AI in marketing will not replace a marketer who owns a clear niche, real relationships, and proven outcomes. It replaces generic output. The marketers who stay valuable use AI on their own work first, show clients what it changes, and keep the human parts of the job front and center.
That is the view of Andy Milligan, founder of MMG Design, a web and SEO studio for healthcare companies, and host of the Marketing by Design podcast. In the video at the top of this page, he walks through how he thinks about AI as a solo marketer whose business brought in $26,000 the month he recorded it, and what he has seen work for other marketers in his network.
This guide expands his four-part framework with current research. For more practical field notes on building a marketing career, browse the full Columbus marketing playbooks library.
"Good positioning will defeat any AI." Andy Milligan
What AI in marketing actually changes
The fear is real and widespread. In a Pew Research Center survey of 5,273 employed U.S. adults, published in February 2025, 52% of workers said they are worried about the future impact of AI use in the workplace. Only 36% said they feel hopeful, and 32% think AI will lead to fewer job opportunities for them in the long run.
At the same time, adoption is still early for most people. The same Pew survey found that about one in six workers, 16%, say at least some of their work is currently done with AI.
The long-term demand for marketers has not disappeared either. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook projects employment of advertising, promotions, and marketing managers to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 36,300 openings a year. It projects 7% growth for market research analysts over the same period.
Locally, the BLS May 2025 estimates for the Columbus metro count 5,880 market research analysts and marketing specialists and 2,330 marketing managers. So the question is not whether marketing work survives. It is which marketers clients and employers keep choosing.
Three prerequisites AI cannot copy
Andy starts with what he calls prerequisites (around 1:23 in the video). They are timeless principles, but AI makes them matter more.
1. Positioning
The most powerful AI models are very broad, and many specialized tools are wrappers built to market to one industry. A marketer with proven case studies and outcomes in one industry is more valuable than any general tool.
Andy calls niching the most transformational action he has taken. It led to more qualified inbound leads, took pressure off his pipeline, and made him enjoy the business more.
2. Relationships
"Relationships will always beat any AI," Andy says. If you are networking and building a community in your niche, people come to you first, and they ask you how AI is affecting their industry. Being that person depends on who you surround yourself with.
3. Outcomes
"Outcomes are always going to defeat AI." Clients care about outcomes, and outcomes usually mean money. When a client conversation turns to money, Andy uses this anchor: "You can always make more money, but you can only save so much money."
The compelling pitch for AI tools is cost cutting. The pitch for an expert is growth, and that upside is uncapped.
Use AI in marketing on yourself first
Next come the actions Andy recommends taking as soon as possible (around 3:22). You do not have to become an AI expert who chases every new tool. You do need to be the person who knows how to use it inside your own specialty.
- Automate your own workflows. "I actually think you should very much try to automate yourself out of your own job," Andy says. If you work hard to replace yourself, no client will be able to do it for you.
- Fall in love with outcomes, not the craft. Andy's advice is to "fall in love with the outcomes that you deliver for clients and not the way that you get there."
- Share your outcomes. Human stories, testimonials, case studies, and customer stories are things AI cannot replace. Specific outcomes for specific people resonate more than any cost savings or automation.
What this looks like in practice
Andy's studio builds Webflow websites for healthcare companies. The niche was hard to commit to at first.
It became the thing AI could not replace: healthcare buyers want humans who keep their sites compliant and help them avoid risk. Double-niching on one platform also captured inbound demand from people searching for that exact service. "The more niche you go, the more you can charge," he says.
The second example is a customer video in which a client says a lead already came in from the new website. "No one takes a video of themselves praising their AI tool for doing the same thing," Andy says. People do it when a person did the work for them.
What to say to clients about AI
Andy's third section (around 5:28) covers how to talk about AI with an employer, a prospect, or a client. The first move is direct: tell them, "I tried using XYZ and it delivered" a specific outcome. Naming how you use AI removes their suspicion that you are quietly using it to replace the work they pay you for.
His go-to line is lighthearted on purpose: "I don't know if you've heard about this thing called AI, but it's been awesome for our business."
It works because it is candid and a little sarcastic, and it reframes a service that buyers see as a commodity. Web design is his example. Anyone can generate a website in one click, but not an effective one. "You can get to the output very quickly, but you can't get to the result quickly, and people are mixing those up," Andy says.
Once a buyer hears that an expert is using AI daily, they assume the expert's results beat what they could do alone. They also know you are deep in the tools, testing what good output looks like in your niche.
Show, don't tell: build an AI comparison page
Andy's final exercise (around 7:08) is a comparison page. Treat every employer and client as skeptical by default, because many are, and then prove the difference instead of describing it. Here is how it applies by role:
- Copywriters: publish AI-written copy next to your copy for the same brief.
- Graphic designers: show an AI-generated social post beside your version.
- Web designers: compare a one-click AI site with a site you built for results.
- Strategists and generalists: show the AI plan next to your plan and the outcome it produced.
Andy built comparison pages for his own designs versus AI tool designs. The process doubled as a way to test every tool, and the finished page puts a buyer's mind at ease that hiring a person beats doing it themselves with a tool. If you are a designer weighing the same question, his short answer to will AI replace graphic designers is a useful companion.
AI in marketing makes community more valuable
The video closes (around 8:40) with the reason Andy started a community in the first place. Amee BellWanzo, a former marketing manager at Rev1 Ventures, described a recent marketing leaders lunch this way: "It's so energizing to spend time with smart, talented people who share your interest."
Andy says he would be nowhere near where he is without people one or two steps ahead sharing what they learned in real time. That is exactly where AI is weakest, and where your career path gets shorter.
Columbus Marketing Organization is a peer community for marketers, freelancers, and service providers in Columbus, Ohio, founded by Andy Milligan. Members share leads, introductions, and job opportunities, including the weekly Columbus Marketing Jobs newsletter. You can see current openings through Columbus Marketing Jobs and meet people in person at an upcoming Columbus marketing event.
A seven-day plan to use AI on your own work
Use this plan to turn the framework into a week of action:
- Day 1: Write one sentence that names your niche: the industry, the platform, and the outcome you deliver.
- Day 2: List the recurring tasks in your week and mark the ones AI could draft or speed up.
- Day 3: Automate or AI-assist one of those tasks and record the time saved.
- Day 4: Collect one specific outcome from a client or employer and turn it into a short case study.
- Day 5: Practice the "this thing called AI" line and use it in your next client or team conversation.
- Day 6: Build a simple comparison: AI output next to your output for the same brief.
- Day 7: Reach out to three peers in your niche, with no ask, to compare how they use AI.
Your marketing career gets more durable each time you repeat this loop. If you want a shortlist of software worth paying for, Andy also breaks down the best marketing tools he uses to run his studio.
The bottom line on AI in marketing
AI in marketing rewards the marketers who are hardest to swap for a tool: specialists with clear positioning, strong relationships, and outcomes they can prove. Use AI on your own work first, tell clients exactly how you use it, and show the difference with real examples.
Then surround yourself with people working through the same shift. If you are ready to land paying work, start with how to get your first client, or join the Columbus Marketing Organization community on Skool to compare notes with marketers who are figuring out AI in real time.
You can get to the output very quickly, but you can't get to the result quickly, and people are mixing those up.
Frequently asked questions
Will AI replace marketing jobs?
Not wholesale. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 6% growth for advertising, promotions, and marketing managers from 2025 to 2035. AI replaces generic output, so marketers with a clear niche, strong relationships, and proven outcomes are the hardest to replace, according to Andy Milligan.
How should marketers use AI in their own work?
Start with your own workflows. List recurring tasks, then use AI to draft or speed up the ones it handles well. Andy Milligan recommends trying to automate yourself out of the tasks you can, so you stay focused on the outcomes clients pay for rather than the craft itself.
How do I explain my AI use to clients?
Be direct. Tell clients which tool you tried and what outcome it delivered. Andy Milligan opens with a light line about AI being great for his business, then explains that AI gets to output fast but not to results, which still take an expert's judgment and testing.
What protects a marketing career from AI?
Three things AI cannot copy: positioning in a specific niche, relationships with the people in that niche, and outcomes you can prove with case studies and testimonials. Andy Milligan calls niching the most transformational move in his own business, because it brought more qualified inbound leads.
What is an AI comparison page?
It is a page on your website or portfolio that shows AI-generated work next to your work for the same brief. Copywriters compare copy, designers compare social posts, and web designers compare sites. It shows skeptical buyers the difference instead of asking them to take your word for it.
Read the video transcript
Kind: captions Language: en Hey there, my name is Andy. I own a solo marketing business that generated $26,000 last month and you stumbled across my channel where I teach you in public everything I'm doing and share with you in lifetime what's working and what's not. So, if you guys are new to the channel, first of all, my design studio is called MMG Design. We do web and SEO for healthcare. I have a podcast called Marketing by Design where I interview thought leaders and marketing B2B healthcare and beyond. and I also own a community and an organization for inerson events, masterminds and networking with other marketers here in Columbus, Ohio. Today I want to talk about AI, you know, just like everybody else is. It's a meme at this point, but if you have any fear whatsoever, and this is where the conversation gets more serious. If you have any fear whatsoever of AI replacing you, maybe you're a designer or you're in a technical field where you are exposed to a lot of data and you are afraid that AI is going to replace you, I want you to watch this video and how I'm thinking about these things and what I've seen work for other marketers in my network and in the community. So, I have four things that I want to touch on, things that you should be thinking about and things that and actual actions that you can take in order to hedge your risk and become the most valuable marketer you can possibly be. People are going to want to hire you. Clients are going to want to work with you. And it all starts right here. Okay, so first I want to touch on some prerequisites right here. These are just timeless principles that have always made sense, but now the AI is here, they become increasingly important. First of all is positioning. Good positioning will defeat any AI. Right now, the most powerful AI models are very broad. There's three major players: Quad, Anthropic, and Google. Now, a lot of the other more specialized tools are essentially just rappers that are meant to market more heavily towards a specific industry. If you, a marketer, a human, have already built up a moat and you have proven case studies and work around one industry and proven outcomes, you are going to be more inherently valuable than any generalized AI tool. I'm going to link in the card another Q&A video. I talked about taking a marketer through how they should think about niching and how we did it for ourselves. But I can say hands down, it's been the most transformational action that I've taken that has led to more qualified inbound leads, taken less pressure off of our pipeline, and has generally increased my enjoyment in my business. Number two on prerequisites, relationships will always beat any AI. If you are networking, building a community, and you already have an established foothold in your niche and area of marketing, people are going to come to you first and actually be the ones asking you how AI is affecting your industry. If there's any way to get ahead of the curve and be the marketer that AI can't replace, it comes down to the people around you and surrounding yourself with people who value the things that you do. Third, and finally on prerequisites, outcomes. Outcomes are always going to defeat AI. If you're working with clients, I can tell you firsthand, outcomes are all customers care about. Outcomes are more specifically money. So, when a conversation switches to money with a client, I always try to use an anchor like this. You can always make more money, but you can only save so much money. The big compelling value prop of AI tools is that it makes cost cutting a lot easier. Whereas, if you're working with a human and how you should position yourself in customer conversations, if you're working with an expert, the upsides are uncapped. Next up, I want to talk about good things to do, actions that you should take as soon as possible. Things number one and two kind of go hand in hand, but direct admonishment and wielding the sword. If you have good positioning and if you are experimenting with tools, you don't have to be completely AI savvy and an AI tech bro that all the YouTubers are making these hype thumbnails about. You don't have to be that person, but you can become the very specialized expert of using it to automate your own workflows. And when I say that, I actually think you should very much try to automate yourself out of your own job. Fall in love with the outcomes that you deliver for clients and not the way that you get there, not the craft, not the practice. If you try as hard as you can to replace yourself, there's no client that's going to be able to do it for you. Third part of this is to share your outcomes. Human stories, testimonials, case studies, customer stories, these are all things that AI will never be able to replace. specific outcomes for specific people are going to resonate much more deeply than any other cost savings or cool automation ever could. Two photos that accentuize the examples that I just gave you. When it comes to positioning, I want you to see if you can go three to four layers deep. Again, I have another full video about this on the channel which is super helpful. But this is how I approached it when building our agency MMG and we do web flow websites for healthcare. Now, in the beginning, it was super hard to take this niche. What I realized by becoming this one specific thing, I became the thing that AI could not replace. Healthcare is an industry where they're looking for humans that can make sure that their site is compliant and help them to avoid risk. And by also double niching around a certain platform, I was able to capture inbound demand for people looking for this exact service. This chart right here that we have on our website really illustrates the value of going niche. The cool thing is guys, the more niche you go, the more you can charge. Second one is a customer story, a testimonial, a video of a customer really saying, "A lead already came in from our website. We're so excited." No one takes a video of themselves praising their AI tool for doing the same thing. But they will do it if a person did it for them. Third thing I want to talk about here is some good things to say. Whether when you're talking to your employer or potential prospect or client if you're a freelance marketer, these are things that I have tried and I've gotten good response and results from when addressing AI in direct conversations with prospects. Number one, I tried using XYZ and it delivered blank outcomes. If you directly tell a client how you're using AI, it removes the ambiguity that they might have this perception that you're just using AI to replace the work that they're paying you to do in the first place. One thing I say in specific is this script right here. I don't know if you've heard about this thing called AI, but it's been awesome for our business. Now, let me explain this. So, if you're in what's perceived to be kind of a commoditized industry, example, web design, I went through this whole process. Everyone thinks that you can generate websites in one click, one shot, and you definitely can, but you can't make an effective one in one shot. Obviously, this is the whole debate with any area of marketing. You can get to the output very quickly, but you can't get to the result quickly, and people are mixing those up. If you say something like this, it does a few things. One, it initiates cander. It's laid-back. It's sarcastic. Obviously, the other person has heard about AI. Obviously, your employer has heard about and it removes the perception that your service is a commodity. Automatically, the customer and the employer is now thinking, if this person who's an expert in it is using AI, their outcomes must be far greater than me who's a newbie using AI. After you say this, now they know that you are in the weeds, experimenting, circling the plane on what the perfect output looks like for the tool and your specific niche. The combination of those two things is obviously better than anything that they can make on their own. Last final thought, prop and exercise for you guys. As I was going through this, I found it really helpful to make a direct comparison page. And you can do this no matter what area of marketing you are in. If you are a copywriter, make a comparison page on your portfolio and your website directly showing AI copy versus your copy. If you're a graphic designer, same thing. AI social media post, my social media post. If you're a web designer, obviously do this. This idea of show don't tell. It applies to the testimonials. It applies to the niche. It applies to the social proof. Pretend that your employer is is the most skeptical person by default. Cuz honestly, customers nowadays are becoming skeptical by default. and it's your job to convince them otherwise. So, I built comparison pages on our site comparing our designs versus all other AI tool designs. Not only was it really helpful to go in and it was a proxy for me to experiment with using all the tools, it directly shows the end output and it puts the customer's mind at ease knowing that making a decision in you, the human is better than trying to do it themselves with a tool. If you're trying to get your first freelance marketing client or you're considering freelancing at all, I looked through over 2,000 of my LinkedIn posts and I pulled out the eight posts that I made over the last three years that have led to paying freelance marketing clients and I put all the links in one sheet for you to copy and apply to your business to get clients today. That'll be in the first link below. Appreciate you guys watching and I'll see you in the next one. Bye. Hey, real quick. I want to share with you something that my friend Amy Belwanzo, former marketing manager at Rev 1 Ventures and CMO, said after attending our last marketing leaders lunch. It's so energizing to spend time with smart, talented people who share your interest. When your head's down in work, it's easy to let meaningful connections slip away. This gathering was a refreshing reminder. Or hear what my friend Joshua Platt had to say. I connected with numerous people on LinkedIn and scheduled several follow-up meetings. The lunch created real opportunities to build relationships with marketing colleagues. This is the exact reason why I started the Columbus Marketing Organization. I would be nowhere near where I'm at now. If I didn't have the grace, guidance, and the insights of people one to two steps ahead of me sharing what they'd learned with me in live time. So, if you're a marketer and you're feeling starved of community, highly encourage you to check out the first link below. Appreciate you and love you all. Let's get to the podcast.