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In the coming year, marketers will seek to expand the channels and ordering methods available to customers when shopping online. Many of these channels have been available for a long time (see shoppable advertising below), but they will be more connected and engaging when marketers implement AI advances in greater numbers.
Making all order options available to retail shoppers.
In 2024, marketers will use AI to build a stronger ecommerce presence, much like they did with customer experience. The data will be linked, allowing firms to provide more options for customers to explore and purchase, whether digitally or in physical places.
“If a customer wants something right now and knows that a big box retailer has it right down the street, they want to be able to order it on their phone while sitting in front of the TV,” said Keith Kirkpatrick, The Futurum Group’s research director for enterprise applications. “They want to make sure it’s in stock and ready at 10:30, so they can go there.
The mixing of physical and digital channels, known as “phygital,” increased dramatically during the first year of the COVID pandemic. Now there’s no turning back. Brands need to be present everywhere.
“It’s a more efficient way of doing things, and it puts the customer first,” he said. “Organizations are trying to do that, and they’re also trying to inject more personalization and anticipate what customers need based on their activity through an app.”
In this context, the term “phygital” may be deceptive. Yes, the goal is to provide both digital and physical experiences for every client journey upon request. However, it is the digital component that connects and drives the experience, even if it is as basic as an email receipt or survey sent to a consumer after they make a purchase in a physical store.
Improved AI and automation will help brick-and-mortar shops cover gaps and avoid losing crucial online feedback and client concerns.
“Beyond limiting online visibility, ‘ghosting’ severely impedes a brand’s overall digital performance,” said Monica Ho, CMO of digital marketing firm SOCi. “In 2024, advances in AI and automation will address this problem. These technologies are now available, allowing retailers to provide rapid, individualized responses on a large scale, increasing customer satisfaction and improving the online experience.
Using AI to optimize tone and brand consistency.
Ecommerce brands can only imitate the human warmth felt upon a successful in-store purchase. However, if the models are properly trained, marketers can achieve great success with AI-powered chat and content creation.
“Tone is critical when it comes to communicating with consumers, and it can truly make or break a brand,” said Joscha Koepke, head of product at conversational marketing firm Connectly. “Emojis, humor, empathy — these are all nuances that must be incorporated into retail and ecommerce communications to ensure messages come across as authentic in addition to personalized.”
He continued, “AI models will need to be educated to define and operationalize brand tone. In 2024, achieving the proper tone using AI will be a top priority for marketers, especially as they leverage more channels such as conversational commerce. This will result in stronger conversations, a larger customer base, and more committed consumers.”
More shoppable ads will boost e-commerce revenues.
Creative programming integrations and improved buyer experiences will pave the road for more shoppable advertisements in 2024.
“Consumers want an omnichannel experience, and the arrival of Shoppable Ads in streaming environments brings this closer to reality,” said Michael Scott, Samsung Ads’ VP of sales and ad operations.
In a recent poll, Samsung advertising discovered that shoppable advertising increase brand recall as well as interaction with the brand. Not only did 55% of respondents recall viewing the ad, but half of those who remembered it also engaged with it.
“In 2024, we don’t see this slowing down,” Scott added. “When consumers see a product on TV, they want to be able to quickly learn more or purchase that product and increase the ease of access along their path to purchase.”