The Prize
Agentic AI in the form of Co-Marketers and Digital Twins is what will help brands and martech software providers unlock $250 billion of AdWaste that is being spent on adtech. This is the key to profitability for consumer-facing brands who are today locked in an unwinnable battle to control CAC. The Agentic AI future will make martech as easy as adtech.
For martech providers caught in the red ocean of competition, Agentic AI is the gateway to unlocking new pools of profits in a non-zero-sum world. Today, when one martech provider replaces another in a brand, they are typically doing at a lower MRR – leading to a scenario where it becomes harder and harder to just stay in place in a world where staff and operating costs keep increasing. Agentic AI combined with a shift in business model from SaaS to 4S (strategy, software, services, and sharing) is what will unlock new growth opportunities for martech companies. For example, email service providers could create new monetization opportunities based on “Action Ads” in email. Martech providers could use the Progency model to create new revenues and share in the upside. They could also provide a people-based services offering to refine AI models, simplifying the complexities for CMOs. These are ideas I have discussed in some of my recent essays:
- Progency: The Profipoly Pathway
- Email 2.0 Progency: eCommerce’s Profit Powerhouse
- Profishare: A New Business Model for Enterprise Software
- Solving Marketing’s Three Zeros Problems via Progency
- ELF: eCommerce Lifecycle Franchisee
- The 7½ Futures of Martech Companies
- Emagining E3 Ecosystem: Every Email Engaged
- Martech 3: Can the Price be Zero?
- FAB: A New Model for Enterprise Software
- Bundled Kaizen Services: An Advantage for Indian SaaS
- Ads in Emails
- New SaaS: Services, AI Agents, Sharing
- The 7 Levers for Email’s Exponential Expansion
The good news is that the Agentic AI future will create huge value for the marketing ecosystem. Once CMOs, CFOs, and CEOs open their eyes to the fact that the AdWaste that consumes half their digital marketing budget is the key to unlocking profitable growth, they will fashion changes in the way they acquire, retain, and grow customers. Someone in the CxO suite needs to rise and become the Chief Profits Officer and bring to life the Agentic AI future – one where AI is not just generating nice content but becoming a true “co-intelligence” for both marketers and their customers.
Consider the world of digital today. Brands creates websites and apps, and then use push messages to bring their existing customers to their digital properties for transactions. If that doesn’t work well (and in most cases, it doesn’t), they amp up spending on adtech for retargeting their existing customers and attracting new ones. New technologies are about to transform this world which has prevailed for the past quarter century.
Push channels are becoming two-way and shoppable. In-channel conversion in email and WhatsApp (and perhaps SMS and RCS) will remove the friction of clicking through to the digital properties. The websites and apps could be replaced with “agent” interfaces – smart chatbots which customers can interact with as they would be with a friendly salesperson in a store. And this only in the unlikely scenario that the digital twin has not delivered the right product recommendation at the right time!
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To summarise: Agentic AI, manifesting as Co-Marketers and Digital Twins, promises to unlock $250 billion in AdWaste, marking a pivotal shift toward profitability for consumer-facing brands currently battling high customer acquisition costs. This technological leap will simplify martech to the ease of adtech, propelling marketing departments into a new era of efficiency and strategic depth. For martech providers trapped in a fiercely competitive market, Agentic AI offers a pathway to untapped profit pools through innovative “4S” business models. These models not only foster revenue generation but also enable a partnership approach in the marketing ecosystem. As we stand on the brink of this transformation, it’s crucial for CxOs to recognise the vast potential of Agentic AI. By reorienting strategies towards AI-driven technologies, businesses can dramatically enhance their operational efficiencies and customer relationships. Imagine a future where digital marketing transcends traditional platforms, enabling seamless in-channel conversions and intelligent agent interfaces that predict and fulfil customer needs effortlessly. As digital marketing becomes increasingly central to our lives, the integration of Agentic AI will redefine the landscape for adtech and martech companies alike, heralding a new era of innovation and helping brands in their Profipoly Quest.
