Prompt Horizon Issue #16 - The Rise of Conversational Ads

EDITOR'S NOTE

Hey there! 👋🏻

Capturing and keeping someone’s attention online feels like trying to hold water in your hands; it slips away fast.

Traditional ads are shouting into the void, pushing one-way messages that rarely hit the mark. So imagine this instead: your ads aren’t just shouting, they’re having a conversation.

They understand what your potential customer wants, respond in real time, and guide them naturally through a personalized journey. No gimmicks, no guesswork, just the right message, at the right time, for the right person.

Let’s get into how AI intelligent systems are moving beyond static banners and forms, creating dynamic, two-way interactions that engage customers more deeply and drive conversion rates significantly higher than industry averages. 

Let’s go!

TL;DR 📝

• Conversational ads transform traditional one-way marketing into dynamic, AI-powered two-way conversations that engage users and boost conversion rates significantly.

• AI chat funnels enable hyper-personalization by reading real-time intent and behavior, simplifying journeys with instant answers and seamless purchase options.

• Effective conversational ad strategies involve clear goal-setting, choosing the right AI platforms, designing engaging chat flows, and continuous optimization through performance analytics.

NEWS YOU CAN USE 📰

Over 50% of advertising performance comes down to creative execution, making it the single biggest driver of impact. While the industry often prioritizes media targeting and precision audience planning, it’s the strength of your creative that most influences brand recall, favorability, purchase intent, and video ROI. [Source: Smartly, September 2025]

Where digital interactions often outweigh human ones, customer experience (CX) has evolved into the ultimate battleground for brands. At the heart of this transformation are Chatbots and Conversational AI, technologies that not only enhance support but also completely redefine the way businesses interact with their customers. [Source: tnglobal August 2025]

AI search is growing, but Google still dominates, as 95% of ChatGPT users visit Google, but just 14% of Google users go to ChatGPT. Despite ChatGPT’s explosive growth, nearly all of its users also turn to Google, per new Similarweb data. [Source: Search Engine Journal, September 2025] 

Most websites get traffic. Few convert. AI in marketing has evolved from email automation to deep behavioral insights. It helps teams understand the full user journey, what users care about, what stops them, and what finally makes them convert. [Source: Convin, August 2025]

INSIGHTS FROM THE HORIZON 🌅

The ad game is changing fast.

We're moving from static, one-way messages to dynamic, two-way conversations. At the heart of this shift are conversational ads and AI-powered chat funnels, tools that make marketing feel more human, personal, and effortless.

Beyond the Click: The Power of Dialogue

Traditional ads stop at the click. Conversational ads start the conversation. Instead of dumping users on a static page, they invite real-time chats answering questions, sharing info, and tailoring responses instantly. This creates trust, builds rapport, and makes the sales journey feel less like a pitch and more like a helpful chat.

Personalization at Scale

AI-driven funnels unlock hyper-personalization. They read intent in real time, from browsing behavior to sentiment, and adapt instantly. If someone’s looking for eco-friendly running shoes, the chat can recommend products, share sustainability details, and even offer a discount, all in one smooth flow.

Frictionless Journeys

No more clicking through endless menus or filling out long forms. Conversational ads simplify the path from curiosity to conversion. Users get instant answers, smooth navigation, and, in many cases, can even complete purchases directly in-chat. Less friction = higher conversions.

Smarter Every Time

Every chat is a data goldmine. With each interaction, AI learns user behavior, spots trends, and refines messaging. The result is better recommendations, smarter funnels, and continuously improving performance that keeps adapting to audience needs.

Beyond Chatbots: True Conversational AI

Forget clunky, scripted bots. Today’s conversational AI understands context, handles complex questions, and engages like a human. As it evolves, ads won’t just feel personal, they’ll feel natural, making the line between marketing and customer experience almost invisible.

HOW TO BUILD AN AI-POWERED CONVERSATIONAL AD & CHAT FUNNEL STRATEGY 💡

Building an effective AI-powered conversational ad and chat funnel strategy involves more than just deploying a chatbot. It requires a holistic approach that integrates AI into every stage of the customer journey, from initial ad interaction to conversion and beyond.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to implementing such a strategy:

1. Define Your Conversational Goals and User Journeys

Before selecting any tools, clearly define what you want your conversational ads and chat funnels to achieve.

Are you aiming for lead qualification, customer support deflection, product recommendations, or direct sales? Map out the typical user journeys for each goal. 

Understand the questions users might ask, the information they’ll need, and the actions you want them to take. This foundational step will inform the design of your chat flows and the capabilities your AI needs to possess.

2. Choose the Right Conversational AI Platform

Choose a conversational AI platform that fits your goals and integrates seamlessly with your marketing and sales stack.

Prioritize features like natural language understanding (NLU) to interpret user intent, dialogue management for smooth multi-turn conversations, and integration capabilities with your CRM, ad platforms, and analytics tools. 

Look for personalization features that deliver dynamic, data-driven content and robust analytics to track performance, spot drop-offs, and continuously optimize your campaigns.

Platforms like Smartly.io, Landbot.io, and solutions from Google Ads or Microsoft Ads offer varying degrees of conversational capabilities, from ad-specific chat flows to full-fledged chatbot sales funnels.

3. Design Engaging and Goal-Oriented Chat Flows

Craft your chat flows with a clear purpose at every stage of the funnel.

Start with an engaging opener, guide users through qualifying questions, and keep the conversation natural and helpful. 

Use conditional logic to personalize responses, rich media to boost engagement, and quick replies or buttons to make interactions seamless. Finally, enable human handoff for complex queries where a personal touch is needed.

4. Integrate Conversational Elements into Your Ads

Deploy your chat funnels directly within your paid campaigns to drive engagement and conversions.

Use click-to-chat ads that open instant conversations on platforms like Facebook Messenger or Google Ads, add landing page chat widgets for an interactive alternative to forms, and leverage programmatic conversational ads to make display ads dynamic and engaging. Ensure your ad copy and visuals clearly set expectations by highlighting the interactive experience users can expect.

5. Personalize and Optimize with AI

Leverage AI to continuously personalize and optimize your conversational ads.

Use dynamic content to tailor conversations with real-time user data, run A/B testing to find the most effective chat flows and CTAs, and refine intent recognition by learning from user interactions. Harness predictive analytics to identify high-converting prospects and deliver targeted follow-ups or special offers that maximize results.

6. Analyze Performance and Iterate

Regularly analyze the performance of your conversational ads by tracking key metrics.

Monitor conversation start rate to see how many users engage, completion rate to measure how many finish the flow, and conversion rate to track leads or sales. Collect user satisfaction feedback to gauge experience quality, and identify common drop-off points to fine-tune and improve weak stages of the funnel.

THIS WEEK'S PROMPT 🤖

Use this prompt with ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or any advanced AI assistant to design an AI-powered conversational ad and chat funnel for your specific product or service.

You’re a Conversational AI Strategist and Performance Marketing Expert. Your goal is to help me design a high-converting, AI-powered conversational ad and chat funnel for [Your Product/Service].

Consider the following aspects and provide detailed, actionable steps and prompts for each

1. Conversational Ad Concept & Hook

Suggest a compelling ad creative concept that clearly communicates the interactive nature of the ad and entices users to engage with the chat funnel. Provide 3-5 variations of an initial chat prompt/question that the AI will use to greet users and initiate the conversation.

2. Chat Funnel Flow Design (Qualification & Personalization)

Outline a step-by-step chat flow that guides users through a qualification process, gathering necessary information while providing value.

Describe how the AI will personalize the conversation based on user responses (e.g., product recommendations, tailored information, specific offers).

Provide prompts for the AI to handle common user intents (e.g., pricing inquiry, demo request, support question).

3. Conversion & Call-to-Action (CTA) Strategy

Identify the primary conversion goal(s) for this chat funnel (e.g., lead capture, direct sale, demo booking), and suggest how the AI will seamlessly transition users to the desired CTA within the chat, including options for human handoff if needed.

Provide prompts for the AI to craft persuasive, context-aware CTAs at various points in the conversation.

4. Performance Measurement & Optimization

Outline key metrics to track the performance of this conversational ad and chat funnel (e.g., conversation start rate, completion rate, conversion rate, user satisfaction).

Describe how AI can be used to analyze conversation data, identify bottlenecks, and suggest improvements to the chat flow and AI responses.

5. Recommended AI Tools & Integration

Suggest 2-3 specific AI conversational marketing platforms or tools that would be most suitable for building this funnel.

Briefly explain how these tools would integrate with common ad platforms (e.g., Meta Ads, Google Ads) and your CRM.

MEME OF THE WEEK

HAVING FUN WITH AI 😁

I came across a prompt on X to turn a selfie into a collectible figure. 😆

Here’s the prompt, so you can try it yourself. You have to put it into the Gemini app.

Create a 1/7 scale commercialized figurine of the characters in the picture, in a realistic style, in a real environment. The figurine is placed on a computer desk. The figurine has a round transparent acrylic base, with no text on the base. The content on the computer screen is a 3D modeling process of this figurine. Next to the computer screen is a toy packaging box, designed in a style reminiscent of high-quality collectible figures, printed with original artwork. The packaging features two-dimensional flat illustrations.

WRAPPING UP 🚀

Conversational ads and AI-powered chat funnels represent a significant leap forward in digital advertising.

By transforming one-way broadcasts into dynamic, personalized dialogues, brands can forge deeper connections with their audience, understand intent with unprecedented clarity, and guide prospects seamlessly towards conversion. 

The impressive conversion rates demonstrated by these AI-driven funnels are not just statistics; they are a testament to the power of human-centric automation.

As AI continues to evolve, conversational advertising will become an even more integral part of successful marketing strategies, making every ad interaction an opportunity for meaningful engagement and measurable results. 

Until next time, keep exploring the horizon. 🌅

Alex Lielacher

P.S. If you want your brand to gain more search visibility in Google AI Mode, ChatGPT, and Perplexity, reach out to my agency, Rise Up Media. We can help you with that!