    For those agencies that do not have good processes and systems, GenAI has likely been a lesson in GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out syndrome). GenAI is illuminating how valuable good data can be. This is a great service to our industry that I do not think would have occurred in the near future without GenAI.

    Where I do see the most potential for GenAI is for its ability to make the insights that BI provides more accessible for front-line users without technical or analytical backgrounds. BI will do the heavy lifting, and GenAI will make the information more usable.

     

    Determining the Value of GenAI and BI for Marketing Agencies

    Today, no one is really pinning down the ROI of GenAI in a meaningful way. The true value of these two technologies when used together is that they can help marketing agencies deliver better results, more efficiently, and perhaps more cost-effectively.

    Right now, as our industry and other industries where agencies find their clients are addressing the digital transformation wave of the mid-2020s, agencies are moving at a breakneck pace like a person riding a unicycle down a steep mountain while juggling several objects.

    The biggest ditch down that mountain that agencies need to be aware of is to not assume that GenAI and BI will magically provide benefits on their own. Agencies must unify their systems and data.  Once this is done, GenAI and BI used together can help agencies identify better big-picture choices to drive business growth.

    In Q1 2025, agencies should focus on ensuring BI is done the right way and delivering valuable insights. After this, I suggest then moving towards utilizing advanced GenAI features to supercharge the return on investment that they extract from BI.

    When it comes to implementing GenAI, agencies will likely need to enhance their protocols around data privacy to ensure internal and customer data is used securely.

    Beyond this, the issues that we have covered should make 2025 an exciting year of seeing how agencies benefit from GenAI and BI. The business of marketing and marketing professionals is here to stay, and will not be replaced by GenAI.  I look forward to seeing how the industry delivers even greater value to clients by leveraging end-to-end platforms/fully integrated martech stacks with emerging technologies.

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