There are a lot of conversations right now about AI in marketing. Some people are cautiously experimenting, and some have dived all the way in, proudly handing over the keys. So, in the spirit of curiosity, we decided to try something: We tasked AI with creating our marketing strategy for one week.
No guardrails. No edits. Just prompts in, outputs out. Here’s what happened and what it taught us.
Step 1: Start with the Prompt
We started with a simple prompt: “Create a high-performing, one-week marketing strategy for a marketing and advertising agency in Great Falls, Montana. The goal is to increase engagement, generate leads, and grow brand awareness.”
Step 2: Create the Strategy
Here’s a condensed version of what AI recommended:
- Post 3–5 times per day on all platforms
- Use trending hashtags on every post
- Create urgency with phrases like “DON’T MISS OUT” and “LIMITED TIME”
- Send daily email campaigns to your full list
- Write blog content optimized for SEO using high-volume keywords
- Repurpose the same content across all channels
- Focus on going viral to increase brand awareness
Great! We have a starting point and at first glance, we have a great lead; nothing is technically wrong. But here’s where it got interesting.
Step 3: Build a Content Calendar
We pushed it further with the prompt “Write 5 social media posts for a marketing agency that could have the chance to go viral.” Here’s what AI suggested:
- “🚀 10X YOUR BUSINESS OVERNIGHT! COMMENT ‘GROWTH’ TO LEARN HOW!”
- “Stop scrolling if you want more clicks NOW!!!”
- “We cracked the algorithm. DM us ‘SECRET’ to find out.”
- “This ONE marketing trick will change everything.”
- “Only 1% of businesses know this advertising strategy…”
Step 4: Write the Email Campaign
Great! Now, we have posts, so we asked AI, “Write a 5-email sequence that converts leads quickly”. Condensed, here is what we got back:
- Email 1 Subject: “Act Now Before It’s Too Late”
- Email 2 Subject: “Still Thinking About Wendt? Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Wait”
- Email 3 Subject: “Last Chance!!!”
- Email 4 Subject: “We Don’t Want You to Miss This”
- Email 5 Subject: “Final Reminder (Really Final)”
Step 5: Review & Prepare Launch
Well, did this work?
Short answer: In a way!
Long answer: It looked like marketing. But it lacked the things that we believe help to make marketing effective.
Lessons We Learned
AI is excellent at identifying patterns. The problem is, it often surfaces with the most common patterns, not the most effective ones. Here is where things broke down:
1.Volume Over Strategy
AI defaulted to more posts, more emails, more ads. More, more, more! But more activity without intention does not always equal better results.
Here’s where you can focus your efforts instead: intentional messaging, platform-specific strategy, leveraging AI as a tool with clear prompts and information to aid in creating a consistent schedule.
2. Generic “Viral” Language
Everything pushed from either a hyperbolic or scarcity lens. We see that language everywhere, and our audiences have learned to ignore it.
What we recommend instead: specificity, clarity, and relevance to a defined audience.
3. No Real Audience Understanding
AI did not once ask or consider the questions:
- Who are we targeting?
- What do they care about?
- Where are they in the marketing funnel?
In lieu of a one-size-fits-all marketing strategy, consider segmentation of your audience, tailored messaging, and meeting people where they are.
4. Confusing Attention with Conversion
While this marketing strategy did a great job of prioritizing virality, impressions, and engagement spikes, it did not address lead quality, conversion pathways, or long-term relationships with your audience.
What could actually work: clear funnels, strong calls-to-action, or follow-up systems.
Final Thoughts
Fully handing over your marketing strategy to AI will often produce something that looks right but doesn’t necessarily perform. That’s not a failure of AI. It’s a misunderstanding of its role.
AI is incredibly effective for:
- Generating ideas quickly
- Overcoming creative block
- Structuring content
- Repurposing existing materials
- Identifying common frameworks
AND strong marketing still depends on what AI can’t replicate:
- Judgment
- Context
- Audience empathy
- Client understanding
- Creative nuance
- Strategic decision making
AI doesn’t replace these elements; it amplifies them, but only if they already exist. We didn’t actually hand over our entire marketing strategy to AI for a week.
