AI chatbots in the retail space enhance customer service
Trend - Innovative technology in retail is increasingly popular as brands in this space compete with ecommerce, and chatbots are one piece of smart technology that these brands are integrating. These tools help personalize the customer experience, and help shoppers make purchase decisions faster.
Insight - For many consumers, the convenience of ecommerce has in many ways overshadowed the act of going into stores to purchase items. Now, managing purchase decisions over household needs and personal items is much easier because it can easily be done from the home. For brands that are looking to engage customers who have grown accustomed to this level of convenience, they'll have to replicate in-store some of the qualities that have made ecommerce so popular.
Insight - For many consumers, the convenience of ecommerce has in many ways overshadowed the act of going into stores to purchase items. Now, managing purchase decisions over household needs and personal items is much easier because it can easily be done from the home. For brands that are looking to engage customers who have grown accustomed to this level of convenience, they'll have to replicate in-store some of the qualities that have made ecommerce so popular.
Workshop Question - How is your brand creating convenient purchase journeys for its customers?
Trend Themes
1. Retail Chatbots - Innovative technology in retail is increasingly popular as brands in this space compete with e-commerce, and chatbots are one piece of smart technology that these brands are integrating.
2. Augmented Reality Shopping - The technology to offer virtual try-ons for products is the new wave in customer interaction, this represents an entry point to a completely digitized retail experience.
3. Customer Service Chatbots - With phone lines backed up due to the pandemic, companies are turning to chatbots to handle customer inquiries. This technology offers a great opportunity to streamline the customer experience and dedicate more resources to high-level support.
Industry Implications
1. Retail Industry - Chatbots and augmented reality technology offer new ways to interact with customers, optimize inventory management and increase sales.
2. Financial Services Industry - Virtual assistants and automation technology provide a way to make banking processes more efficient and enhance the customer experience.
3. Hospitality Industry - Chatbots are proving to be effective for customer check-ins and reservations, room service and other types of in-hotel interactions.
