by Ally Akins
Discuss AI and other innovations with colleagues and learn from experts at the ABA Bank Marketing Conference, set for Sept. 15 to 17 in New Orleans. Register here.
Use of AI in bank marketing today
While the use of AI-powered marketing tools increased by the largest margin year-over-year (from 16.9% in 2024 to 29.9% in 2025), bank marketers are still more frequently utilizing more traditional technology tools such as CRMs, marketing automation platforms (MAPs) and data platforms. An additional 24% plan to invest in or acquire AI-powered marketing tools over the next 12 months.
However, this impact rating did not translate to comfort/capability. AI-powered marketing tools were the second lowest rated when asked how comfortable respondents were with them, at 2.82 out of 5 (1 being the least comfortable, 5 being the most comfortable). This performance is to be expected, given that AI tools are relatively new, and many bank marketers are still learning about them.
How are bank marketers using AI?
AI has many potential use cases for bank marketers. In 2024, 33.3% of respondents who were using AI indicated that they used AI or machine learning in data analytics, and this number increased to 41.2% in 2025. In addition to data analytics, content creation was the most impactful application of marketing AI in 2025, overtaking social media management and marketing from last year’s survey.
Other use cases that saw a significant change from last year’s survey included a decrease in the perceived impact of AI on risk assessment and fraud prevention. Content creation, social media and ad targeting were selected as this year’s top three applications.
AI-powered bank marketing of the future
While banks are beginning to implement and actualize the value of some AI-powered marketing tools, a lot of opportunities remain. When asked about AI’s primary marketing use case, personalized customer experiences was the number one use case in 2025. In 2024, data analysis and insights ranked higher.
Interestingly, the use of AI for customer-facing service through chatbots or help agents has decreased significantly. This could be due to the lack of tested products and platforms in the market to date, or a lack of comfort with banks handing their customer interactions off to AI.
It is clear that data analytics remains a priority and that bank marketers feel extra resources would benefit them in this area. Advanced data analytics platforms were the number one AI tool that marketers responded they would like to see their organization adopt. CRMs with AI capabilities ranked second, and were ranked highest in last year’s survey.
While adoption has increased and the perceived value of some tools has significantly increased, there are still many challenges bank marketers have to overcome to use and recognize the efficiency and benefits of marketing AI. Bank marketers were asked to select the main challenges they face in using AI, and the number one answer was lack of understanding or expertise, highlighting the opportunity for increased training and education around these tools.
Last year, data privacy and ethical concerns were the biggest concern, which fell to the second most selected this year. Interestingly, budgetary constraints was selected by over 50% of respondents last year, but only 33% this year. This could have shifted due to increased leadership support and resources around utilizing marketing AI as it has gained popularity, or a realization that many AI-powered tools are not as expensive as they once were thought to be.
Marketing AI is here for the long run
The survey results are clear: marketing AI for bankers will not be going anywhere soon. Educating bank marketers on the best and most efficient ways to use it will be the next step in taking its capabilities to the next level.
As the industry becomes more comfortable managing the risks associated with marketing AI tools, bank marketers will continue to test the waters and find efficiencies and scale. By leveraging AI, bank marketers can increase customer engagement, streamline operations, and drive growth.
Ally Akins is the co-lead of the sales and marketing practice at Capital Performance Group, a strategic consulting firm that assists banks in making the most of their customer data. She can also be reached on LinkedIn.
