What Is Better Marketing Today?
This edition of COMMENTARY is by: Deborah Malone, Founder of The Internationalist
After reviewing the winners of The Internationalist’s inaugural AI AWARDS FOR BETTER MARKETING, I found myself asking a deceptively simple question:
What does “better marketing” really mean in the age of AI?
The answers—if you look closely—are as powerful as they are uplifting.
Across countries, categories, and channels, these case studies showcased how AI is unlocking more human, more emotional, and more personal connections at scale—in ways that simply weren’t possible before.
But as significant as AI may be, it’s not the technology alone that creates better marketing—it’s the people behind it. The winners of these awards reminded me of that truth over and over again.
From Portugal to Taiwan, Sweden to Australia— we saw AI making a meaningful difference in ways that weren’t feasible before:
- Telstra’s AI Santa Hotline brought joy to over half a million children by using generative AI to simulate magical conversations through public payphones. Could it have been done without AI? Not at this scale, not this personally.
- Continente’s “Recipe of the Year” used loyalty data and machine learning to create 60 million unique, joyful, and highly resonant “recipes of the year” for each shopper. Only AI could have analyzed, personalized, and rendered this kind of storytelling at scale.
- REWE’s Dynamic Print Ads turned a traditionally static medium into a hyper-personalized, real-time retail engine. Without AI? A logistical impossibility.
- Dove’s Real Beauty DNA actually retrained a biased algorithm on Pinterest to reflect inclusive definitions of beauty—proof that AI can be both ethical and empowering.
In every case, AI didn’t replace creativity—it amplified it. And the best results emerged when technology served human values, not the other way around.
These awards were designed to spotlight not only how brands are using AI to achieve marketing success, but how they’re doing it responsibly and imaginatively. We wanted to recognize campaigns where AI and human insight worked together, and where the result wasn’t just efficiency, but emotional impact and business value.
I know there are challenges regarding AI and marketing. There are numerous conversations and genuine concerns about shrinking jobs, marketing vulnerabilities, redefinition of CMO roles, and Big Tech dominance. However, technology moves ever forward, and just like childhood stories, it’s not easy to put the genie back in the bottle.
These are simply inspirational examples of how AI can indeed contribute to better marketing, thanks to human imagination and making the possible real.
The Trends We Saw
From analyzing all 12 winners, we uncovered six key roles AI is playing in redefining modern marketing:
- Real-Time Optimization – adjusting media and creative dynamically based on live data
- Emotional & Behavioral Targeting – recognizing human needs and delivering timely nudges
- Generative Engagement – crafting voices, images, and experiences at scale
- Visual & Brand Consistency – curating better content, faster and more consistently
- Data-Driven Storytelling – transforming transactions into emotionally resonant stories
- Ethical AI Shaping – retraining algorithms to reflect values, not just preferences
A Blueprint for Better AI Marketing
From these trends, a few principles emerged for marketers looking to do more with AI:
✅ Use AI for possibility, not just productivity.
✅ Let AI handle complexity so humans can focus on creativity.
✅ Blend precision with empathy—personalization is only powerful when it feels personal.
✅ Build with transparency and ethics from the start.
✅ Don’t ask what AI can automate. Ask what only AI makes possible.
TRENDS FOR MARKETING’S FUTURE
This Is Just the Beginning…
The most exciting part of this first awards cycle? The tone. These weren’t campaigns rooted in optimization alone. They were joyful, creative, and purposeful.
As marketers, we’ve always strived to understand people better. To connect. To build something meaningful. Now—with the right tools and the right mindset—these pioneering examples show how AI can help us get there faster, more imaginatively, and more authentically than ever before.
So, I’ll ask again: What does better marketing look like?
Better marketing doesn’t just move faster. It connects more deeply, solves creatively, and resonates more personally. And increasingly, AI is making these possibilities real–provided it’s with people at the center, and purpose in every step.
