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We’re bound to see day-to-day human interactions change as we head into the future. For example, it’s been predicted that by 2025, 50% of knowledge workers will use a virtual assistant daily, up from 2% in 2019. The retail industry is inevitably impacted by such a significant uptake in AI technology. So what does this mean for e-commerce?
This article explores how intelligent virtual assistants and chatbots will affect businesses and their marketing strategies.
What are AI Virtual Assistants?
AI stands for Artificial Intelligence and is referred to as a group of computer technology that includes the development of automatic and intelligent machines or systems. AI is a computer program that learns, processes, and analyzes data, even in real-time.
What Is the Most Critical Implication of Artificial Intelligence for E-Commerce?
AI technologies have massive potential for e-commerce. Bots and virtual assistants can do things that humans cannot, so businesses can increase profits and, at the same time, push their marketing strategies further than ever before.
An AI virtual assistant is a program that performs tasks based on the user’s request via verbal and written form. The main advantages of virtual assistants are privacy and efficiency. In addition, you can use them to reduce human error. They also have the ability for machine learning, which gives them self-learning capacity.
It’s essential to have diversity in your workforce because it helps create a more well-rounded company. In addition, a diverse workforce creates an environment with diverse thinking and outlooks. It also creates communities where different viewpoints can be shared, so everyone understands what others are talking about.
How Will Adopting AI Virtual Assistants and Chatbots Impact E-Commerce?
AI Virtual Assistants can help with business growth in various ways. They can:
1. Increase Customer Engagement on Your Site
AI virtual assistants help boost your Search Engine Optimization ranking by providing valuable content that people want to consume and share on social media platforms, increasing organic traffic and boosting engagement on your site.
2. Improve Customer Support and Experience
As we all know, customer service is often cited as the most important reason people leave a company: they either don’t get an answer to what they need or if they do, it takes too long. Using ai virtual assistant can help reduce the time it takes for users to get answers. In addition, they can automate responses and emails when appropriate, allowing you to focus on providing a better experience for your customers.
Studies have shown that a bad customer experience is one of the top reasons people stop using a website or abandon an order. With AI virtual assistants and chatbots, you can ensure the quality of your service and improve the overall experience for users. As a result, it will help with retention rates and increase conversion rates.
3. Provide New Revenue Streams
Using chatbots, you can convert website visitors into leads and make sales directly via the site instead of relying on paid ads and affiliates. As a result, your marketing funnel is more effective, meaning you will spend less money on marketing as a percentage of your total revenue than your competitors.
With AI Virtual Assistants, you can reduce the time it takes to handle customer queries. It frees up time for you to be more productive, increasing employee engagement by providing more time to work on other business areas.
4. Provide Additional Products and Services
If your site is online-only, it can be hard to provide geographical access to people worldwide. A chatbot can provide a fully functioning website in any language if your site is not in English. It can significantly increase your available customer base and revenue streams.
5. Build Brand Loyalty
Chatbots can help build loyalty to your brand. They can provide helpful information to customers that they would not have otherwise known, so they will be reminded of you when they are ready to purchase your products or services or share them on social media. As a result, they may choose to engage with you in the future.
Conclusion
The potential of chatbots is vast, so getting involved is essential before you are left behind. The five areas above are just the tip of the iceberg for how AI can help your e-commerce business, so it’s worth researching if you want to uncover some more options.