The Future of Digital Marketing: How AI Enables a Leaner, Meaner, Faster Stand And Stretch

In a recent new-hire interview, I reveled a bit in our changes at Stand And Stretch due to AI over the last year. It’s been exciting!

So, it makes sense to take some of the extra time and begin sharing why we’re thriving.

When people ask me what makes Stand And Stretch stand out, I love to talk about the way we’ve integrated our systems with AI. We’ve been working on these ideas throughout the year, and it has taken over, in a sense.

I don’t mean we just “dabble” in AI—it’s now a core part of how we operate, and it’s changed the game for us in more ways than one. When chatting with the prospect, I mentioned how AI allows us to focus on what we do best without getting bogged down by busy work.

This approach means my team can pour their energy into creative problem-solving and client relationships rather than spending hours on repetitive tasks.

Rapid Web Development and Efficiency Boosts

Back in the day, a website build could take 90 days, requiring 30 to 40 hours of focused work. That’s all in the past. With AI-driven web development, we’ve cut that down to as little as 12 hours over six weeks.

Yeah, you read that right: from 90 days to 12 hours.

AI handles so much of the heavy lifting—standardizing elements, optimizing layouts, and even suggesting tweaks based on design principles I’ve loved since my early days as a designer (I started in 1997!). We can deliver high-quality, custom-built sites in record time, which frees up bandwidth for more projects, creativity, and, ultimately, more satisfied clients.

Our project management tools, like Teamwork, are synced with AI too, so our team members log their hours, track progress, and focus on high-value work. Every client update is automated to save time.

For example, our clients receive daily updates on their project status without us lifting a finger. This system was a lifesaver when we scaled back from 30-hour projects to streamlined workflows, and our clients love being in the loop without constantly having to check-in.

Elevated Creativity and Scalable Content Production

One of the things I love most about AI is how it lets our team scale creative production. For instance, we use AI-powered design tools to generate hundreds of graphic variations.

So instead of burning hours on creating one perfect ad layout, we can produce dozens in minutes. We get to focus on refining, curating, and elevating the final products, not just making endless versions.

When she and I talked about hiring, I explained that we don’t need “9s” who are experts in every niche; instead, we build up a team that can learn, adapt, and work creatively. AI fits beautifully into this approach because it’s our creative force multiplier.

AI also helps us develop text and visual content. We use it for drafting blog posts, crafting keyword-dense web pages, creating social media content, and other media that previously would’ve taken tons of time to produce manually.

This lets us stay nimble for our clients, particularly those who need rapid turnarounds or multiple iterations. And thanks to AI, we can make content production look easy while maintaining the quality and brand consistency our clients expect.

Personalized Client Engagement with Automated Insights

Our new hire mentioned she liked my “Theory of the 9s,” which I apply to hiring, but we also use it in client engagement. AI helps us create detailed briefs and summaries after every meeting, capturing everything from sentiment to tone (both from our team and clients), key takeaways, and even ways to improve our meeting approach.

Imagine you’re in a client meeting, and afterward, instead of just having loose notes, you get a full breakdown of what resonated with the client, where they hesitated, and even what they’re most excited about. AI does that for us.

It’s like having a second set of ears in every meeting, making sure nothing slips through the cracks.

This approach means our follow-ups are laser-focused and tailored to each client, including behavioral responses. AI even allows us to run sentiment analysis on our communications, ensuring that we’re speaking to clients in ways that align with their needs and concerns.

And on the campaign side, AI tools let us build custom campaigns based on client language, client’s (and our own) data insights, targeting the exact audience segments that align with our clients’ goals. We’re not just throwing ads out there; we’re honing in on exactly who needs to see them at the right time for the best results.

[Ensure that your clients acknowledge they are being recorded.]

Data-Driven Campaign Optimization with AI

Our AI doesn’t stop at managing creative projects—it’s also an analytical powerhouse. I shared with our new hire how Digital AI lets us predict campaign performance using historical data. We can adjust campaigns before they even launch, ensuring our clients’ money goes where it’s most effective.

This means that our client success factors aren’t just set and forgotten; they’re based on real insights, and our campaigns are living, breathing events that are always being optimized.

AI also lets us study customer behavior across platforms like Shopify, from website visits to social media interactions to locations likely to be purchased from next. When I talk about our targeting capabilities, I mean we can identify exactly which demographics, geographic areas, and even times of day yield the best results for each client.

It’s all about tuning campaigns to audience needs, and we’re able to do it with a level of precision that old-school methods just couldn’t touch.

Self-Guided Team Training with AI Resources

When our aspiring Digital AI marketer asked about the soft skills we look for in new hires, I explained that the ability to learn and adapt is huge. We use AI as a training tool, letting team members access resources on demand.

We use Loom as an ondemand tool for internal communication on task learning and discovery; one-way communication works well for remote teams. It’s AI delivers transcripts, chapters, tasks, and follow-ups for each video giving it a title even before I can click the share button. We now have hundreds of short clipped videos on what we do, how we do it, and why it’s important for our customer. Easy peezy.

Whether they’re brushing up on SEO, mastering Google Ads, or exploring retargeting strategies, our custom built, trained with real data GPTs (For Services, Briefings, Learning, and Sales) empowers them to learn at their own pace or by request. This self-propelled learning is part of how we build what I call our “Stand And Stretch 9s”—those team members who excel within our unique system and culture.

Oh, one more thing. We use AI for real-time problem-solving. Imagine you’re a new hire working on a project, and you hit a snag. Instead of waiting on someone for help, you can ask our GPT AI for guidance on workflow and client communication.

This makes our team more independent, faster, and empowered to find solutions, which is essential in a fast-paced agency like ours.

Cost-Effective Scaling Without Compromising Quality

One of the perks of our AI approach is that it allows us to run leaner than most agencies, which keeps our services affordable. We don’t cut corners—AI just allows us to automate where it makes sense, so we can allocate time to the things that matter most: creativity, strategy, and results.

We’ve positioned ourselves as a best-in-class boutique agency with enterprise-level capabilities, and our clients get the benefits of both. We don’t need to be everything to everyone; we just strive to be the best in the services we choose to offer.

AI is now woven into every part of Stand And Stretch. When you work with us, you’re not just getting a marketing agency; you’re getting a partner who’s at the cutting edge of digital solutions. I shared all this with our latest hire, and now you, because I think it’s essential that people who come to work for Stand And Stretch believe in helping others.

Prospective clients and team members alike know should that we’re not simply following trends—we’re creating them, and we’re excited to share those advancements with every client we serve.

Most digital agencies leave their business owner clients out of the loop.

We like “smart clients” who like being treated like partners.