How AI Can Reveal Where Your Ads Are Losing Leads

In 2024, it’s no longer enough to just run an ad and hope for conversions. Small business owners and marketers know that understanding every step of the customer journey is crucial to turning leads into loyal customers.

So…where to start? Recently, I used ChatGPT to help map out a customer journey for an upcoming promotion, and it brought valuable clarity to the process. Here’s what I learned, how AI made it easier, and how you can apply these insights to boost your own lead-generation strategy.

Why the Customer Journey Matters

Every touchpoint with a customer is an opportunity to leave an impression, resolve a need, and ultimately secure a sale. Understanding the journey your customers take—from discovering your brand to making a purchase—is essential for effective lead generation.

When you carefully design a customer journey, you can track where potential leads are dropping off, pinpoint bottlenecks, and adjust your strategy accordingly.

In fact, my recent journey-mapping exercise illuminated areas I hadn’t even considered. After crafting a well-targeted ad and setting up detailed tracking, I was still losing potential leads at certain points. By visualizing every step from ad click to conversion, I could finally see exactly where and why some visitors were bouncing.

The Power of AI in Designing Effective Customer Journeys

AI has opened up new opportunities for us to create, analyze, and refine customer journeys with efficiency. Here’s how AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini can support each stage of the journey:

Persona Creation and Audience Segmentation

Every journey begins with understanding your audience. AI can generate detailed customer personas, identifying different segments and stages that may need unique messaging. For example, using AI tools like Claude or Gemini, you can create tailored content for each persona. This segmentation helps you deliver more relevant messages to different groups at the right times.

Stage-by-Stage Journey Mapping

Breaking down the customer journey into specific stages—awareness, interest, decision, and loyalty—provides a clearer view of how leads progress toward becoming customers. AI tools can help you draft journey maps that include recommended messaging, actions, and touchpoints. With the assistance of AI-generated insights, you can anticipate potential drop-off points and fine-tune your approach accordingly. For instance, if your ad is getting clicks but few conversions, AI can help analyze messaging or suggest new ideas for landing page optimization.

Bottleneck Detection and Troubleshooting

One of the most powerful features of AI tools in customer journey optimization is their ability to detect bottlenecks. When visitors drop off at certain stages, tools like Gemini and Claude can analyze patterns and suggest changes to improve conversion rates. By identifying friction points—such as a lengthy form or a complex checkout process—AI allows you to make specific adjustments that remove barriers to conversion.

customer journey

Steps to Create Your Own Customer Journey with AI

Here’s a step-by-step guide:

1. Define Objectives and Identify Target Audiences

Set clear goals for what you hope to achieve, whether that’s increasing sign-ups, sales, or brand awareness. Use AI to generate audience insights and define personas for each segment. AI can help tailor messages to meet each group’s needs, ensuring relevance across different campaigns.

2. Map Out Each Stage of the Customer Journey

Segment the journey into key stages, from awareness and interest to conversion and retention. Use AI tools like Claude or ChatGPT to brainstorm specific actions and messages that will resonate at each stage. These tools support your strategy by generating variations of messages, calls-to-action (CTAs), or even creative visuals that appeal to distinct customer personas.

3. Optimize and Refine with Real-Time Data

AI analytics tools can enhance your journey-mapping efforts by providing feedback based on real-time data. Track engagement, bounce rates, and conversion rates, and use these insights to adjust your journey map. For instance, if Gemini reveals a drop-off during the checkout phase, you could use this data to simplify the checkout process, add a chatbot for questions, or offer a discount code for first-time buyers.


What are the Benefits? Here are some practical examples of how AI can support lead generation and conversion:

  • Efficiency Through Automation
    AI can save time on customer journey creation by generating customized messaging, tracking every touchpoint, and offering targeted recommendations.
    Example: Suppose you’re creating a journey for a marketing consultant business. You can use a prompt like: “Create a customer journey map for a marketing consultant business, from awareness through conversion and retention stages. Provide a stage-by-stage outline with tailored messaging, calls to action, and strategies for keeping clients engaged throughout the journey.”
  • Building Data-Based Journeys
    Connect Google Analytics data with Claude to create reports that reveal bounce rates, conversion rates, and traffic sources in easy-to-read summaries.
    Example: Ask your AI assistant to “Analyze my website’s bounce rates by traffic source and suggest improvements for higher engagement.” It can quickly flag where most users drop off, enabling you to adjust your messaging, site design, or ad targeting accordingly.
  • Creating an Ideal Customer Avatar
    Use Claude or ChatGPT to generate an avatar of your ideal customer by prompting it with: “Describe my ideal customer for a marketing consultancy business, focusing on demographics, pain points, and goals. Generate an in-depth profile with tailored journey steps that address specific client needs and preferences, resulting in a higher likelihood of conversion.”

Building Toward Future Growth with AI

Using AI to map out my customer journey has helped me understand that each step in the journey is as important as the last and that removing friction at one stage has a positive impact throughout the funnel.

As AI capabilities evolve, so will the potential to create smarter, more intuitive customer journeys. In the future, I hope to connect AI more directly with my analytics tools to detect and address bottlenecks even faster. By staying ahead with these tools, we can deliver exceptional customer experiences that convert leads, drive sales, and ultimately build lasting customer loyalty.

In 2024, it’s time to leverage AI as a strategic partner in building customer journeys that attract leads and nurture them into loyal advocates for your brand.

Thank you for reading this article! If you’re interested in more digital marketing tips, check out my latest blog on “Top Google Ads Alternatives for Better ROI in 2024”.