Conversational commerce: The future of online shopping

Today's online brand experience involves engaging in meaningful dialogue with customers to help them navigate the clutter. Customers are more inclined to make purchases from brands that treat them personally. As a result, businesses all over the world have quickly switched gears and implemented conversational AI to boost engagement on their online platforms. Today, conversational commerce has gained attention and become a significant force in business. Conversational commerce is at the forefront of this change, providing a platform for businesses to engage in meaningful conversations with their customers. It supports the entire purchasing journey, from pre-sale to post-sale, leading to higher sales volumes and customer satisfaction.

An online store or business can greatly benefit from conversational commerce. According to a recent study, companies effectively using conversational commerce report an increase in annual revenue of 7%to 25%. Live chat, chatbots, voice bots, voice assistants, and digital messaging are just a few of the conversational tools businesses worldwide are actively using. Its use facilitates real-time communication between brands and their customers.

How Brands are Leveraging Conversational Commerce

Product Discovery

A brand's or online store's inventory is often quite large. This frequently leaves the customer perplexed and makes it challenging to decide. Using chatbots and virtual assistants, brands can offer a personalized shopping experience that makes decision-making simple and efficient for customers. The customer can tell the bot what they are looking for and receive precise product information based on their preferences. The chatbot or virtual assistant can also gather information about the customer's shopping habits, which can be used to provide targeted recommendations.                                    

One of the key benefits is that it offers a convenient, accessible, and personalized shopping experience for customers through chatbots and virtual assistants. These technology tools allow customers to find products and receive information anytime and location without human assistance. By reducing the workload of customer service representatives and streamlining the product discovery process, conversational commerce is revolutionizing how brands approach customer engagement and product discovery.

Product Suggestions

According to a study by Accenture, 91% of consumers are more willing to shop with brands that recognize them, offer them relevant offers, and make recommendations. A chatbot effectively assesses the customer's needs and then provides them with personalized advice, assisting them in moving forward with their transaction. It is also an excellent way for businesses to cross-sell or up-sell products. 49% of shoppers said they would be likely to purchase more items if their online shopping experience were personalised, according to research.

Streamlining Customer Service

86% of internet buyers worldwide look for proactive customer service before or after the sale. Because chatbots are available 24/7, customers may get in touch with a company whenever they need to and receive prompt, seamless help.

Chatbots and virtual assistants may answer questions from customers in real-time using natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning. It can decrease the need for customers to traverse a complex website or wait on hold for a customer service representative and increase the accuracy and speed of customer support. In order to enhance the customer experience, brands can use customer data to improve customer care procedures, identify potential customer pain points, and make data-driven decisions.

Retention and loyalty of customers

Outstanding, enduring customer connections can be facilitated by unmatched customer help and support. A chatbot satisfies the customer with quick responses, engaging with them and even making extended offers and discounts. A satisfied customer will gradually begin to trust and remain loyal to a brand. As per a survey by HubSpot highlights that 93% of customers are likely to make repeat purchases with companies that offer excellent customer service.

Seamless Transactions

Conversational commerce provides companies with valuable customer data and insights, allowing them to identify potential pain points and make data-driven decisions to enhance the transaction process. It enables companies to concentrate on the transaction and improve their efficiency. Messaging apps can be used to send push notifications, sales updates, and order status updates. The customer support representatives are now free to work on other urgent, essential tasks or problem areas.

Experiences Across Channels and Omnichannel Re-Engagement

A typical online store is present on several different online platforms. The benefit of conversational commerce is that a customer may start a discussion with a brand on one platform and carry it on through another. The discussion is immediately picked up where it was left off by the chatbot, ensuring continuous and seamless support in an omnichannel setting.

Benefits of Conversational Commerce

Conversational commerce is quickly gaining popularity, which means both consumers and brands may take advantage of its potential, such as:

Lower Cart Abandonment

In the world of e-commerce, cart abandonment is relatively common. A startling 70% of shoppers abandon their carts, which translates to nearly 7 out of 10 shoppers abandoning their shopping altogether after adding the required products to their carts. Although there may be many causes for this behaviour, one thing is undeniably true: assistance can make a significant impact in the case of physical retail businesses. By offering incentives and triggers at the appropriate times, conversational commerce assists customers in finishing their transactions. AI-powered chatbots initiate human-like conversations in order to learn preferences, respond to product inquiries, educate customers about stock availability, check out, pay, and delivery information, and so on.

Cart abandonment can be effectively addressed through conversational commerce, reducing it by 20% to 30% by carefully placing incentives and triggers. For instance, a virtual assistant can prompt consumers to finish their purchase by sending them a reminder or discount coupon if they have left products in their cart. By giving customers a tailored experience, this strategy benefits both the customer and the company by improving the likelihood that sales will be successfully converted.

High ROI and Conversion Rates

The customer is always in the online store since virtual assistants interact with them actively. Chatbot interactions assist them in getting closer to making their ultimate purchase. Their purchasing decisions are significantly influenced by information about sales and promotions offered through a live chat platform. Additionally, conversational commerce can raise an order's overall value on your website by employing strategies like cross-selling, up-selling, and tailored product recommendations. This results in a mutually beneficial outcome for both the customer and your brand as conversions increase and order values go up.

Real-Time Assistance for a Seamless Shopping Journey

Customers now anticipate a comparable online brand interaction experience as conversational AI becomes more prevalent in our daily lives. Customers may need assistance from a company at several points throughout their purchasing process. The advantages of real-time help cannot be understated, from selecting a product to making the final payment and everything in between. Customers are guaranteed smooth, real-time support and assistance via a conversational AI-enabled virtual assistant.

Final Thoughts

As we navigate an increasingly competitive and sophisticated market, customers demand high-quality service and are willing to pay a premium. The rise of conversational commerce presents a unique opportunity for brands to differentiate themselves by providing personalized and convenient experiences that were once only possible through face-to-face interactions. By leveraging cutting-edge technology such as natural language processing and machine learning, brands can offer real-time, human-like interactions with their customers across multiple channels, including messaging applications, voice assistants, and chatbots.

The market for conversational commerce is poised to triple in just five years, reaching an astounding USD 18.4 billion by 2026. This presents a significant opportunity for brands to elevate their customer experience by providing personalized product recommendations and streamlining customer support inquiries. By adopting conversational commerce early on, brands can gain a competitive advantage and drive growth.

As customer expectations continue to evolve, conversational commerce will undoubtedly play a critical role in shaping the customer experience in the years to come. Brands that embrace this trend and prioritize personalization and convenience will stand out in the crowded marketplace and build long-lasting customer relationships.

The article has been written by Tanya C Kakaria, Business Head, E-commerce Solutions, Paxcom