AI shapes personalized ads but too much feels creepy
Enabling and Understanding Personalization in AI-Generated Advertising Imagery
Artificial IntelligenceHuman-Computer Interaction
Summary
Most ads show the same images to everyone or just tweak text a bit. This paper looks at creating customized ad pictures using AI based on how much it knows about a person. The researchers found that ads with some personalization were liked best, while too much detail made ads feel creepy even though people noticed the ads felt more personal. So, there’s a balance between making ads feel relevant and not too intrusive.
What this means in practice
- •For digital marketing teams: Create AI-driven personalized advertising images that optimize impression and purchase intent without causing customer discomfort.
- •For ecommerce product managers: Design marketing strategies that balance personalization level in AI-generated ads to improve customer attitudes and sales outcomes.
Authors
Victor Kolominsky-Rabas, Leopold Müller, Claudius Budcke, Claas Christian Germelmann, Niklas Kühl
Abstract
Personalized marketing traditionally matches static products to customers, while dynamic creative optimization focuses mainly on AI-driven text personalization or basic product image modifications. We address this gap by developing and implementing an AI-based framework that generates personalized advertising imagery directly from customer data. We evaluate this framework in a two-stage within-subject study with N=100 participants across four products and three levels of personalization, varied by the amount and specificity of customer data used. Participants rated each image on attitude toward the advertisement, attitude toward the product, and purchase intention. Results show that participants perceive differences across personalization levels and evaluate AI-generated advertising imagery most positively at a moderate level of personalization. High personalization increases perceived personalization, which is positively associated with all three outcome measures, but also increases perceived creepiness, which is negatively associated with the outcomes and dominates the total effect.