“Never be the same again” is 100% a term we would use for brand-customer relationships in the age of AI. New operational models, new types of buyer’s journeys, simplified visual search, and brands being cut out of their own marketing funnels are just some of the fundamental ways Gen AI, voice assistants, chatbots, and AI agents have changed the game forever.

In this article, we’ll dive into 5 significant changes brought on by AI, how they add to the overall customer experience, and whether or not you should rethink your marketing strategy and daily behind-the-scenes operations. Spoiler alert: You definitely should.

Your marketing automation is running perfectly. Emails go out on schedule, campaigns trigger based on user actions, and your dashboard shows decent open rates. Yet something’s off: Conversion rates plateau, customers churn at the same predictable rate, and your campaigns feel increasingly ineffective.

However, the problem doesn’t lie with your automation. It’s that you’re treating all customers like they’re the same person.

AI holds massive potential for transforming retail — from driving operational efficiency to enhancing customer experiences. But without the right data foundation, that promise for growth and efficiency turns into risk.

In our latest guide, we highlight how the most competitive retailers are already using AI to improve efficiency, strengthen customer relationships. Brands looking to do the same need to understand the critical connection between clean, unified customer data and AI success.

We’re in the eye of a storm where three powerful forces are colliding: the explosion of customer data, the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), and intensifying economic and geopolitical uncertainty. 

Economic uncertainty breeds changing consumer behaviors and budget constraints

The explosion of customer data is making it hard to find the right signal 

Rapid advancement of AI is allowing brands to more efficiently reach customers

As a marketer, you already know first-party data, or customer records, is critical to your brand’s success. But did you know your first-party data is key to unlocking true business value – from more accurate campaign reach to developing high-impact audiences and segmentation to driving more personalized experiences?

Check out our Marketer’s First-Party Data Playbook to:

Explore six strategies for reaching more audiences with hyper-personalized content

Retailers are confronting significant challenges. Markets shift rapidly, inflation squeezes profit margins, and tariffs change costs. Consumer behavior is equally unpredictable, with viral trends causing sudden demand spikes. Meanwhile, competitors frequently adjust prices and launch promotions to capture shoppers’ attention. 

Against this backdrop, real-time data is the cornerstone for successful pricing and promotional strategies. Without it, retailers risk playing constant catch-up, powerless to act against competitors and market forces. 

Marketers are struggling with new ways to uncover new customers, but they don’t have to be. Did you know that a data clean room might be the answers to your audience challenges? These data-rich spaces put the power back into the hands of marketers to not only find new customers, but ones who are ready to buy right now. Clean rooms empower marketers to find new in-market customers and then activate on a person-level to reduce ad waste.

We surveyed over 3,200 marketers and CX professionals, and 8,000 consumers, to learn about their data management strategies, how they’re using analytics, and what consumers care about most when it comes to how their data is handled. Fragmented data is blocking their ability to deliver real-time, one-to-one personalization. To stay ahead, businesses must unify their data.

Check out the Adobe 2025 AI and Digital Trends: Data and Insights report and learn: