Beyond the Hype: Why Marketers Embrace Skills but Question AI’s Intelligence
Beyond the Hype: Why Marketers Embrace Skills but Question AI’s Intelligence

Author(s): Marija Meshkova, Ilijana Petrovska
Subject(s): Social Sciences
Published by: Udruženje ekonomista i menadžera Balkana
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence; Content creation; Digital marketing; Practitioner perceptions; Emerging markets; AI adoption; Human-AI collaboration; Technology acceptance
Summary/Abstract: Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significantly influenced marketing in reshaping content creation, personalization, and customer engagement worldwide. There is ongoing discussion on whether AI can demonstrate “intelligence” or is limited to automation and data-driven efficiency without being able to mimic human creativity and judgment. Therefore, this study examines how North Macedonian marketers perceive, apply and adopt artificial intelligence in their businesses. The findings from qualitative interviews reveal two distinct narratives. On the one hand, marketers are keen to pick up new skills and understand how AI may boost output, refine customer insights, and provide a competitive advantage. However, they also raise concerns about the costs of integration and implementation, as well as AI’s ability to replicate human intelligence. By moving “beyond the hype” this paper contributes practitioner-based evidence from an emerging economy, offering a nuanced viewpoint on how marketers strike a balance between hope and fear when implementing AI.

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