Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Use in Marketing: A General Taxonomy

The emergence of consumer-generated data and the growing availability of Machine Learning (ML) techniques are revolutionizing marketing practices. Marketers and researchers are far from having a thorough understanding of the broad range of opportunities ML applications offer in creating and maintaining a competitive business advantage. In this paper, we propose a taxonomy of ML use cases in marketing based on a systematic review of academic and business literature. We have identified 11 recurring use cases, organized in 4 homogeneous families which correspond to the fundamentals leverage areas of ML in marketing, namely: shopper fundamentals, consumption experience, decision making, and financial impact. We discuss the recurring patterns identified in the taxonomy and provide a conceptual framework for its interpretation and extension, highlighting practical implications for marketers and researchers.