This interview is with Soubhik Chakrabarti, CEO at Canada Hustle.

Soubhik Chakrabarti, CEO, Canada Hustle

Welcome to Marketer Focus, Soubhik! To kick things off, could you tell our readers a bit about yourself and your journey to becoming an expert in digital marketing?

Thank you for inviting me to the interview. I'm the founder of Icy Media, a premier digital marketing agency in Vancouver, BC. While working as a business development manager at a real estate organization, I discovered the potential of digital marketing for business communication. To understand the technicalities of digital marketing, I enrolled in certificate courses and started working as a part-time SEO content writer. Later, I contributed to various organizations and established my digital marketing agency. Currently, I have over a decade of experience in offering e-commerce, digital marketing, SEO, and social media management services.

What pivotal moments or experiences in your career have shaped your approach to digital marketing the most?

I want to share two pivotal moments that shaped my approach to digital marketing. The first incident was when I completed my first assignment successfully. Most of my team members were new to this opportunity, and we were excited to work on our first project. We worked collaboratively on this project, spending long hours in brainstorming sessions to achieve the objectives. Even after finishing the project, the valuable feedback from our client taught us the areas where we needed improvement. It was a great learning experience that is still close to my heart.

Second, it was in 2021 that we started integrating AI tools into our campaigns and projects. From content creation to marketing and designing to CRM, everything went automated. I invested in different AI tools and educated my team members to deliver projects on time and explore the benefits of automation. I learned that it is essential for digital marketers to stay updated with AI and machine learning if they want to survive in this competitive landscape. These technological advancements save you time and resources, and you can focus on higher-level tasks.

You've shared some impressive results from utilizing AI in your marketing strategies. Can you elaborate on a specific instance where AI exceeded your expectations and what surprised you the most about its impact?

There was a specific instance when we crafted a content marketing campaign for one of our clients. Their website deals with different genres, from entertainment to technology and health to fashion. In such a scenario, crafting a marketing strategy for a diverse audience was challenging. Here, AI appeared as a savior. With the help of automated marketing tools, we segmented their audience based on behaviors, engagement patterns, and demographics. We analyzed a vast volume of data and quickly resonated with each segment by using AI-powered data analytics. These tools also allowed us to create personalized content based on varied buyers' personas. The experience was astonishing as automated tasks were highly time-saving. If we had to deal with this campaign manually, we couldn't achieve the desired results.

Many marketers are hesitant to fully embrace AI in their strategies. What advice would you give to those who are still unsure about incorporating AI into their digital marketing efforts?

Marketers must understand that AI is here to stay. Their approach to incorporating AI in their strategies is like having an efficient companion who can empower your business with vast resources. If you are unsure about integrating AI into your digital marketing efforts, you can start using it with small-scale projects to check their effectiveness. You can gradually include them in your strategies as you find them compatible with your objectives. Utilize AI tools for content creation, drafting personalized emails, and writing social media posts. AI can process large datasets quickly, which helps you gather industry trends and insights. These trends and insights improve your decision-making process and craft personalized marketing strategies based on real-time feedback. Human intervention is the key if you use AI tools in your strategies. Here, educate your team and yourself about its potential applications in digital marketing. Attend webinars and workshops to explore the limitless possibilities of AI with human intervention.

In your experience, what are some common misconceptions about leveraging AI in digital marketing, and how can marketers overcome them?

I've seen marketers misinformed about leveraging AI in digital marketing. So, I am sharing some of these misconceptions with you:

1. They think AI marketing is complex to implement in their campaigns.

2. Small organizations believe they need a heavy budget to use AI tools as they are suitable only for large businesses.

3. Many marketers worry that leveraging AI in digital marketing will make communication impersonal.

4. They need advanced technical skills to use AI-powered tools.

For all these misconceptions, I'd say that marketers must clarify these myths by thoroughly studying the practical implications of AI in marketing. First, most AI marketing platforms are user-friendly and have robust customer-service platforms for your assistance.

Second, AI tools are affordable, and small businesses can improve their reach and brand reputation like big organizations by leveraging AI in their digital marketing campaigns.

Third, AI solutions analyze vast customer data and suggest customized recommendations to improve personalization in communication.

Finally, average tech-savvy professionals can learn and utilize AI tools to create effective marketing strategies.

I've been using AI marketing tools since 2021 and ran successful digital marketing campaigns leveraging them. They only need to understand that AI is a powerful companion that saves their time and resources, and they can maintain the initial costs through the increased revenue AI delivers.

With the ever-evolving landscape of digital advertising, what are some key trends you're currently paying attention to, and how are you adapting your strategies accordingly?

Voice search optimization and influencer marketing are the key trends under my radar. For voice search optimization, I'm adapting SEO strategies to use natural-language queries and long-tail keywords. I have integrated virtual assistants into one of our e-commerce platforms. It has improved our Customer Retention Rate (CRR), and customers can enjoy quick and personalized communication. Second, I advise my clients to collaborate with industry influencers to improve their brand presence and reach. I depend on personal outreach to meet both parties' needs. It depends on the client's budget to hire an influencer. So, I'm working on better outreach efforts to utilize their services for transactional-marketing campaigns.

Looking back at your experiences, what is one piece of advice you wish you had received earlier in your digital marketing career?

I wish someone had advised me about building a network within the industry in the early stages.

Finally, what's one valuable lesson you've learned from a failed digital marketing campaign, and how has that experience shaped your approach to future projects?

During my early career, I got to work with a foreign client. Our team worked on the project, but some vital communication issues affected the process. We were growing in the digital-marketing landscape and lacked proper communication channels to meet the demands. This experience taught me to invest in better technology and professionals to attract new clients and retain the existing ones. We have a team of professionals who assist our clients efficiently.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and expertise. Is there anything else you'd like to add?

Lastly, digital marketing is a continuous learning process. Marketers should invest their time and resources in learning advanced technologies and trends to stay productive.