Do humans matter in the era of artificial intelligence? My quest into this question in the world of sales and marketing across countries led me to an intrusive consumer research exercise that had me exploring a 4,600-plus sample. I peeped into the life of the consumer as a user of goods and services—including consumer goods, durables, hospitality, telecom, newspapers, e-commerce and more. This time round, my research exercise covered urban and supra-urban markets alone.
Let me head straight to the results. The happy fact remains that people matter. Individuals with a real mind and body do matter, even in the era of AI. The happier fact is that data from certain categories of consumer interface seem to say that the only thing that matters is the human being. The customer relationship manager, the general manager of a hotel, the editor of a newspaper and the shopkeeper of your corner shop matter. They matter more than anything else, even today. And will matter more in the years to come, if my prognosis is correct.
People will matter more and more in some realms. They will be the cutting edge in sales and marketing interfaces. While every Tom, Dick and Harish is able to offer a superior product, a well-handled brand, and good PR and advertising, the one differential that will make it all cut through to a win is the human being. This time round, the human being is not at the back end; instead, he is the one who is at the front of it all.
The front face that you recognise at a hotel, that you look forward to interacting with again and again. This front face is incidentally not the junior trainee at the hotel check-in desk. Instead she is the general manager of the hotel who can be seen all around. She is somewhere around as you check in and she is out there at the breakfast restaurant mingling with guests. She just might be there as you check out to say goodbye and see if all went well. And none of these appearances are as casual as they seem. They are purposive attempts painstakingly curated to offer a seamless top-management front face and a name you can remember and look forward to.
Just like hotel customers love to interact with the general manager, readers of physical newspapers love to know the name of the editor. If not for that, they might as well be reading news out of a curation app—without a stance, without sensitivity even. The physical newspaper is, therefore. a reputation curated by the editor. The reader is with you when he knows the name of the editor, and the ethos and stance of the editor. The reader understands the tenor and decibel of the written word carefully presented by the editor. In many ways, a reader gravitates to a physical newspaper based on the editor and his reputation. Must a newspaper then proudly showcase the name of its editor on the masthead? Maybe a picture even? Is that a bleeding-edge way of adding personalisation and repute to the publication?
My research evidence tells me that the true differentiation will be made by personalisation efforts by the newspapers of the day. The brand is dead; long live the brand. The new brand—in the era of crass generalisation by the iron-box effect of AI—is the personalisation effort of hitherto mass brands. Do remember, everyone has a brand. The brand is, however, a point of equalisation today. It is a hygiene factor you cannot but have. It is the lowest common denominator differentiation.
The differentiation in the future will be made by personalisation. Individuals will matter more than ever. And that will be a highest common denominator differentiation. As of today, it is quite likely that the brand has robbed individuals of their sheen and value. In the future, individuals will rob the brand of its sheen. Brand sheen of newspapers will be added by the name of the editor more than anything or anyone else.
Let me take this train of thought triggered by my research onto Indian retail. Consumers today are tired of brands. They have become so common that there is no distinction between one and the other at all. When I walk in to buy a mobile phone, I have a set of branded outlets I walk into. I can walk into any of 15 branded retail outlets that stock mobile phones. All of them stock the same brands, have the same price levels, offer the same schemes on use of specific branded credit cards, and the service standards by and large are the same. So what do I do? I go to the one closest to me by distance. The brand of the retail outlet is dead, if it’s not dying fast.
Let me jump onto e-commerce platforms. The same issue stares back at me. Every e-commerce platform offers the same in product, service, returns policy and price. How do I choose? Quite blindly. By habit at times. What’s the different and more exciting way to do this buy then? By stepping out into the great Indian bazaar. The shopping experience is that much more exciting. Bargaining is a joy. The experience is more alive and sensorial. Every one of my senses is alive now. Buying my phone from Prahlad Shetty, the owner of a small store in the bylanes of Shanivarpeth in Pune, is that much more satisfying. The buyback offer seems a steal. Prahlad Shetty will remember when he sold me the phone. He knows exactly what I like. The next time round, three years later, he might just call me to tell me it’s time to replace as a whole new set of features have arrived. Features that I just might love. Personalisation is back. Or is going to be back. With a vengeance. Not led by data and diagnostics and AI. Instead led by the reputation Prahlad Shetty has built with me. This is a relationship. As AI and brands and modern retail iron out the creases of differentiated selling and buying, Prahlad Shetty is creating the creases once again. Creases I love.
In sum, the new bleeding-edge brand is the rock-star editor of a newspaper, the ubiquitous front-facing general manager of a hotel, and your corner-shop grocer. Look at them carefully. They are rainmakers.
Brand guru and Founder, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc