A utilização de Inteligência Artificial (IA) no varejo online tem transformado a maneira como as empresas interagem com os consumidores e gerenciam suas operações. Este avanço tecnológico contribui, atualmente, para empreendedores conseguirem otimizar a gestão dos negócios e potencializar a divulgação dos seus produtos e serviços.

De acordo com levantamento realizado pela consultoria americana MarketsandMarkets, estima-se que o mercado de Inteligência Artificial cresça até 1900% no mundo todo até 2026. Esse crescimento é impulsionado pelo aumento da demanda em setores como saúde, automação industrial e, especialmente, no varejo.

“A Inteligência Artificial generativa e preditiva pode auxiliar lojistas em muitos casos: desde a criação de sua loja, com dicas de como performar melhor em mecanismos de busca, passando por cadastros e configurações, até a manutenção e desenho estratégico de seu negócio, fornecendo insights para atuação em datas sazonais e estratégicas do mercado,” detalha Ricardo Leite, Diretor do UOL Host.

Para muitos empreendedores, a Inteligência Artificial pode parecer um campo desconhecido e cheio de desafios, mas é preciso falar sobre suas aplicações. E é por isso que Ricardo Leite separou algumas dicas sobre como o uso da IA e suas funcionalidades podem ajudar pequenos e médios empreendedores a criar um negócio de sucesso no ambiente digital. Confira:

Descrições de produtos:

Um e-commerce bem-sucedido possui descrições detalhadas dos produtos, com o intuito de auxiliar o consumidor no momento da compra. A Inteligência Artificial pode desempenhar um papel importante na criação de descrições completas e atrativas, ajudando os clientes a encontrarem exatamente o que procuram e, consequentemente, impulsionando os resultados da loja online. O ChatGPT, além de auxiliar com as descrições, fornece detalhes abrangentes e melhorias de conteúdo para sua loja virtual e a Loja VirtUOL já oferece essa solução de forma nativa para todos os clientes.

Estratégias de SEO:

Com o aumento do Custo de Aquisição de Cliente (CAC) no e-commerce, que representa a soma dos investimentos em marketing e vendas dividida pelo número de clientes conquistados em um período, é importante valorizar o ranqueamento orgânico nos mecanismos de busca. Para isso, é essencial ter um SEO otimizado conforme as boas práticas. A plataforma Loja VirtUOL, do UOL Host, oferece uma funcionalidade que gera descrições personalizadas de acordo com a identidade da loja, otimizando a experiência de compra. Hoje, é a única plataforma de e-commerce que ajuda no cadastro de produtos e no SEO da loja de forma nativa, sem custos adicionais.

Otimização de categorias:

A categorização facilita aos clientes encontrar rapidamente os itens desejados, reduzindo o bounce rate (taxa de rejeição) do site. Essa métrica representa a porcentagem de visitantes que acessam uma página e saem sem interagir com o conteúdo ou clicar em outras páginas. Já o ChatGPT pode auxiliar na criação de uma árvore de categorias personalizada para a loja.

Estratégias de vendas em datas sazonais:

O comércio eletrônico está repleto de datas que impulsionam o varejo. Para alcançar sucesso nestas ocasiões, é fundamental uma estratégia clara e eficaz e a inteligência artificial (IA) pode auxiliar na criação de estratégias certeiras, oferecendo insights sobre promoções e conteúdos ideais para redes sociais, por exemplo

E-mail marketing:

O e-mail marketing é uma das estratégias mais eficazes para aumentar as conversões nas lojas virtuais. Por isso, utilizar a IA na criação de conteúdos e na elaboração da estratégia de mensagem pode ajudar a melhorar as métricas dos disparos e das campanhas promocionais.

A Nielsen survey shows that 70% of consumers trust third-party online recommendations. The number reinforces that the impact of paid media on the consumption habits of internet users is far from small, and can leverage entire businesses.

“Advertising campaigns transform consumer behavior and affect the competitiveness of brands in the market, so it is a scenario that deserves maximum attention”, says Bruno Almeida, CEO of US Media, leading media solutions hub in Latin America.

To clarify the benefits of investing in this strategy, the executive listed 10 fundamental aspects of paid media linked to new consumer habits

• Short and long term impact

When brands balance frequency and relevance of campaigns, the benefits of paid media are immediately perceived and can extend for years.“A Short-term users receive advertising messages that speak to their interests, which influences their buying decisions.Then, in the long run, this can cause them to choose that brand as their favorite, creating an” engagement cycle, says Almeida.

• Access to new products and services

Paid media campaigns also bring new buying options, causing consumers to try new products and services.“The more conservative, who rely on organic recommendations or past experiences, often end up having no contact with hot market launches, especially in dynamic sectors such as fashion and technology”, explains the CEO. 

• Customer loyalty

Investing in paid media is an excellent strategy to create a lasting bond with consumers, especially when aligned with exclusive benefit programs.As the US Media leader characterizes,“nada is a well-planned campaign to highlight brand values and the real benefits that a loyal customer can get”.

• Applicable in various sectors

E-commerce, technology and financial markets are just some of the many sectors that have benefited from increased investment in paid media.“We are talking about areas that rely on a strong digital presence to reach and engage their consumers, so they use this strategy to target their messages and ensure more”, says Almeida.

• Competitiveness for SMEs

“Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can compete with big brands”, warns the CEO. Through niche strategies and high personalization, advertising campaigns can cause a smaller brand to grow on social networks and conquer the target audience showing its potential for innovation.

• Omnichannel approach

Today, betting on a strategy that integrates multiple communication channels balances paid media with organic content, being essential to maintain engagement and avoid fatigue.“Relevance and segmentation are the keywords for any campaign that adds value to the consumer experience”, guarantees the US Media expert.

• Balance and authenticity

The balance between paid media and authentic content is crucial. According to Almeida, companies should use campaigns to drive traffic to genuine productions, such as customer testimonials and success stories.“Partnerships with good influencers are also effective in amplifying the message in a true”, he adds.

• Creativity & innovation

There is no point in investing in paid media if the brand follows what everyone else is doing. As the executive advises: “An innovative campaign always starts with a good team thinking outside the box, so focusing on strategic planning is a step that can not be left aside by the company. Create thinking about each platform on which the campaign will run, and not replicating the same creativity for all, also increases its effectiveness.”

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• Emerging trends and new technologies

Some trends and technological tools are already impacting consumer habits, so they are completely relevant to paid media strategies. The main ones are: real-time personalization through artificial intelligence, advertising on short video platforms, the increase in programmatic advertising and advertising based on social and environmental values.

•   Diversification of approaches

To adapt their paid media strategies to new consumer habits, companies also need to diversify their approaches.“We live in an increasingly fragmented digital environment, so always offering the same thing and in the same format to the public is definitely not a good idea these days”, concludes Almeida.

The growth of e-commerce during high demand dates, such as Christmas and Black Friday, also leads to an increase in the number of cyber attacks in Brazil.To ensure the stability and security of their e-commerce platforms, many companies are already starting preparations to prevent their customers from facing problems during purchases.

This consists of reviewing security breaches, slowness and errors, which can generate attacks and fraud and affect both user experience and brand reputation.PwC study reveals that more than half of consumers (55%) would avoid buying from a company after a negative experience, and 8% would give up after a single unfavorable incident. 

“Investing in the quality and security of digital systems not only avoids financial and image losses, but also ensures a positive experience for users, strengthening brand trust and promoting success in high traffic” events, says Wagner Elias, CEO of Conviso, a company specializing in application security (AppSec).

According to the expert, recent cases such as the Facebook data leak and the Latam/Multiplus system failures show the importance of robust preparation at a time like this, given the increase in the number of attacks on the security of companies around the world. According to a report by the Consortium for Information & Software Quality (CISQ), from 2020, the number of system failures increases by about 15% per year. In addition, Security Magazine revealed that software failures caused a loss of 2.4 trillion dollars in the United States in 2022 and a growth of 1.5 trillion dollars in technical reserves.

Application Security

The work of protecting e-commerce software is carried out by what is called application security, a market that is expected to grow, all over the planet, reaching US$ 25 billion in 2029 (Mordor Intelligence).

It consists of having a comprehensive and detailed view of the vulnerabilities of a system and implementing defense mechanisms in advance. “In a comparative way, it works like this: when you are going to park your car, consider if the place is safe and if there are measures to be taken to protect the vehicle. Likewise, problems are anticipated and strategies are created to avoid” risks, compares Luiz Henrique Custodio, TechLead at Conviso.

For Custos, the ideal would be for companies to constantly review their platforms to identify and correct possible security breaches, creating a culture of security.

In addition, for large events, it is important for companies to invest in robust infrastructure and perform load testing to ensure their systems can handle access spikes.

Consumers Should Stay Attentive

Wagner Elias, CEO of Conviso, emphasizes that precaution is critical for both businesses and consumers. However, for consumers, this involves following safe practices when browsing and transacting online.“Always opt for secure payment methods, such as Google Pay, Apple Pay or credit cards, which offer legal protection in case of problems with the seller.”

He also underscores the importance of keeping smartphone and PC software up to date, as criminals often exploit security loopholes in outdated systems. “Avoid downloading apps and software from suspicious sources, and if you need to download a link, carefully check the information and ratings of the app. Elias” warns: “Watch offers that seem too good to be true; they can hide fraudulent intentions.”

Fraudulent websites often mimic known stores to steal personal and financial information. Elias suggests other tips: “Always check if the website URL starts with 2HTTPS’ and features a padlock icon in the address bar. Fake websites often lack these features. Also, be aware of grammatical and typing errors, and make sure the website provides clear contact information such as email, phone, and physical address”.

Other common fraud strategies include phishing scams, where criminals try to obtain personal information through fake messages, and fake apps, which often contain malware. “To avoid these problems, download apps only from official stores such as the App Store and Play Store. Also be aware of pop-ups that offer fake antivirus downloads, as they can be used to steal sensitive data from”.