Retailers already know: the five most anticipated days of the year are coming, and to make Black Friday the 13th month of 2024, it won't be enough to just prepare your websites in advance against slowdowns, lack of a good history of landing pages, and last-minute trend research. We are facing a Black Friday that promises to be a watershed moment in terms of the effective application of artificial intelligence by companies. In a recent event, Google Brazil directors stated that the use of AI to optimize processes is very likely to boost this year's edition, indeed.
Let's consider some possibilities for utilizing technology and how they can benefit sellers and their businesses, thinking about the entire customer journey within e-commerce. There are several steps that the consumer goes through until reaching checkout, and how companies optimize each of them makes a difference in the short and long term, considering that the brands' main interest is customer loyalty. AI is a tool that can facilitate this end-to-end journey, as we will see below.
Real-time demand forecasting
The use of the tool can prevent one of the problems that most afflict retailers during periods of high demand: stock shortages. With AI, demand forecasting happens in real time, ensuring product replenishment.
According to a study by McKinsey consulting, AI-based demand forecasting can reduce inventory costs by 10% to 40%. Brands like Walmart already report saving billions of dollars by optimizing their supply chains with technology. Furthermore, AI can predict logistical disruptions, ensuring on-time deliveries.
Greater personalization in offers
Trend research is also a crucial aspect of Black Friday, which requires SEO to pay close attention to consumer habits in order to anticipate demand.It is from this that the company is able to prepare its stock strategically for the period. This movement is not new to retailers who keep an eye on what's trending every year.
However, when we talk about generative AI, it allows analyzing large amounts of customer data, such as purchase history, searches, and demographic information, creating highly personalized offers based on browsing habits, and suggesting much more accurate results. The consequence is a higher conversion and sales rate for the brands.
Rapid landing page generation and instant pricing
To increase conversion and lead generation, creating landing pages is also a fundamental element. And good returns are proportional to the volume of pages created. With AI, it is possible to automatically optimize this creation process, generating a huge amount of pages in a short time. And to optimize competitiveness, AI also enables prices to adjust instantly.
Efficient customer support and fraud protection
In addition to potential logistical bottlenecks and other issues I mentioned above, one of the biggest challenges of Black Friday is definitely managing orders and providing efficient customer support. There are common reports from overwhelmed and stressed teams that result in problems in the consumer's purchasing journey, which ends up frustrated and often abandoning the product.
The good news is that AI chatbots handle mass requests much more quickly, ensuring a higher level of customer satisfaction and loyalty. And you, retailer, should remember that excellent service and an efficient problem-solving channel will yield results beyond November.
Another constant headache for both buyers and sellers are the increasing attempts of fraud in the country. On Black Friday 2023, they totaled R$ 10 million, according to Clearsale data. And although AI has been an instrument for scams, it can also offer protection against them. Generative AI algorithms are capable of preserving retailers' revenue by identifying risk situations and pattern deviations in transactions that suggest counterfeit profiles or products, thus preventing fraud occurrences.
Automated checkout and reduced waiting time
Finally, we arrive at the checkout. Many customers abandon their carts due to the slow queues at the payment stage. Data from a survey conducted by Salescycle in 2021 revealed that over 80% of users abandon their online shopping carts. Investing in automated checkout systems can solve this problem, speeding up the purchasing process and reducing wait times.
In short, betting on AI improves real-time decisions for sellers, simplifies product searches, personalizes experiences, and speeds up checkout for buyers. And remember to learn lessons this year, because AI is an irreversible path. We can expect an even more accelerated application of technology on Black Friday 2025, which will elevate competitiveness among retailers to another level.
