The Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) teamed up with PHD Ghana on May 21, 2018 to host an artificial intelligence dialogue.
The event dubbed “The Man and Machine Dialogue” was held under the theme, “The closing gap between Technology and Humanity: Impact on the role of the marketer and the marketing consultancy”.
Mr. Bright Ladzekpo, CEO of PHD Ghana mentioned that information and communication technology trends, back in the 1950s had set the stage for devices to collect massive amounts of data.
This he said, is now fueling the technology-driven disruption of the whole industry sectors such as hospitality and transportation, globally.
According to him, data is the new oil and Google is the new ExxonMobil.
However, he indicated that billions of consumers around the world, including Ghana, keep their smartphones glued to their sides, 24 hours a day.
But, as both hardware and software become smarter, consumers will start to move beyond screens and devices will fade away.
Virtual assistants, he said will autonomously organize our lives, with bots running businesses.
CIMG members, executives and Board members and other guests present joined in the discussion with questions and contributions after which PHD’s latest thought-leadership publication, “Merge – the closing gap between technology and us”, was formally launched in Ghana.
The book which explores a future in which humanity and technology become inextricably linked, addresses the urgent implications for marketing and reveals exciting opportunities for brands.
In his closing remarks, the vice-president of the CIMG, Mr. Daniel Kasser Tee, commended PHD for their consistent thought-leadership through the many books they have published over the years.
“We chose to partner with PHD Media because we have found out that this group is interested in discussing topics and subjects that contributes to business development and also contribute to nation building”
He also alluded to disruptive changes in the way consumer research data collection and analyses will be done in the near future as a result of the application of Artificial Intelligence based tools and systems.
“Now issues of customer services, satisfaction, retention and loyalty can all be analysed at a point without touching paper.
Nobody is going to be asking you if you are satisfied with a product or not. The machine is going to be capturing your mood as you do the [your] shopping.”
PHD is known globally as an innovator in communications planning and buying across broadcast, print, digital, mobile, social and emerging media.
PHD Ghana currently has a staff strength of 20, working out of its offices at Ridge Accra supported by OMG shared specialist business units for Digital, Trading and Finance with a diverse range of clients across industry categories, from Telecommunications to FMCGs.
Report by: Stephanie Horsu
Source: PHD network
