AI and Marketing Strategy: Prioritise De-homogenisation
– AI and Marketing Strategy
Homogenisation has been a topic we’ve been debating at the agency recently, which made it all the more timely when it surfaced again when I took part in an IAB Brisbane Market Update panel.
If there weren’t already enough real and perceived challenges facing marketers trying to apply AI to business and brand growth, here’s another: the risk of being washed away in a sea of same-sameness with every other competitor.
I have no doubt you’ve heard it …
“We’re exploring AI to improve operational efficiencies.”
“The objective is to utilise AI to better serve our stakeholders.”
“It’s exciting to think about the role AI will play in shaping our future.”
SNORE
When everyone is working towards the same goals, optimised by the same systems, guided by the same signals, the result will only be a slow and slippery slide into sameness. Communications get automated. Campaigns start to blur. Strategies become formulaic. Craft quietly disappears.
That’s homogenisation.
Homogenisation Has Many Parents
AI might be the newest accelerant, but it’s not the only culprit. The forces flattening marketing have been creeping in for years:
- Platform consolidation – A handful of platforms controlling the data, the inventory and the attribution rules.
- Benchmark thinking – Designing for the middle, not the edge.
- Procurement pressure – Rewarding repeatability over originality.
- Short-termism – Quarterly cycles favouring safety over experimentation.
- Automation complacency – Default settings replacing distinct decisions.
The result? Mediocrity at scale.
A Philosophical Approach to AI and Marketing Strategy
So how do marketers de-homogenise? A great starting point is to define a philosophy that isn’t about the tech, but rather about how the tech shapes your distinct way of thinking, building, and behaving as a brand or a business.
So instead of saying “We’re exploring AI to improve operational efficiencies”, try a stance that signals intent and identity: “We don’t automate creativity; we automate the admin so creativity can misbehave.” “Our AI isn’t trained to agree with us; it’s trained to challenge us.” “We aren’t automating tasks. We’re expediting custom learning & education.”
For marketers, protecting originality is about craft, pride, performance, competitive edge, and more. Distinct philosophies will help cut through noise, build stronger brands, and unlock long-term advantage.
Originality doesn’t happen by default, though. When everyone’s leaning into automation, it’s dangerously easy to drift toward the middle. Especially if AI and marketing strategy start to blend into one generic formula.
You have to design for difference, defend it, and yes de-homogenise.
BONUS CONTENT: Your Very Own De-Homogenisation Challenge.
Do one of these things this week:
1. Kill one default. Turn off a platform’s auto-optimisation setting. Remove one template. Ditch a benchmark.
2. Break one assumption. Find a belief you haven’t questioned because the industry treats it as gospel (CPM = value, last-click = truth, short-term wins = proof), then examine it & rethink it as necessary to feed creativity.
3. Ship one weird idea. Not a deck. Not a theoretical “innovation roadmap.” A thing in the world. A message variant. A creative execution. A tactical placement. Something your competitors would never sign off, which is precisely why you will.
