There is hardly any aspect of the commercial landscape that hasn’t been touched by technology. How businesses operate and serve customers is reshaped by technology, from machine learning and AI to mobile devices.
Not surprisingly, the eCommerce industry isn’t exempted from leveraging tech. Successful online stores are taking advantage of AI, automation, and chatbots to streamline operations, provide 24-hour customer support and offer a better shopping experience.
Of course, most eCommerce stores already integrate one or more software into their platform. But to be successful and stand strong amid the fierce competition, here are technologies every eCommerce business must leverage:
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) offers businesses in-depth insights that could help them streamline their marketing and decision-making. The technology understands web visitors’ and customers’ behavior through machine learning. In addition, it can facilitate data transfer management to boost performance.
The following are specific benefits AI offers to eCommerce businesses:
Creates personalized user experience
Personalized user experience influences buying decisions and can boost sales. That’s because people feel more valued when things are tailored to their preferences. By monitoring a customer’s preferences during their site visit, AI can design their future shopping experience according to those preferences. It can also offer insights and analytics regarding customer behavior, which the business may use to personalize email messages.
Personalized recommendations
AI can monitor customer search history and offer personalized shopping experiences based on their interests. For example, displaying products related to their past Google searches. This can foster engagement and conversion.
More effective marketing campaign
Marketing is critical to every e-commerce business and can be streamlined through lead nurturing — identifying your ideal target customer. Thanks to AI, e-commerce sites can target customers based on their search history and interests, then present ads based on those interests. That’s why you may see ads on travel soon after visiting some tour agency websites.
Chatbots
Let’s face it; you can’t always respond to every customer query instantly, no matter how fast you are. Even with several in-house customer service representatives, instant replies are difficult when you have a high volume of customer queries. But fast response time is crucial to customer satisfaction, so chatbots are a lifesaver. Chatbots are indispensable technology e-commerce sites use to maintain fast response time and customer satisfaction.
Here are some areas Chatbots cover:
Round-the-clock response
Aside from responding instantly to customer queries, you might need to be available for your international shoppers. Time zones vary, so your internal team might be asleep when a customer from the other end of the world needs information. With chatbots, they wouldn’t meet dead silence when they come knocking.
Sending shipping updates
You must have noticed how you received notification that your shipment had arrived. Naturally, customers desire that, and it wouldn’t be nice for them not to know. Chatbots can remember customers’ shipping information and provide shipping and tracking details in real-time.
Answering frequently asked questions
Chatbots can be programmed to respond to frequently asked questions from online shoppers. When a shopper asks a new or personal question, they may be transferred to a live customer representative. This saves time and human effort.
Automation
Automation is a crucial aspect of online sites covered by technology. Ecommerce automation allows your online store to convert your manual, repetitive tasks into self-fulfilling ones. In simple terms, you wouldn’t have to put human effort into every activity. This helps to free up time to focus on other core operations.
Automation covers several e-commerce needs, including:
Customs clearance
Faster clearance requires advanced technology and automation. Online stores that can’t design or procure their own tech are partnering with a knowledgeable customs broker with advanced tech to ensure compliance and faster clearance.
Inventory management
Out-of-stock products are unpublished automatically and republished when back in stock.
Scheduled campaigns
Automation tools send emails, blog posts, banners, and website themes without intervention from your team.
Voice assistants
Voice assistants are another technology e-commerce stores can leverage to stand out. You see, not everyone searches for products by typing anymore. Instead, people desire the ease of merely voicing their desires, like magic.
Using voice recognition, e-commerce stores can satisfy that need through:
Assistive technology
Online stores can serve visually impaired audiences using voice assistants.
Audio brand signatures
Businesses can make their audio brand signature part of their brand identity. By associating your brand with a particular sound, customers will remember where they’re in your store, no matter where they are.
Summing it all up
Ecommerce businesses must be ready to leverage AI, chatbots, voice assistants, and automation tools to optimize operations and improve the shopping experience. These technologies have become indispensable and offer a win-win situation: customers enjoy buying, leading to higher conversions and revenue for the online store owner.
Furthermore, integrating a reliable paystub generator into your financial management processes can enhance efficiency and accuracy in handling employee payroll, contributing to the overall smooth operation of your ecommerce business.
Aayush Kumar Gupta is the founder and creator of ExploringBits, a website dedicated to providing useful content for people passionate about Engineering and Technology. Aayush has completed his Bachelor of Technology (Computer Science & Engineering) from 2018-2022. From July 2022, Aayush has been working as a full-time Devops Engineer.