The Best Ways to Leverage AI for E-Commerce

With ChatGPT crossing 100 million users after just five days of its launch, it’s safe to say that artificial intelligence has gone mainstream. 

Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI) is nothing new. However, until now, its sophisticated forms have only been available to large corporations. 

That’s why the launch of open-source tools like ChatGPT is so exciting. Small business owners and entrepreneurs now have access to various affordable and easy-to-use AI options to grow their businesses.

But which ones should you use, and what are the best ways to leverage AI in e-commerce?

5 Reasons to Use Artificial Intelligence Solutions

1. More relevant searches and suggestions
2. Optimize customer service
3. Enhance cybersecurity
4. Increase personalization
5. Improve management

The following guide will detail these five AI solutions and how they can help optimize your online business.

1. More relevant searches and suggestions

Many autocomplete and auto-suggest features, as well as tailor-made browsing experiences, are facilitated using past interactions. 

But people and their tastes and desires change, so you can’t always rely on past information to inform current client interactions. Furthermore, not everyone likes the tracking of their movements or behaviors. 

You can get around this by looking at the available demographics of the user after asking them if it’s OK to use some of their browsing data. 

Or you can use AI-powered lookahead and real-time searches to deliver more sophisticated search suggestions and browsing experiences.

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AI delivers real-time searches and suggestions through uninformed search algorithms such as depth-first, breadth-first, and uniform cost. 

WordPress site owners can find live/real-time search-integrated plugins to help create current and evolving customer profiles. 

2. Optimize customer service

Combining AI-powered chatbots with live customer support can help improve customers’ shopping experiences and save businesses time and money. 

Chatbots can answer common questions about products and services and direct shoppers to resources and guides that can help them solve more complex problems. 

Additionally, you can utilize chatbots to help guide customers through purchases, alert them about special offers or discounts, or increase the web accessibility of your site. 

Using an AI chatbot from a provider like Zendesk (or a leading Zendesk alternative such as Crisp) offers the benefit of having more natural and lifelike conversations than the linear, path-driven bots of the past.

Unlike older bots that could often get users stuck in a loop, modern AI chatbots can understand and respond to natural language inputs, creating a more intuitive and user-friendly experience. These advancements have made conversing with a chatbot far less frustrating than it once was.

Credit card payments are an extra expense for most customers who shop online, with the average credit card processing fee for digital transactions being 3.5% for most cards. 

The least you can do for customers is to cover these expenses yourself so that they can save money. By advertising this fact to visitors who arrive at your site with chatbots, they may feel more compelled to buy from you versus a competitor that doesn’t cover these fees.

Chatbots can be particularly useful for e-commerce businesses that hope to expand globally. You can use them to pick up the slack for unavailable live agents, allowing you to support your customers 24/7. 

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Chatbots use a special branch of machine learning and AI called Natural Language Processing (NLP). They learn using real-life conversations/messages. 

They can learn from each interaction with human clients, becoming more natural with each conversation.

Modern chatbots aren’t hard to integrate into your website, either. If you run a WordPress site, you can use a plugin such as ChatBot by QuantumCloud, which requires minimal coding. 

These days, not only is it unusual to find a website without chat capabilities, but it’s rare to find one that doesn’t use chatbots or highly customized automated responses. 

Thus, including chat isn’t just a way to leverage AI in e-commerce; it allows you to stay up-to-date and competitive.

3. Enhance cybersecurity

The rapid increase of e-commerce has made small businesses an easy target for cybercriminals. Your online store may be vulnerable to coupon scams, proxy piercing, credit card fraud, etc. 

The frequency of these attacks has created some uneasiness and security concerns among online shoppers.

A cyberattack could completely debilitate your business. Cybercriminals have sometimes resorted to using machine learning and AI to carry out their attacks. 

Hence, having just as advanced tools to combat sophisticated cybercrime is crucial. 

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Cybersecurity specialists have begun to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect cyber fraud.

One of the popular cybersecurity specialists, Hari Ravichandran says "Do not use the same password across devices and services. If one gets breached, all the others are in danger as well.” 

Through its ability to gather information as fast as possible, you can use AI to update definitions and lists, improve scans, discover new vulnerabilities, etc. You can also use AI to detect dubious IPs and email addresses.

AI can locate vulnerabilities in your system or website’s cybersecurity. Whether weak passwords, outdated firewalls, antiviruses, or ineffective security policies, AI can be a personalized tireless cybersecurity expert.

4. Increase personalization

Businesses can use AI to personalize what visitors see upon entering and browsing their e-commerce site, allowing them to display highly relevant recommendations. 

Rather than placing customers in generalized groups based on demographics, you can create instant and dynamic taste profiles.

It allows you to present more relevant and practical suggestions to each target customer, driving conversion rates and increasing customer satisfaction. 

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Your online business should be data-driven and have tools to increase revenue. You can use artificial intelligence to gather data and put it into targeted advertising and personalization. Apparel and clothing shops can display suggestions based on brands the visitor may like.

Studies have indicated that the time of day may also influence shopper behavior. AI can consider variables such as these while creating customer profiles, helping provide more nuanced and unique shopping experiences for each visitor.

5. Improve management

So far, we’ve focused on how AI can boost the customer experience and improve the safety and functionality of your website. However, these aren’t the only areas in your business that can benefit from AI. You can also use AI and IoT to improve administrative tasks such as stock keeping.

You can automate many of these tasks. AI can analyze past data against current market information to predict when your company will need stock next, and it can do it more precisely than average human staff members. 

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Smart shelves use RFID technology and weight sensors to determine how much stock is left. When supply is near depletion, it triggers a process to order more stock. You can also use AI to keep track of expiry dates and receive alerts.

You can use these sensors to determine if some of your stock has been stolen or lost. Such technology also ensures more accurate bookkeeping and a reduction in business losses. 

Wrapping Up

There are many AI-powered solutions you can leverage to grow your e-commerce business. However, it’s important to remember that AI is rapidly evolving. So if you hope to be a successful entrepreneur in a digital space, you must keep yourself informed. 

This guide explored a few ways you can use AI to elevate your business. In a year or so, there will be more solutions to consider. If you want to stay competitive, you must remain current.