With the festivities so near, everyone in India is geared up for the shopping season. Over the years, walking into the store has become passé, and picking up your favourites, from clothes & accessories to gifts and groceries online, has become the norm. The convenience of shopping from the comfort of your home, doorstep delivery, trying products at your convenience and returning what doesn't fit the bill easily is what attracts people. Not only do e-commerce portals improve accessibility to a wide range of products and services for the masses, but they are more cost-effective than other modes. And who doesn't like a great discount, instant response, and personalized service?
The Indian e-commerce industry is one of the most profitable sectors, with a customer base expected to be the 2nd largest globally by 2030 (nearly 500-600 Mn). The online shopping phenomenon has penetrated the market from 4.8% in 2008 to 61% in 2021. While expansion is always a positive sign, what we forget, more often than not, is the management and high website traffic that comes along with it. Indian e-commerce experienced a significant customer increase of approximately 40% during the festival season. This also suggests that brands engage in intense business competition and need better business management strategies to stay ahead.
The introduction of Conversational AI in the industry saves the day for most brands. The technology helps brands to assist their consumers with inquiries and product recommendations and boost business/sales during the festival season on the platform of their choice like Facebook Messenger, Instagram & WhatsApp. Conversational AI can deliver information, educate customers and even drive sales making the experience smoother and quicker for both the brand and the customer. Conversations can also improve engagement, retention, and conversion by understanding what a person is saying, typing, and responding naturally.
According to a recent report by Marketing Land, 49% of consumers said they use instant messaging for personalized and guided user experience. However, it is essential to note that it's only now that we are seeing the technology mature enough to make it accessible to businesses of all sizes. Conversational AI has been very much in vogue, and brands are using it to boost lead generation and sales.
Reasons why a brand should invest? Let's have a look at what Mr Manoj Malhotra, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Amplify.ai has to say,
Linguistically diverse 24/7 availability on any platform or channel: Conversational AI excels in addressing customer needs. Since it can respond 24/7 across all channels, languages and devices, it's crucial to help brands sustain seamless customer support. In addition, conversational AI can handle many customer queries, even questions that may be too specific for humans to answer. As a result, conversational AI enables brands to handle more requests without increasing staffing or training costs. Customers are likely to be more satisfied with their experience if they can immediately get the help they need rather than waiting for an agent to become available.
Sentiment/Intent Analysis: By monitoring real-time conversations about products and services offered, businesses can use the data for sentiment analysis to drive revenue and guide marketing efforts. Brands use online interactions/conversations to understand the gaps in their communication strategies better and curate a focused approach and marketing strategies.
Guided user journey's: This tool enables a company to track the consumer's journey through all the touchpoints creating a map of sorts which helps ensure that there are no slips. Creating a detailed guide of the entire customer journey helps businesses make much more informed decisions making an impact at the point of sales.
Mediating between product and customer: By leveraging natural language processing and artificial intelligence, brands can create conversational AI-enabled platforms to facilitate consumers' interaction with the brand. At the same time, they shop or engage with content on social media. This is important because it makes the customer experience more personalized and transparent, improving trust between the brand and the customer.
Better ROI & Lead Generation: According to a report by AYLIEN, companies that use AI-powered chatbots have seen cost per lead fall by as much as 50%. This happens because bots can process data faster and thus provide better insights into customer behaviour.
To sum it up, Conversational AI can analyze a brand's data in-depth, spot new possibilities, and precisely deliver insights so businesses can target customers with tailored experiences that increase revenue and customer retention. The future possibilities with this technology are endless. With investment and new avenues opening up, it's only a matter of time before we see a complete transition towards the platform for a successful business.
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