Every fancy tech company is dropping buzzwords like “big data,” “artificial intelligence,” “master data management” and “machine learning.” I hate to break the news, but Ecommerce companies have always had a plethora of data. That has always been their beauty. Making use of that data is a challenge that requires intelligent data analysts, mathematicians, quants and more that can analyze data —- and more importantly, take such data to make intelligent decisions.
Machine learning is a way or process or data function that makes sense of data at a much faster rate than any human. Choosing the application of machine learning tends to be a decision of priorities. Machine Learning, and it’s larger umbrella of Artificial Intelligence (AI), can be used to power every department within an organization. So, how do you find the best application to drive ROI or achieve company goals?
It’s safe to say that the priority would be the tech that makes the biggest impact. Within the world of Ecommerce, here are the most powerful applications of ML technology:
1. Segmentation, Personalization, & Targeting
Ecommerce websites suffer a degree of separation from their customers. In person, a salesperson interacting with a customer understands and, hopefully, internalizes their body language, behavior, and many desires in order to help the customer. The salesperson segments and targets, and personalizes the customer’s experience to get them to buy – all within the human brain.
When in-store shoppers have a question, concern, or hesitation, a salesperson is there to give them the appropriate information to nudge them closer to conversion or a purchase. Online, there are a vast amount of data sets required to provide the same tailored and unique experience. This means it can be difficult to nudge conversion or a sale. This could result in a lost sale.
Bring in ML. Machine learning technology provides the possibility to provide optimized and tailored experiences that drive sales and increase revenue. As a shopper, the more a website personalizes my shopping experience by highlighting brands I have purchased from before or product types I have purchased in the past – the more I have affinity to that Ecommerce site and my willingness to purchase increases. In this sense, the in-store experience has been brought as close to digital as possible.
Pricing is important to driving increases in margin and ROI. Gone are the days of Ecommerce sites banking on a standard keystone + X markup. You cannot rely on a standardized markup rate, local market price or competitor shopping to win the sale. It’s easier than ever to compare prices from one competitor to another with just a few clicks. And shoppers aren’t afraid to get a better deal.
ML technology can change prices to account for many factors at once. The following elements from your competitors could influence your pricing strategy: prices, demand, time of day, and type of customer. ML technology makes it possible to adjust prices accordingly. Imagine taking advantage of the working mom segment that only has time to shop between 10pm and 12am? Brilliant, right?
To be clear, I have never loved chatbots from the perspective of a consumer. My affinity for the tool has grown. To provide quality, intelligent customer service in Ecommerce is a challenge. When done at scale — this seems daunting. One viable answer to the daunting task is to use machine learning technology like chatbots. Intelligent chatbots are able to use natural language that your customers use to communicate with a customer, identify an issue, and resolve the issue.
Automating customer support and enabling self-service makes it easier for you, as a business, and your audience to have higher satisfaction and keep them coming back for more. There’s a lot of creativity to how ML can be used to help customers, chatbots is simply one example. The general intent remains the same: higher customer satisfaction, increases in conversion and brand or company affinity.
Claim your free e-commerce machine learning consultation today. Contact us today! 1-877-8-UNKOMON