4 Creative Ways to Design Engaging Marketing Materials with AI

by Jessica Perkins Published on February 21, 2024

Nowadays, marketing is based on real-time data processing and analysis. This is why many people imagine trend analyses and customer behavior insights when thinking about AI tools and marketing.

However, AI tools are also a reliable partner when it comes to designing engaging marketing materials. You can use these tools to create visual concepts, refresh your imagination, or overcome a creative block (among others).

They are also amazing at uncovering hidden ideas, making sure your designs fit the customer data, and identifying patterns you might have missed. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a solopreneur, or part of the marketing department of a large company, AI tools are an asset that cannot be ignored.

If you’re not yet sure how to integrate AI with your daily marketing tasks, we put together a few tips and tricks to help you get started.

Engaging Marketing Materials for Branding

In marketing, branding sets you apart from competitors and helps customers connect with your products and/or services. Think of it as the identity of your business – the face and personality that people recognize and connect with.

This is why branding is one of those marketing techniques and strategies all entrepreneurs must know. Even as a solopreneur, you still need to build a personal brand to become instantly recognizable in the craziness of online and offline marketing.

Branding is the reason why you think of high-tech devices when you see a stylized bitten apple, or you feel energized when you see the legendary Nike logo.

It takes talent, genius, a dash of inspiration, and a lot of work to come up with branding that encompases your company’s values, connects with the audience, and is easy to recognize worldwide.

Fortunately, now you can use a range of AI tools to generate and design engaging marketing materials that support your branding.

Here’s how:

Create an Impactful Logo

To create a logo that fits your brand and looks professional without actually hiring a professional designer, follow these steps:

Choose an AI Logo Maker

There are several platforms available that offer varying levels of customization and sophistication, such as Looka, Tailor Brands, or Canva. They are incredibly user-friendly and capable of generating professional-quality logos.

Provide Your Brand Details

Input things like brand name, industry, and a short description of what your company does.

Some tools also ask for preferred styles or values you want your brand to convey (e.g., modern, sophisticated, friendly). Being specific here helps the AI understand your needs better.

Choose Design Preferences

Most AI logo makers will present options regarding color schemes, icons, or typography preferences to further tailor the design process to suit your brand’s identity.

Spend some time exploring different combinations since your chosen colors and fonts can significantly impact how your logo is perceived.

Review the Generated Logos

After processing your inputs, the AI tool will generate several logo designs for you to review. Browse through these options carefully—it’s fascinating to see how closely these generated logos can align with your initial vision when given detailed information.

Customize Your Choice

Often, the generated logos will be close to what you’re looking for but might need slight tweaks. Many platforms offer editing features that allow you to adjust colors, typography, or layout until it’s just right.

If you have the budget, this is where you should get a professional designer involved. Since you already have a visual concept of what you want your logo to look like, it’s easier for them to take it one step further and turn it into a piece of art. It’s also cheaper for you since the designer won’t spend that many hours putting together the concept and refining the details.

Engaging Marketing Materials Need a Color Scheme

Choosing a color scheme can be a bit of a pain if you don’t know what you’re doing. Luckily, AI knows what you don’t, so here’s how you can ask it for assistance:

Identify Your Brand’s Personality: Define what your brand stands for. Is it youthful and vibrant or sophisticated and trustworthy? Your brand’s personality will guide the color selection process.
Use an AI Color Tool: AI-powered tools like Coolors or Colormind are designed specifically for color scheme selection – use them! These platforms can generate color palettes based on specific inputs or preferences you provide.
Provide Context: Input details that’ll help the AI understand your brand. It can be anything from industry, target audience, and emotional impact you wish to evoke. For instance, if you want a coffee shop logo that feels warm and inviting, mention attributes like “warmth,” “comfort,” and perhaps “energetic.”
Experiment with Trends: Some AI tools analyze current design trends in your industry and suggest color schemes that stand out while staying relevant. This insight is particularly useful for staying competitive and contemporary.
Use Color Psychology: AI can offer advice on color psychology, telling you how different colors can influence perceptions and behaviors. This knowledge allows you to pick colors that lead to engaging marketing materials.
Visualize Across Various Mediums: Finally, use the tool to preview how your chosen colors look across different applications (e.g., digital vs print). This helps ensure the versatility and consistency of your logo across all branding materials.

AI for Physical Marketing Materials

Physical marketing items are just as important as digital ones because they are tangible and present in the real world.

While we could talk about ads, banners, flyers, and other engaging marketing materials that reside in the physical world, we will focus on two of the most important ones: branded merchandise (or merch) and product packaging.

Merch

Branded T-shirts, hoodies, caps, mugs, you name it – if you want to stay in your audience’s heart and mind longer than the span of your ads, branded merch is the real MVP of engaging marketing materials.

According to a recent study by the Advertising Speciality Institute, 80% of Americans own at least one T-shirt with a company logo or slogan, and 88% have branded drinkware. Now, these are percentages that can make any marketing specialist scream with excitement.

Furthermore, merch you can wear, like branded T-shirts, serves as a walking advertisement, expanding your reach with minimal effort.

So, if you want to design a cool-looking T-shirt with your company logo and don’t know where to start, here’s how AI can help:

Find the Right AI Tool: Tools like VistaCreate or Canva have impressive AI-based design features that you can use to create the t-shirt design. Choose the one that’s easy to use for you and your team.
Upload Your Logo: Upload your company logo onto the AI platform of your choice. Ensure you use a high-resolution version to maintain quality in the final print.
Define Your T-shirt Concept: Input any specific ideas you have for your t-shirt design into the AI tool. This might include themes, colors, or particular graphics related to your brand identity.
AI Generation and Suggestions: Use the AI tool’s generation feature to receive suggestions on layout, colors, and additional graphic elements that effectively complement your logo and concept.
Customize Your Design: Use the platform’s customization tools to tweak and refine your design. You can adjust placement and scale and even add text or additional imagery.

For the design customization step, it’s best to work with a professional designer who understands how digital creations look on textiles. They will also be familiar with the various custom t-shirt print methods and how each influences the look of the final product.

Most AI platforms also let you visualize how your design looks on different t-shirt styles and colors. Take full advantage of this feature and ask your designer to check it out as well. You want to make sure everything looks well before sending the design to a t-shirt printing service.

Product Packaging

In a WestRock study, 70% of customers said they learn more about a brand through packaging. Whether they pick it up from a shelf in the store or buy it online, your product packaging is the first interaction customers have with your brand.

This isn’t just about aesthetics – well-designed packaging communicates a brand’s quality and values, enhancing the overall customer experience. Take Apple’s packaging as an example. The simplicity, clean lines, and satisfying experience of unboxing an Apple product are ingrained in the company’s marketing strategies.

Another great example is Tiffany & Co. The mere sight of Tiffany’s robin-egg blue box evokes feelings of luxury and exclusivity even before you see what’s inside. It’s a brilliant example of how color can become synonymous with a brand.

The good news is that AI is not just a great tool for market research; it’s also amazing at creating engaging designs. However, product packaging is a bit more complex than logos and custom t-shirts, so it’s best to work with a professional for the final product.

Still, you can use AI to get your product packaging ideas out of your brain and give them shape. For this, you can work with a range of platforms, like Canva, Adobe Spark, or Crello. These are user-friendly and have functionalities that cater to non-designers as well.

Once you figure out how the tool works for packaging designs, follow these steps:

Start by inputting specific details about your brand and product. This includes your brand’s colors, logo, and any text that needs to be on the packaging (e.g., product name, description). The more information you provide, the better aligned the output will be with your brand identity.
Clearly specify the type of packaging you’re designing for, whether it’s a box, a bottle label, or a bag. Include dimensions if possible to ensure the AI generates designs suitable for your specific needs.
Use the platform’s functionalities to generate design templates based on your inputs. These platforms use machine learning to suggest color palettes, layouts, and typographies that match your brand essence and product type. Take full advantage of them to get an initial template.
Use the platform’s tools to fine-tune elements such as color saturation, font sizes, or image placements. Even though AI provides a strong starting point, personal adjustments can make a big difference in ensuring the packaging feels unique.

Once you have a concept, check to see if your platform allows a 3D visualization of your design. This will give you a realistic preview of how your design translates into real-world application before finalizing.

Start Designing Your Own Engaging Marketing Materials!

As you can see, a wide range of AI tools can help with designing engaging marketing materials. While you should still consult with an experienced professional designer for the final product, it’s a lot easier and faster to generate a visual concept of what you want.

So, let your imagination run wild and find the right tools that fit your AI design needs!