AI-Enhanced Visual Marketing
This two-day program provides a comprehensive introduction to visual marketing theory and its practical application using AI tools. Participants will gain a foundational understanding of visual perception, consumer attention, and social media engagement, then learn how to leverage AI to rapidly develop and test visual design elements. Through a combination of theoretical knowledge, hands-on AI exercises, and real-world case studies, attendees will be equipped to create compelling visual marketing campaigns that drive engagement across digital and traditional channels.
Program Details
Program Dates
February 10-11, 2026
Registration Deadline
January 27, 2026
To request additional program information, please fill out our interest form.
Cost
$1,700 if you register by December 31, 2025
$1,950 if you register between January 1-January 27, 2026
Delivery Method
Two full days, on campus
Promotions and Available Discounts
- Discounts are available for Ohio State University employees, OSUWMC employees, Veterans, employees from non-profit organizations, and organizations who send 3 or more employees. For more information about discounts, please contact Alison Cherubini-Hillyer at cherubini-hillyer.1@osu.edu.
Prospective Participant Profile
This program is targeted towards brand managers, product markets, packaging and retail strategists, social media marketers, graphic designers, and digital marketing professionals. Those who are responsible for improving self-impact, social engagement, ad effectiveness, and in-store merchandising. Individuals who leverage visual data and AI tools to drive conversion, loyalty, and earned media. Participants should have 2+ years of experience in marketing, design, social media, or customer-insight roles. They should also be familiar with basic marketing and social media KPIs. No prior AI experience required.
- Master both theoretical foundations and cutting-edge AI applications in visual marketing
- Gain hands-on experience with leading AI design and testing platforms
- Build visual-social strategies that leverage platform conventions and AI optimization
- Develop skills in AI-enhanced experimentation and data-driven visual decision making
- Dramatically reduce time-to-market for visual content creation and testing
- Increase ROI through AI-optimized packaging, advertising, and social content
- Create scalable visual marketing processes that combine human creativity with AI efficiency
- Foster a culture of rapid testing and learning across visual channels, reducing wasted spend while improving engagement metrics
Program Objectives
- Explain the cognitive mechanisms driving visual attention, fluency, and social media engagement
- Apply visual principles, eye-tracking insights, and social media analytics to diagnose and optimize visual touchpoints
- Use AI tools to rapidly generate, test, and optimize visual marketing content Design robust AI-enhanced A/B experiments to validate visual marketing hypotheses
- Craft perceptually fluent, semiotically coherent, and emotionally compelling advertisements, packaging, and social content using AI assistance
- Develop an integrated visual-AI marketing implementation strategy for your organization
Program Faculty
Dr. Xiaoyan Deng is an Associate Professor at the Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University. She received her PhD in Marketing from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 2009. Her research focuses on visual marketing, particularly how marketplace design elements, such as advertising, product and packaging design, and retail displays, influence consumer decision-making. She also examines marketplace social inference and behavioral nudges.
Dr. Deng's work has been published in leading marketing journals, including the Journal of Consumer Research (JCR), Journal of Marketing (JM), Journal of Marketing Research (JMR), and Journal of Consumer Psychology (JCP). She was named a Marketing Science Institute (MSI) Young Scholar in 2017. According to Google Scholar, her publications have been cited over 3,800 times, with ten articles receiving more than 100 citations each. Her expertise in visual marketing includes research on packaging design effects, aesthetics, and how visual cues influence consumer perception and choice behavior.
Dr. Deng will lead Day 1, providing the theoretical foundation in visual marketing principles, consumer psychology, and eye-tracking methodologies that underpin effective visual marketing strategies.
Dr. Jeffrey Dotson is an Associate Professor of Marketing in the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University. His research focuses on the development and application of advanced statistical methods and emerging technologies to marketing and management problems. His work has been published in leading academic journals including Marketing Science, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Marketing, and Strategic Management Journal.
Professor Dotson has extensive experience teaching MBA-level courses in Marketing Research, Marketing Analytics, Pricing Strategies, and notably, Generative Artificial Intelligence. He received his PhD in Quantitative Marketing from Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University and holds an MS in Statistics and an MBA from the University of Utah. His expertise spans quantitative marketing, applied analytics, and the practical implementation of AI technologies in business contexts.
Dr. Dotson will lead Day 2, focusing on the practical application of AI tools for visual content creation, A/B testing, optimization, and implementation strategies, bridging the gap between theoretical understanding and real-world AI-enhanced marketing execution.