Navigating AI in Maritime Sales & Marketing: Build Stronger Relationships that Will Grow Your Company

In an industry as specialized as offshore engineering and maritime operations, marketing often takes a backseat to technical innovations, operational efficiency, and safety advancements. But as the digital landscape continues to evolve, industrial brands—especially those in the maritime and offshore sectors—are facing increasing pressure to modernize their marketing efforts.

One of the biggest shifts we’re seeing? The rise of AI-powered tools like ChatGPT, which are changing the way companies connect with their audience and streamline marketing and sales processes to build relationships that instill trust. AI isn’t here to replace humans; rather, it’s a tool that helps companies create messaging that is more personalized and resonates with their target audience—making outreach more efficient and impactful.

I recently spoke at the Forming Our Future conference about how industrial brands can leverage AI to build relationships that will grow their businesses. While I don’t claim to be an expert in maritime or offshore engineering, my expertise lies in helping B2B companies—especially those with complex, technical products—communicate their value more effectively.

Here’s how AI can play a role in maritime marketing and sales, how to use it strategically to show companies that you truly care, and how it can support your team with mundane tasks so they can focus on strategy and analysis to achieve better results.

AI as a Research Assistant: Understanding Your Audience

One of the most overlooked challenges in industrial marketing is truly understanding the audience you’re speaking to. HubSpot reports that only 42% of B2B companies know basic demographics about their audience. Basic demographics are not enough. In order to have your messages stand out in today’s market, you need a clear, complete picture of your audience so that you can deliver the information that matters most to them.

AI can accelerate this process by gathering insights about the audience most likely to be interested in what you offer. Start by telling ChatGPT exactly who you are, what your brand is about, and that you're looking to get a complete picture of your target audience.

Case Study: How I Interacted with ChatGPT Today

I’m currently working to understand the audience for my client, Kohler Germany, particularly individuals interested in purchasing their part leveling equipment. I asked ChatGPT the following questions to get a fuller picture:

• What specific problem is this person trying to solve on the shop floor or in the production process?

• What role does this individual play in the buying process, and what matters most to them when evaluating new equipment?

• What would a successful outcome look like for this person six months after installing this equipment?

While AI can’t replace firsthand industry expertise, it can provide a starting point for understanding objectives, challenges, and goals—so you can begin building a complete picture of your audience.

Warning: AI should always be used as a baseline or assistant. You need to talk to and train this assistant in order to get the response most appropriate for your needs. The more you train AI, the more effective it will be in moving your business forward while demonstrating that you genuinely care.

Crafting Personalized Outreach: Speaking to the Right People with the Right Message

At World Innovators, I emphasize that marketing is about building relationships, not just pushing out messages. For companies to grow, they must build relationships that instill trust and demonstrate genuine care—not just seek one-time transactions.

AI can help personalize outreach at scale. Gone are the days of generic messages sent to large groups in hopes of converting a few. In today’s crowded marketplace, your marketing must speak directly to the individual. Your email or postal piece should make the recipient think, They’re talking directly to me. They understand my situation. They can help me.

AI helps identify the right message for different audience segments. For example, if you're marketing offshore safety equipment, AI can help adjust the message based on whether you're speaking to engineers, procurement managers, or CEOs.

Before AI: “Check out our latest offshore safety products.”

With AI Refinement: “As a maritime safety officer, you know the importance of proactive maintenance. Our latest offshore safety innovations help reduce downtime while improving compliance with evolving regulations.”

Instead of focusing on what your company offers, reframe the message around the recipient’s challenges or desired outcomes. By refining your outreach, AI helps ensure your messages feel relevant—not like mass marketing.

Generating Thought Leadership Content (Without Spending Hours Writing It)

Thought leadership is one of the most effective ways industrial brands can stand out, but content creation is often a struggle. AI can generate video outlines, article drafts, LinkedIn posts, and reports—allowing your team to focus on refining messages rather than starting from scratch.

Actionable Step: Use AI to create a outline for a video. For example, if you want to record a video about “The Future of AI in Offshore Operations,” you could prompt ChatGPT with:

“Can you help me create an outline for a 10 minute video on how AI is being used in offshore engineering, including examples of predictive maintenance and safety improvements.”

Tip: Be specific. I use a GPT I’ve trained, which I call Izzy. Before Izzy writes anything, I remind her to act like Donna Peterson from World Innovators—a 44-year-old B2B industrial marketing company that helps clients connect with their audience and integrate AI to gain a competitive edge.

After generating content, always review and edit for accuracy, tone, and industry-specific details. With a video in your own words you can then have ChatGPT create other types of content that will sound just like you and our thoughts.

Conclusion

AI may feel like uncharted waters for many in the maritime space, but it’s not about abandoning traditional methods. It’s about enhancing what already works—bringing in new tools that help you better understand your audience, speak their language, and build meaningful, lasting relationships.

Start small. Use AI to support your team, not replace it. When used thoughtfully, AI can help industrial brands grow faster, work smarter, and most importantly—show their customers that they truly care.

P.S. If you’re curious how AI could support your sales and marketing efforts—or want help training your own version of “Izzy”—I’d be happy to have a conversation. Whether you're trying to align your entire team on how to integrate AI or simply looking for ways to save time while building stronger connections, World Innovators is here to help you succeed.