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These days, artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere, touching every industry and transforming the world as we know it. Because AI is constantly evolving, it can get overwhelming pretty quickly. But generative AI in retail can be extremely valuable when you take it one step at a time and properly fold it into your business strategy.
Even if you’re not a tech expert, you don’t need an AI specialist or IT department to take advantage of generative AI for retail. Even better: The cost of using such tools has significantly reduced since the democratization of AI and the introduction of low- and no-code solutions, as well as pay-as-you-go models.
Though many started using these tools during the pandemic, 69% of businesses now consider AI to be part of their core technology, and retailers are using it to enable omnichannel commerce, freeing themselves up to focus on more impactful work.
But we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves here. Let’s back up.
What exactly is generative AI?
Generative AI develops content that mirrors the way we, as humans, talk and express ourselves creatively. It analyzes large sets of data in order to produce content, which could include everything from essays and artwork to images, unlocking new ways to enhance productivity and automate tasks. Generative AI in retail supports personalization, customer service, marketing, and more, and independent retailers are already making great strides with the technology. Just a few examples of how small businesses can use AI for retail:
- A local candle store might deploy chatbots to provide scent suggestions or answer FAQs
- A clothing boutique could recommend personalized outfits for customers based on their purchase history
- Gourmet food purveyors can optimize shelf placement based on shopping patterns
- Virtual try-on features help show clothes or makeup on a wide selection of models
- Summaries of customer reviews make it easy to quickly assess crowd sentiment
- Retailers of all types can create descriptions for their products, promotional content for social media, blog posts, and other content that improves SEO and drives customer engagement
These real-world applications demonstrate how AI can be a game-changer for small businesses, helping you provide unique customer experiences and operate more efficiently (while doing less of the work yourself).
Start small and work your way up
Implementing AI in your retail business starts with setting clear objectives. That means taking stock of your retail business to find the areas where you most need help and finding ways AI can shoulder the load.
- Determine what you want to achieve, such as improved customer service, more efficient inventory management, or enhanced personalization.
- Choose AI tools that align with these objectives. Start small by focusing on one or two key areas where AI can have an immediate impact.
- Prepare your data. AI systems require data to function effectively, so ensure your data is organized and accessible.
- Training your team is also vital; they should understand how to use the AI tools and the benefits they bring.
- Monitor the AI systems closely after implementation. Track performance against your objectives and be ready to make adjustments as needed.
Many tools have both free and paid options and are simple to use right out of the gate, offering an accessible starting point for any business owner looking to increase efficiencies.
Take Shopify Magic, for example, which can help you edit the background of an image so that it looks more professional or create SEO-savvy product descriptions. It can even generate personalized FAQs (and publish the answers) to nudge your shoppers to buy. To make smart decisions, try Miro Assist, which offers AI-powered mind mapping and idea generation. With Amazon SageMaker, you can generate data prediction models to optimize inventory, which would normally take several stakeholders.
One of the easiest ways to get started using generative AI is by using a tool like Chat GPT: You can get started for free and use it to:
- Produce relevant SEO keywords and phrases
- Analyze competitor’s content
- Suggest topics based on current trends.
- Ask which keywords would be best to include in a successful SEO strategy
- Generate SEO-friendly titles and meta descriptions
Once you start getting in the swing of things, you can use AI to help with demand forecasting, customer service, and more. But remember, AI is not a set-it-and-forget-it solution. Since it’s always changing, you’ll want to keep up to date with updates and will likely need to go through some trial and error to fully harness its capabilities. But once you get the hang of it, you might never look back.
