The Marketer’s Dilemma
In the world of marketing, especially within the dynamic realm of real estate, one of the most significant challenges is the efficient allocation of resources. As a marketer, my journey encompassed a wide variety of responsibilities, from managing websites and crafting content to overseeing digital advertising campaigns. With limited resources, the question always remained: how can one optimize time to yield the greatest results? These challenges spurred the creation of the JMC Chat, a conversational AI assistant built on the low-code Power Virtual Agents platform, now known as Copilot Studio providing staff with access to a context-backed chatbot integrated directly into Microsoft Teams.
The Inception of JMC Chat
Creating digital ads for multiple properties was not only time-consuming but required constant updates to each property’s unique offerings. The similarities between properties, each with their distinct branding, added complexity to the task. The need for an efficient, adaptable tool was clear, particularly as I focused on scaling campaigns across various properties. Weekly occupancy changes demanded quick, tailored campaign adjustments, making time-to-delivery a critical factor. Having previously used content creation tools such as Jasper.ai, it was clear that there were systems capable of producing compelling ad copy and with the recent leaps in AI capabilities, and an ever-growing spreadsheet of property-specific data, a solution presented itself in the form of GPT-4.
Creating what is now known as the JMC Chat, built on the low-code Power Virtual Agents platform, began with the process of data aggregation. This involved scraping text from each property’s website using a blend of ChatGPT’s plugins and manual efforts. The gathered information was then carefully cleaned, with a focus on removing transient data like pricing, to ensure longevity and relevance.
The next phase centered around organizing this curated data into a structured Excel spreadsheet. This step was crucial in streamlining the data retrieval process, particularly in simplifying the Power Automate flows. These flows were designed to use SQL to pull data from the spreadsheet, using each property’s unique information as a foundation for context-driven content creation. This data included a rich array of details such as brand messaging, slogans, neighborhood insights, amenities, and floor plan styles.
User Interaction
- Start the conversation by greeting the chatbot with a simple ‘Hi’, which activates the chat interface.
- Enter the name of the property or brand. This step is crucial as it sets the context for the AI, ensuring that the responses and content generated are tailored to the specific property in question.
- Choose from a range of prompts available in the chat interface. These prompts are designed to cater to various marketing needs, from social media content to advertising copy.
- Provide additional details as needed. Depending on the chosen prompt, users may need to input more specific information to guide the content generation process.
- The tool then processes the input, combining the user-provided details with pre-loaded property data from the centralized database.
- GPT-4, integrated into the chatbot, utilizes this combined information to generate a customized response or content piece.
- Users can then access a variety of resources directly through the chatbot, including links to professional photos and videos stored on OneDrive, further aiding in content creation and marketing efforts.
- If necessary, users can explore hidden prompts to generate other content. These leverage detailed prompts to aid in efforts through Meta Ads, SEO, video callouts/captions, and more.
- Once the content is generated, it can be reviewed, edited, or used as-is for various marketing purposes, from social media posts to email marketing campaigns.
The Future of AI in Marketing
JMC Chat represents a pivotal shift in digital marketing. By harnessing the capabilities of AI, particularly GPT-4, we’ve empowered our marketing team with a tool that not only saves time but also elevates the average quality of content as seen by improvements in advertising campaign performance and website rankings. This AI assistant seamlessly integrates into daily workflows, providing instant access to tailored marketing materials and copy that staff can leverage to improve their output and focus on the customer service aspect, reducing turnover and thereby decreasing overall marketing costs.
As I continue to explore the vast potential of AI, tools like JMC Chat will remain at the forefront, shaping the way we connect with prospects. The journey of creating JMC Chat is just the beginning of a larger narrative in the world of AI-powered marketing solutions as tools such as this don’t serve a single purpose, generating content; it represents a shift in how we approach marketing in the digital age giving us the time to focus on higher impact strategies.
