AI will be a retail game changer this holiday sales season

afr.com:

This content is produced in commercial partnership with Shopify

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an increasingly useful tool for retail businesses to leverage for better customer engagement, and shoppers know it, with 70 per cent of Australian consumers believing AI will make it easier to discover new brands and products, according to new Shopify research.

In fact, Shopify’s latest Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) retail research, carried out in September, revealed that roughly three-quarters (74 per cent) of Australian respondents believe AI will make it easier to find deals and special offers among retailers during the 2023 BFCM weekend.

AI is changing the retail landscape. iStock

Additionally, 67 per cent of Australian consumers surveyed think AI will make it easier to get recommendations based on previous purchases. Clearly, the public’s faith in AI is at a new high, no doubt influenced by the rise of easily accessible generative AI platforms.

Despite this confidence, one area where consumers are more dubious is when it comes to personalisation, as more than half (57 per cent) of consumers don’t believe AI will enhance a personalised shopping experience. And this is a top consideration for retailers at the moment, given the importance of targeted engagement — nearly 70 per cent of consumers want retailers to engage with them about their offers before the BFCM weekend.

Shopify’s research suggests consumers appreciate brands that start a dialogue with them rather than simply trying to sell to them. With this in mind, it’s clear that retailers need to be particularly mindful of how they leverage AI to drive engagement and sales this sales season, prioritising customer personalisation and communication — a task that AI