The most exciting application of AI in partnerships isn't automation but its ability to analyze data and reveal non-obvious trends and correlations. This allows leaders to see patterns in partner performance and customer behavior that are invisible to the naked eye.
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Instead of focusing on AI for generating final assets, Amazon applies it to solve specific workflow bottlenecks. For one campaign, they used a custom AI tool to curate millions of customer reviews, identifying the most poetic ones in a fraction of the time it would take humans, thus using AI for insight discovery.
Historically, channel agents focused on front-end sales and were often blind to back-end customer churn. Sophisticated partners now use data analytics and AI to identify churn risks, pinpoint cross-sell opportunities, and actively manage their existing revenue base.
The most powerful use of AI for business owners isn't task automation, but leveraging it as an infinitely patient strategic advisor. The most advanced technique is asking AI what questions you should be asking about your business, turning it from a simple tool into a discovery engine for growth.
Instead of presenting static charts, teams can now upload raw data into AI tools to generate interactive visualizations on the fly. This transforms review meetings from passive presentations into active analysis sessions where leaders can ask new questions and explore data in real time without needing a data analyst.
When vetting an agency, ask how they integrate AI. The best answer isn't that they avoid it or use it to simply cut costs. Look for partners who use AI as a tool to augment human analysis, conduct deeper research, and ultimately make more informed strategic decisions.
Go beyond simple prospect research and use AI to track broad market sentiment. By analyzing vast amounts of web data, AI can identify what an entire audience is looking for and bothered by right now, revealing emerging pain points and allowing for more timely and relevant outreach.
A killer app for AI in IT is automating tedious but critical tasks. For example, investigating why daily cloud spend deviates by more than 5%. This simple-sounding query requires complex data analysis across multiple services—a perfect, high-value problem for an AI agent to solve.
Beyond automating data collection, investment firms can use AI to generate novel analytical frameworks. By asking AI to find new ways to plot and interpret data inputs, the team moves from rote data entry to higher-level analysis, using the technology as a creative and strategic partner.
The most practical channel use of AI isn't a futuristic tool, but enabling partners to analyze supplier-provided data. By feeding partners data via APIs, suppliers empower them to use their own AI tools to identify customer trends and make smarter, faster decisions.
The most significant value from AI is not in automating existing tasks, but in performing work that was previously too costly or complex for an organization to attempt. This creates entirely new capabilities, like analyzing every single purchase order for hidden patterns, thereby unlocking new enterprise value.
