The Most Human Skill That Becomes More Valuable as AI Gets Better

Introduction

Amanda Cole, CMO of Bloomreach, reveals a counterintuitive truth about marketing in the AI era: the ability to experiment and fail quickly has become the most valuable human skill. As AI tools democratize technical capabilities, Cole demonstrates how marketers can leverage platforms like Claude and NotebookLM to build everything from share-of-voice trackers to custom applications—even if they don't always work perfectly. Her approach challenges traditional marketing boundaries and showcases why embracing imperfect experimentation drives i ovation.

AI as the Great Equalizer in Marketing

Cole's perspective on AI adoption reflects a fundamental shift in marketing power dynamics. "For all of our lives, everybody has been able to do the job of marketing. They've all told us how to write copy better, how design could be better, what swag could be better. And now finally, we can say to engineering, we can do your job," she explains. This democratization of technical skills empowers marketers to prototype solutions independently, test hypotheses rapidly, and validate ideas without waiting for engineering resources. The real value isn't in building perfect tools—it's in the ability to experiment fearlessly and learn from failures.

Building a Personal AI Research System

Cole's daily workflow demonstrates practical AI integration for continuous learning. She starts each day with Claude, using it to identify thought leaders, discover relevant content, and synthesize information from multiple sources. Her research system extends to NotebookLM, where she organizes findings into project folders and creates what she describes as "almost a digital twin version of yourself that you can debate with based on the context sources." This systematic approach to knowledge management enables her to stay current with marketing trends while building a searchable repository of insights that inform strategic decisions.

The Power of Imperfect Prototypes

Cole's experience building a share-of-voice tracking tool illustrates the new marketing mindset required for AI success. Despite co ecting Claude to Supabase and Vercel to create what she thought was an i ovative solution, her PR team quickly identified fundamental flaws. Rather than viewing this as failure, Cole celebrates the attempt: "I get really excited about the stuff that I build, and then when we go to actually use it, it doesn't necessarily work or it's not as cool as I thought." This willingness to build, fail, and learn represents the human skill that AI amplifies rather than replaces—creative problem-solving through rapid experimentation.

Finding I ovation in Unexpected Places

Cole's information sources reveal how modern marketing leaders stay ahead. Beyond traditional cha els, she leverages Instagram for bite-sized AI insights from influencers like Allie Miller, combines MKT1's frameworks with practical applications, and uses AI tools to discover new resources. Her most creative application—a gradient-based time tracker that shifts colors throughout the day—demonstrates how experimentation leads to unexpected i ovations. While seemingly trivial, this tool helps her maintain awareness of time and productivity, showing how small experiments can yield practical benefits.

Conclusion

Amanda Cole's approach to AI in marketing emphasizes experimentation over perfection, learning over expertise, and creativity over technical precision. As AI tools become more sophisticated, the human skills of curiosity, resilience in failure, and creative problem-solving become increasingly valuable. Marketing leaders who embrace this mindset—building imperfect prototypes, learning from failures, and constantly experimenting—will find themselves better positioned to leverage AI's full potential. The future belongs not to those who wait for perfect solutions, but to those who build, fail, learn, and iterate rapidly in pursuit of i ovation.