Conversational AI—but IRL
Bots may seem like pure digital tools, but they belong in the physical world, too.
Specifically, in your shopping cart.
There are two kinds of in-person retail experiences.
One is like what you might experience at an uncrowded Nike Store on a weekday in downtown Seattle. Walk in, get immediate attention, get answers from knowledgeable sales associates, get what you want fast, and get out.
The other is likely the majority. Walk into a pharmacy, clothing store, or even hotel, and wait. Wait for sales associates to free up. Wait to check in. Wait to google if it’s cheaper from another brand. Wait for them to grab something “from the back”. Wait in line to buy.
Wait — isn’t it 2019? Why are retail experiences so slow and complex?
Enter in-store chatbots. Whether you’re at the supermarket or a superstore, a friendly bot inside one of the mobile messaging channels you already use becomes the helper you need when sales associates are sparse, or your question is straightforward.
It’s a natural place to push coupons, in-store navigation, even to help parents find the nearest baby changing table.
These bots will increasingly put geospatial mapping to work.
A Japanese AI developer, Bespoke, recently announced the launch of its WiFi bot in the US.
“A company’s WiFi sign-on page provides a perfect, yet untapped, opportunity to engage with important customers… at a given location, allowing business owners to capture real insight [and] improve customer loyalty,” said Akemi Tsunagawa, Bespoke’s CEO.
Following in the footsteps of AI engagement platforms like Aislelabs, it’ll help personalize the shopping experience and get visitors where they need to go.
First, conversational AI will have its greatest impact not on existing retail environments, but on purposefully-built, redesigned shopping ecosystems.
To illustrate what these will look like, let’s take a retailer that could benefit from conversational interfaces: Barnes & Noble.
Over the years, Barnes & Noble has tried to compete with Amazon. The company invested in Nook. It bribed shoppers with food, coffee, and other merchandise. But it didn’t keep up with the Information Age and it ultimately declined.
However, Elliott Management, its new hedge fund owner after this month’s major acquisition, could breathe new life into the joyful, IRL experience of discovering a great book.
Imagine if there was less merchandise on the floor.
Imagine if Nooks, and larger displays, in each section of the store advertised titles in their respective genre. On each device, shoppers could chat with a virtual helper that matched them to books according to their interests. When they make a selection, someone in the back is alerted. If they want to look at the book, it’s waiting for them at a desk near the inventory. If they want to purchase it, it’s waiting for them at the counter. They can sign up for a membership on these devices, and choose to carry on the conversation in, say, Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp, where they can sample books and short stories, and place orders in advance with a Stripe integration for transactions.
Naturally, the children’s section of the store has an audio assistant that reads to kids.
This redesign may be some years away. But even stores in their existing setup have much to gain from conversational interfaces like the one imagined.
No matter how the far future plays out, in today’s stores there’s major upside to be found in mere months.
Building on data from location-intelligence titans like GroundTruth, bots and geolocation experts can team up for razor-sharp functionalities: direct messaging deals based on the aisle you’re in at any moment, predictive store visit and query analytics, or a text that says, “Turn left for the nearest associate. Jim will be happy to help.”
That instant help — suddenly, positively shifting shoppers’ expectations and estimation of a brand — makes people happy.
That’s what the near future of retail must do.
Footnotes:
- “El robot de Candem.” by TheTimeTraveler!, altered by aflow, licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
- “Barnes & Noble” by bgolub, altered by aflow, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
- “DSCN0836” by ディマ, licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
- “Voice controlled light speaker” by Vere Z, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- “yay!” by gagilas , altered by aflow, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
