AI features have been rapidly increasing on social media platforms for the past few years, encouraging marketeers to test everything from AI generated text, AI generated images and videos, to campaign settings. Mark Zukerberg’s recent announcement about his plans to automate Meta paid advertising by 2026 has sparked a debate in the industry centred around creativity, accuracy and quality. In this blog we detail some considerations for brands and marketeers on how to manage AI in the context of paid social media.
Key takeaways
- Although this announcement has been unnerving for the marketing industry and paid social teams the reality of complete adoption by 2026 seems unlikely based on current developments, brand guidelines, regulations across industries, ethics and bias in AI models.
Paid social strategy is still a human game when it comes to creativity and brand identity
Creative agencies continue to play a vital role in paid social. Whilst AI excels at optimisation, it often lacks the deep, intuitive understanding of a brand and its audience to align campaigns with broader business objectives. AI relies on data and human prompts to create new narratives, and it can struggle to interpret brand guidelines with the same sensitivity as a human. AI cannot replace a human when it comes to innovation and original thinking, relying solely on AI for concept development risks producing content that feels derivative rather than distinctive.
Where can AI add value in creative for Paid Social?
- Copy variations
AI paid social ad copy variations are a useful product enhancement especially when paired with Meta’s AI features to tailor content to each user. Here we input one version of copy to Meta’s interface and 5 alternative solutions are added with the option to tailor to your personas (see screenshot below). This copy must still be checked, tweaked and approved before going live and there are some common themes to watch out for. Such as:
- Where the copy is being pulled from
- Copy length
- Appropriateness for your brand tone of voice.
- Scaling assets
Whether it’s products, locations or real-time inventory/pricing. Dynamic Creative Optimisation (DCO) generates personalised and targeted ads in real-time based on user data and preferences. Using a live product feed to adapt content and messaging, instant updates to adverts ensure exposure to the most relevant creative for each audience.
- Accelerating the creative process
While brand identity should always be rooted in human insight and creativity, generative AI can serve as a powerful tool to support and accelerate the creative process. Used thoughtfully, AI enables teams to produce high-quality assets for social media, video, and display campaigns—from visuals and copy to audio and animation—without compromising originality or consistency.
- Measuring and scoring creative performance
Beyond content generation, AI also offers value through predictive analysis—scoring creative concepts for likely success and offering data-led recommendations to enhance them. This gives teams a clearer view of what’s likely to resonate, enabling smarter, more informed decisions while still leaving the creative direction firmly in human hands.
How will influencers be affected by developments in AI?
In an AI-driven marketing world building trust through content creators is more important than ever. Social media is all about trust and building connections with people which is why we have seen influencer marketing spend triple in the last 5 years, with the industry expected to exceed £1Billion in 2025. The human connection is irreplaceable and whilst the scalable production of content is achievable through AI we must not forget the need to generate brand connections and advocacy, targeted to each platform.
Influencer marketing allows brands to tap into a highly engaged audience. The content produced by the influencer is produced considering their own audience, the platform and product or service benefits they know will resonate with their audience.
How will AI impact paid social creative strategy in eCommerce Advertising?
eCommerce is key market for AI generated assets and campaigns , due to the scale of products and content required to keep AI campaigns generating results. The ability to generate asset backgrounds could save significant budget and resources. The use of AI generated assets and Dynamic Creative Optimisation (DCO) should be part of any paid social eCommerce growth strategy.
How will AI impact paid social creative strategy in B2B Advertising?
For B2B advertising, we are seeing a shift towards video content and influencer content on platforms like LinkedIn. This trend is set to continue and whilst AI’s role may not be as prevalent in asset production as it is for the eCommerce vertical, it can play a vital role in accelerating the creative process. LinkedIn is a key channel to test and promote AI copy variations for both organic and paid, and an opportunity to explore for B2B brands.
How will AI impact paid social creative strategy in Health and Pharmaceutical Advertising?
Health and pharmaceuticals are heavily regulated industries with timely approval processes and strict guidelines making AI generated creative solutions harder to adopt. Healthcare outcomes involving sensitive topics are unlikely to see AI integrated soon and if adopted will be in the early stages of creative production and require stringent reviews from compliance and regulatory teams.
How will AI impact paid social creative strategy in Property Advertising?
For property, consumers expect to see the actual house they will be purchasing and therefore it must be as close to the real property as possible. Therefore, it is important to use CGI renders or actual photography to avoid misleading consumers. Using AI to generate images would therefore not be possible, but the use of AI for copy variations and campaign types will be something to consider.
What other considerations are important for using AI with Paid Social?
Ethical considerations and bias
AI is unable to detect bias and therefore brands will need to monitor output for stereotypes, unintended messaging and brand tone of voice or style when creative outputs are generated. There will still be a requirement for internal review processes, amendments to prompts to generate a stronger output and ethical guidelines for AI use. In addition, most platforms do not have strong policies about AI yet, however they stress the importance of ethics when generating imagery or copy to ensure standard advertising policies are adhered to.
Localisation and cultural suitability
Similarly, AI can struggle to adapt assets and copy for local markets in reference to language nuances and cultural sensitivity, highlighting the importance of human review when running campaigns across market with different values, humour and idioms. This is an important factor for international clients and market expansion plans.
How are Space & Time using AI for Paid Social?
We are currently running AI audits to understand each client’s readiness to adapt to these changes. Additionally, we are providing our paid social team with AI training to ensure they have the skills necessary to adapt to platform changes and AI tools that will soon become necessary in the market. Finally, we are working with media partners to stay up to date with new technologies and capabilities.
It will also be important to A/B test performance of AI campaigns containing AI generated images vs manual campaigns and human-generated content to ensure performance is more effective utilising AI. There might be some industries where this campaign type is ineffective.
What is the long-term relationship between AI and Paid Social experts?
The key is ensuring that AI enhances rather than replaces human input. By streamlining production and freeing up time for deeper creative thinking, it allows people to focus on what really matters: shaping work that reflects the brand’s unique voice, values, and vision.
Retention and advocacy for a brand is key to efficient revenue growth, and an essential component of growth marketing. People buying based on a referral and recommendation is still one of the most common methods. Influencer marketing should be an essential part of your strategic growth considerations, as this is irreplaceable with AI. It’s about a community of trust which is only possible with human connection.
Key takeaways
It is clear AI has a role to play in terms of paid social content generation in markets such as eCommerce to scale asset production. However, this will need to sit alongside assets with creativity such as brand campaigns and content creators to strengthen consumer trust.
Find out more about AI from our Paid Social team, contact Helena on [email protected].