FROM AWARENESS TO ADVOCACY MAPPING THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY THROUGH AI-DRIVEN MARKETING ANALYTICS

Abstract

In an age where digital interactions shift with the speed of thought, understanding how customers travel from initial awareness to empowered advocacy has become both a challenge and an opportunity. This study maps that journey through the lens of AI-driven marketing analytics, revealing how algorithmic intelligence quietly shapes the emotional and behavioural contours of consumer decision-making. Drawing on a mixed-method design, the research integrates Journey Sequencing Analysis, Gradient Boosting Journey Modelling, and Advocacy Lift Attribution to reconstruct how customers progress across key stages — awareness, consideration, conversion, retention, and ultimately advocacy. Findings show that AI-personalisation acts as an early catalyst, enhancing relevance and drawing consumers deeper into engagement, while trust in AI systems becomes the decisive force that transforms loyal customers into vocal brand advocates. Nearly half of advocacy outcomes were attributable to AI-enabled touchpoints, underscoring the rising power of intelligent technologies in cultivating long-term relationships. By blending traditional marketing theory with computational precision, this study offers a holistic, future-oriented framework for understanding how brands can nurture journeys that feel personal, respectful, and genuinely human in a rapidly automated world.