AI Integration Strategy Part 5

This post was originally featured in the May 7th, 2025 newsletter found here: INBOX INSIGHTS, May 7, 2025: AI Integration Strategy Part 5, Sustainability in AI

Approaching AI Integration Strategically – Part 5: Now What? Putting It All Together

A marketing director once told me she’d spent over $50,000 on AI tools but was “still figuring out” how to use them.

That’s a problem.

But it’s a solvable problem, and that’s what we’re here to do. Solve problems. I’ll keep it short and sweet, and actionable this week.

Throughout this series, we’ve built a framework for AI integration covering strategy, planning, implementation, and measurement. Now let’s address the critical question: So what? Let’s put it all together with real-world applications and an actionable roadmap.

How to Identify Your Best AI Opportunities

I’ll skip the personal anecdotes and get right to the good stuff. I would recommend the Trust Insights TRIPS Framework to map this out. It’s a simple sheet that will help outline all your candidate tasks and help you prioritize where to start with AI.

TRIPS stands for Time, Repetition, Importance, Pleasantness, and Sufficient Data. As you list out your tasks and score the columns, you’ll see your top winners for where to start with AI integration.

Start with high-value, easy-to-implement applications to build momentum.

High-Impact AI Use Cases to Consider

Here are some of the most successful AI applications we’ve implemented with clients:

Marketing Applications:

• AI-driven content topic research and first draft generation
• Customer segmentation that identifies previously unknown high-value groups
• Automated A/B testing of headlines, email subject lines, and ad copy
• Personalized customer journey mapping based on behavior patterns

Customer Service Applications:

• AI knowledge assistants that support human agents in real-time
• Intelligent self-service systems that guide customers through complex processes
• Voice of customer analysis that identifies patterns across feedback channels
• Proactive issue identification and resolution before customers complain

Operations Applications:

• Quality control systems that identify defects humans might miss
• Knowledge management systems that capture and distribute expertise
• Predictive resource allocation for staffing, inventory, or equipment
• Process automation for routine approval workflows and documentation

Finance Applications:

• Anomaly detection for identifying potential fraud or errors
• Automated categorization and processing of financial documents
• Forecasting systems that improve budget accuracy
• Spend analysis to identify cost-saving opportunities

Remember to apply what we covered in the previous parts: align these with your business KPIs, build processes around them, implement with a phased approach, and ensure they support your overall strategy. Speaking of a phased approach, use this 30-60-90 day plan to focus your AI integration.

Your 30-60-90 Day Plan

First 30 Days: Assessment

• Review business KPIs and pain points
• Complete value and feasibility assessment
• Document relevant baselines

Days 31-60: Planning

• Design your implementation approach using the 5P framework
• Identify champions and address potential resistance
• Create your measurement plan

Days 61-90: Implementation

• Execute your pilot
• Collect measurements and feedback
• Document lessons learned

If you’ve done the work from the previous four parts, you can likely do this faster than the 90-day timeline. And that’s the not-so-secret secret. Gathering your requirements and data up front will save you oodles of time and headaches with execution.

The Bottom Line

AI in business is only valuable when it solves specific business problems. Successful organizations identify high-value opportunities, implement focused solutions, measure results, and expand based on what works.

Start small, be strategic, measure everything, and focus on business impact. That’s the difference between wasting money on tools you’re “still figuring out” and generating measurable value.

What business challenge will you tackle first with AI?

Reply to this email to tell me, or come join the conversation in our free Slack Group, Analytics for Marketers.

– Katie Robbert, CEO