Using AI technology to supercharge your e-commerce business

Six months ago, it was easy to think that artificial intelligence was the stuff of the distant future. Cue ChatGPT steamrolling its way onto the scene, followed by an avalanche of powerful AI technology, each one more powerful than the last. But even before ChatGPT, artificial intelligence has been at work, often behind the scenes, as we went about our everyday lives.

Think about it. Do you open your phone with your face ID? Is your social media feed curated with content surprisingly relevant to your interests? Has a website ever suggested other products you might like based on what you’ve looked at before? If you have used any of those tools, you have used AI!

So, what is AI?

AI is a very broad term that includes things like:

• Data mining, which involves sorting through and analysing a lot of data to work out patterns.
• Natural language processing is what ChatGPT is. This is a branch of computer science that studies language and computers.
• Machine learning is a field of computer science where AI ‘learns’ through experimentation.

One of the most exciting characteristics of AI in e-commerce is its ability to perform tasks a human would typically carry out — only better and much faster. Whether recognising images, understanding speech, making decisions, or translating languages, AI does it better because it doesn’t get tired, need sleep, or become easily distracted.

The benefits of AI in e-commerce

Think of AI as your new assistant. While it can’t run a business on its own, AI technology is a powerful tool for increasing sales and streamlining operations. Even small e-commerce businesses can leverage AI-enabled technology to deliver personalised experiences (and increase conversions!).

By using customer data and behaviour patterns, you can deliver personalised experiences at scale through AI. Here are some ways AI can achieve this:

1. Ultra-targeted marketing: Stand out from the crowd with personalised messaging! AI can help you zero in on what your customers really want by analysing interactions, purchase history, and product preferences. That’s a lot of data to trawl through on your own, but luckily AI can do it instantly. By identifying patterns, you can personalise marketing messages to communicate with customers in a way that resonates with them. Remember, meaningful copy can double conversion rates when you get it right.

2. Increased customer retention through meaningful follow-up. Follow-ups are a pretty easy way to increase conversions, and they can drive customer loyalty. Using AI you can provide personalised product recommendations, offers, and promotions.

3. Seamless automation. Automate repetitive tasks that keep your online store functioning.

AI can automate tasks like product categorisation, order processing, and inventory management, freeing staff to focus on more complex tasks.

4. Efficient sales process. Create a more efficient sales process by gathering customer data, automating follow-up abandoned cart inquiries, and more.

How to use AI

Let’s dig deeper into how you can use AI for your e-commerce business:

Product recommendation quizzes

We all enjoy a good quiz, especially one that teaches us more about our favourite subject: ourselves. At the end of the day, customers want to avoid digging deep to find what they’re looking for – they want it to be handed to them on a plate. A quiz immediately engages your audience, provides value up front, and streamlines their purchasing process. The buyer receives a more individualised experience thanks to the product recommendation, increasing the likelihood that they will make a purchase.

Not sure where to start? Granify is a great AI tool for providing your customers with product recommendations. It integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce.

Roll out the chatbots

Customer service is essential for keeping customers engaged. Real-time, automated chatbots can answer in-the-moment questions about products and orders, serve relevant product recommendations and help customers find the content and information they need to make purchasing decisions. This is crucial if your target audience is more humanistic in their buying habits.

If you feel inclined, you could build your chatbot based on ChatGPT. But, for the e-commerce business owner seeking an easy setup Tidio is a great place to start. Built for Shopify, Tidio can also provide product recommendations in its chat. We also love Gorgias, which integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce.

Segmentation like never before

Most e-commerce businesses know they need to focus on getting the right message to the right people at the right time, but sometimes it can seem overwhelming. AI is a real boon for this. Hyper-segmenting audiences based on psychographic and demographic information, such as their most significant challenges, lifestyle, and previous browsing habits, has become easier thanks to AI technology.

Believe it or not, you probably already use the most powerful segmentation tool on the market that’s driven by AI: Google Analytics. Compatible with every e-commerce platform, you’ll notice that G4A can detect anomalies and provide recommendations and insights based on incoming data. Set your conversion and monetisation up correctly in Google Analytics, and you have at your fingertips the ability to segment like never before.

Couple Google Analytics with powerful automation software like ActiveCampaign, and you’ll find segmentation a breeze.

Know what they want before they do

​​No two customers are the same, but if you can know what somebody wants before they consciously know, you’ll find your conversion rates will skyrocket. AI can use all the data available on your customers to predict their next move, whether adding an item to their cart, contacting support, closing a site, or sharing a review. And, bonus, the more AI technology learns about each customer, the more accurate it becomes in predicting what they want and when they want it.

Ready to get started?

Powerful AI technology is pretty much mandatory in today’s e-commerce landscape. Fierce competition and high customer expectations might make keeping up seem overwhelming. But plenty of AI technology is already available to help you deliver the best possible experience on your e-commerce website, increase conversion rates, and position your e-commerce store to thrive.

Schedule a free consultation with our team of experts to help you create a vision and strategy for using AI to drive your business forward.