Click here to learn more about RMB.<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\nThere is more data being created per minute today than in any previous year.<\/p>\n
For example, Amazon shoppers spend USD443k per minute and US food delivery firm, Doordash generates USD76k in orders per minute, according to research from Bank of America.<\/p>\n
Using the data being generated by consumers will provide a key competitive advantage.<\/p>\n
AI algorithms can quickly process vast amounts of data, providing e-commerce businesses with valuable real-time insights.<\/p>\n
This data-driven decision-making enables rapid adjustments to marketing strategies, pricing, inventory management, and client support.<\/p>\n
One of the most powerful applications of AI in e-commerce is its ability to offer personalised shopping experiences.<\/p>\n
By analysing user behaviour, past purchases, and browsing history, AI algorithms can create tailored product recommendations that significantly increase conversion rates and customer satisfaction.<\/p>\n
Leading e-commerce giants like Amazon and Netflix have mastered the art of personalised recommendations, resulting in higher engagement and customer retention.<\/p>\n
Local retailers are increasingly using AI tools to identify patterns and provide insights into shopping habits and better service consumers.<\/p>\n
One example is the Checkers Sixty60 application, which analyses trends in spending and provides tailored discounts and specials to each user.<\/p>\n
Alibaba, the world’s leading e-commerce retailer, uses AI to facilitate facial recognition payments for consumers who agree to their images being processed.<\/p>\n
Takealot.com, South Africa’s largest online retailer, launched a breakthrough campaign called Retail Therapy.<\/p>\n
Its unique selling point is the use of AI to power its chat commerce platform, which creates an engaging and interactive shopping experience.<\/p>\n
The retailer plans to continue utilising AI technology to enhance the Takealot.com online shopping experience.<\/p>\n
Delivering targeted, personalised marketing and advertising messages can increase retention.<\/p>\n
Global consultancy McKinsey estimates that there\u2019s a 10-15% uplift potential in revenue and retention from omnichannel personalisation strategies.<\/p>\n
Another potential use case is for product pricing.<\/p>\n
AI-enabled dynamic pricing is a strategy of changing the product price based on supply and demand.<\/p>\n
With access to the right data, today\u2019s tools can predict what to discount and when, dynamically calculating the minimum discount necessary for the sale.<\/p>\n
In terms of inventory management, AI can enable warehouse management with help from automated robots that can store or retrieve stock 24\/7, along with immediate dispatching of items for online orders.<\/p>\n
AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants provide instant customer support, addressing queries and concerns around the clock.<\/p>\n
These conversational agents are equipped with natural language processing capabilities, allowing them to understand and respond to customer inquiries accurately and efficiently.<\/p>\n
Reducing response times and enhancing customer service strengthen customer relations.<\/p>\n
E-commerce businesses prefer technical assistance because as they are operational 24\/7 and can handle simple customer requests efficiently.<\/p>\n
The use cases, advantages, and benefits of AI in e-commerce demonstrate its pivotal role in shaping the future of online retail.<\/p>\n
As AI technologies continue to evolve, e-commerce companies that embrace and integrate these innovations are poised to thrive in an increasingly competitive market, reaping the rewards of customer loyalty, increased revenue, and sustained growth.<\/p>\n
By Arun Varughese and Yeshan Reddy.<\/i><\/p>\n
Varughese is Head of Technology, Media & Telecoms Advisory and Reddy Corporate Finance Transactor at RMB.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"E-Commerce in South Africa has entered a goldilocks phase post COVID, with significant growth and interest from consumers, while retailers continue to invest in improving their online platform capabilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":731113,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10459],"tags":[2214],"class_list":["post-731107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry-news","tag-rmb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=731107"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":732133,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/731107\/revisions\/732133"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/731113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=731107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=731107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=731107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}