Artificial Intelligence-enabled value creation and competitive advantage in marketing: A dynamic capabilities perspective

Abstract

This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities contribute to marketing value creation and competitive advantage by integrating customer data, marketing intelligence, operational execution, and human strategic oversight. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design combined a survey of 300 marketing executives with qualitative evidence from three digital-first brand cases to examine AI maturity, predictive analytics, marketing integration, automation, and performance outcomes. Organizations with higher AI maturity reported 25.4% lower customer acquisition costs (CAC) than those with lower AI maturity, while Generative AI (GenAI) users reported a 40% reduction in content-production time. Qualitative evidence indicates that predictive customer intelligence can enable more anticipatory and personalized engagement, while human oversight, data governance, and authenticity remain important boundary conditions. Synthetic data offers a complementary option for privacy-conscious experimentation and model development. The AI-Marketing Value Creation Model conceptualizes competitive advantage as the coordinated conversion of customer data and AI capabilities into economic, operational, and experiential value through organizational processes and human judgment. Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Marketing Intelligence, Marketing Operations, Competitive Advantage, Dynamic Capabilities.