CAN AI VIDEO GENERATION TRANSFORM
FINANCIAL MARKETING?
Innovating Financial Marketing with AI: The Gen-3 Alpha Review
In financial services marketing, innovative tools that promise to revolutionise content creation always pique our interest. Recently, Runway ML unveiled their Gen-3 Alpha, an AI video generation platform that's become a beacon for discussion among digital marketers.
As a marketing agency specialising in the financial sector, we've taken a hands-on approach to assess whether this tool could transform how we create visual content for our clients.
Gen-3 Alpha: A New Asset for Financial Advertisers?
Runway ML's Gen-3 Alpha has been unveiled as a potential game-changer in AI video generation.
The platform boasts high-fidelity, controllable video creation, potentially unlocking new avenues for financial marketers to produce visually striking content without the substantial investment typically associated with traditional video production.
Putting Gen-3 Alpha to the Test in Financial Advertising
Intrigued by the platform's capabilities, we decided to test Gen-3 Alpha in the context of financial marketing thoroughly.
We focused on creating content centred around concepts crucial to our clients, such as asset management, investment strategies, and market trends. Here's what we uncovered:
Illustrating Financial Concepts
Gen-3 Alpha demonstrated potential in creating videos that depict straightforward financial scenarios. However, when tasked with visualising more complex or abstract financial concepts – often essential in marketing sophisticated financial products – the results fell short of expectations.
Unfiltered Quality in Financial Visuals
It's important to note that the videos we generated weren't enhanced post-production. While this showcases the AI's raw capabilities, it also means the quality you see is what you get – a crucial consideration when creating polished content for financial institutions.
The Cost Consideration for Financial Marketers
At approximately £20 per month, the subscription fee for Gen-3 Alpha seems accessible. However, we exhausted our monthly allowance in just one hour of testing.
For financial marketing agencies or departments considering professional use, achieving high-quality output suitable for financial advertising could become a significant investment.
The Prompt Challenge in Financial Contexts
Even with meticulously crafted prompts related to financial themes, the results were inconsistent. This highlights a crucial challenge: bridging the gap between the nuanced messaging required in financial marketing and AI interpretation.
Transparency in Results
One aspect that raised concerns was the need for more clarity regarding the number of attempts required to generate the videos showcased in Runway ML's marketing materials.
This omission makes it challenging to assess the true efficiency and reliability of the tool for creating financial marketing content.
Implications for Financial Services Marketing
Our experience with Gen-3 Alpha reveals that while AI video generation has made significant progress, it's not yet poised to revolutionise financial marketing.
The technology shows promise for creating basic visual content quickly, but it struggles with the nuanced, regulation-compliant material often required in our industry.
Looking Ahead
While Gen-3 Alpha may not be the transformative tool we anticipated for financial marketing at present, it's undeniably an intriguing step forward in AI-assisted content creation.
As marketers serving the financial sector, it's crucial that we continually assess these technological advancements, rigorously testing their potential to enhance our work while ensuring compliance with financial advertising regulations.
Balancing Innovation With Proven Strategies
For now, Gen-3 Alpha remains an interesting tool for experimentation and basic content creation in financial marketing.
It's not ready to supplant traditional video production methods, but it offers a glimpse into a future where AI could play a significant role in creating compelling visual content for financial services.
Shane McEvoy is a seasoned SEO and inbound marketing expert with nearly 30 years of experience in advertising. He established Flycast Media, a financial marketing digital agency, and is a published author of two well-received guides while contributing to several industry publications - read his complete profile here.
