How agentic AI is transforming marketing and driving ROI

In today’s connected world, customer expectations are higher than ever. Consumers demand seamless, hyper-personalised journeys, but traditional marketing tactics often fall short, leaving marketers hindered by manual, repetitive tasks.

This challenge is evident in the business-to-business (B2B) space, where 84 per cent of buyers say an easy online experience is essential yet 85 per cent are frustrated by clunky, outdated sites. This gap highlights the urgent need for a more dynamic and responsive approach to marketing.

Additionally, AI is rapidly reshaping how customers discover and engage with companies. Consumers are bypassing traditional search and discovery channels and turning to AI to find the products and services they need. But AI is only as good as the data that powers it.

Salesforce data shows that while 75 per cent of marketers are experimenting with AI, only 32 per cent are using data effectively to create relevant experiences.

This disconnect is stifling creativity and hindering genuine customer relationships, as static ‘do-not-reply’ messages become a barrier to meaningful engagement.

This explains why more companies are looking to agentic marketing, to put autonomous AI agents to work — personalising and connecting experiences across every touchpoint. Unlike traditional automation, marketers can set strategic goals — such as “increase loyalty among at-risk customers” — and AI agents will handle the execution.

Especially as companies begin to look to the holiday season, it’s clear that the brands that embrace AI as a strategic partner in customer engagement will be the ones that stand out, and win.

A new era of dynamic, two-way conversations

Agentic AI is ushering in a new era of dynamic, two-way conversations that are available 24/7 and across every channel.

This holiday season, Salesforce predicts that $260bn in online sales and $1.6tn in in-store sales will be driven by shoppers discovering products through AI-powered recommendations. And 35 per cent of retailers will be using agentic AI to boost their workplace and employee productivity.

With platforms like Salesforce’s Marketing Cloud Next, autonomous AI agents don’t just assist; they act. Being able to leverage real-time signals, such as customer behaviour and intent, they can recommend tailored content and product offers across diverse platforms like email, mobile, and web.

They can also enhance the customer journey by dynamically assembling individualised web experiences, adapting layouts, messaging, and recommendations to each visitor’s unique context and behaviour.

Enhanced lead generation and campaign management

With the right platform, AI agents can significantly improve lead generation and overall campaign management by autonomously adding leads to nurture programmes, retrieving their scores, and recommending appropriate content.

They can engage prospects with personalised messages, facilitate multi-turn conversations, and even automate scheduling in multiple languages.

When it comes to paid media, AI agents can provide continuous oversight, monitoring ad performance 24/7, pausing underperforming ads, and suggesting improvements to targeting and spend based on predefined business objectives.

Having the capability to pinpoint which audience segments drive the highest return on investment will enable marketers to fine-tune campaigns for greater impact.

Business-wide benefits and the future workforce

The impact of agentic AI can extend far beyond marketing departments. For businesses, it can translate directly into increased efficiency, faster time-to-market for campaigns, and ultimately, significant ROI.

As agentic AI becomes more widespread, it’s natural to question its impact on the workforce. But digital labour isn’t about replacing people; it’s about extending their capabilities and talent. It enables marketers to focus on high-value, strategic work that drives greater impact.

According to Salesforce research, global HR leaders project a 327 per cent growth in agent adoption within organisations by 2027, expecting an average employee productivity gain of 30 per cent and a 19 per cent reduction in labour costs.

The future workforce will see humans and AI agents working together, with nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of the workforce being redeployed to new, more relevant roles. AI innovations will ultimately create more opportunity than they displace.

The future of marketing is intelligent, autonomous, and deeply personalised. By embracing agentic AI, businesses cannot only meet rising customer expectations but also empower their marketers to innovate, strategise, and truly connect with customers in ways previously impossible. This is the new frontier of growth and customer success.

By Bianca Zenkel, Regional Director of Field Marketing, Salesforce Middle East