“Customer experience is the new marketing battlefront." ~ Chris Pemberton

Out for a stroll, my friend and I came across the IKEA-on-wheels bus stationed in our neighbourhood. Spontaneously, she exclaimed, "Have you visited the new IKEA showroom? I highly suggest you do. We had an incredible time there.” She raved about the AI chat assistant helping her design her dream kitchen in minutes! She also sheepishly added, “I also ended up spending more than I had planned.” Coincidentally, I had heard a similar review of IKEA from another source—IKEA, it seems, has aced the Customer Experience (CX) game.

CX is the sum of all interactions a customer has with your brand, from discovering your product to using it and seeking support. In today's competitive landscape, where customers crave seamless experiences and instant gratification, it's the key to winning hearts and wallets (81% of organisations agree that it is a key differentiator). This is where generative AI (GenAI) steps in as a game-changer.

Unlike traditional AI, GenAI learns and adapts, continuously improving even familiar features. Imagine browsing an e-commerce site where the search bar anticipates your needs, product descriptions adapt to your language, and checkout feels frictionless with predictive autocomplete. GenAI can personalise every touchpoint, making CX not just faster but also smarter, more intuitive, and ultimately, unforgettable.

With 60% of CX leaders anticipating GenAI as a transformative force and 96% of executives engaging in discussions about it in boardrooms, it's evident that this technology is set to revolutionise how we interact with brands.

But, how exactly will GenAI enhance CX?

Product recommendations

Imagine an invisible shopping assistant suggesting must-haves based on what's hot, what others buy, and your own unique shopping preferences. That's the magic of recommendation engines. Popular items, contextual cues, purchase histories, and even browsing behaviour feed into various recommendation engine models, driving personalised engagement and conversions.

Early recommendation systems relied on basic heuristics such as product co-occurrence in shopping baskets. Although simple to integrate, these systems faced challenges with new products.

AI breathes fire into recommendation engines, surpassing simple product pairings. It tailors suggestions like the "next product to buy" one for you.

Amazon leads the way in AI-driven recommender systems. They fuel 35% of their sales.

Elevated visual search

Say goodbye to “floral dress, size medium.”. GenAI-powered visual search like Amazon's StyleSnap allows customers to find products using images instead of keywords. Shopping got more intuitive and infinitely more fun!

Virtual try-ons

Sephora, an international beauty retail chain, utilises a chatbot named "Sephora Virtual Artist." Incorporating generative AI and augmented reality, this chatbot offers users a virtual try-on experience for various makeup products, such as lipstick, eyeshadow, and foundation. This feature allows customers to preview how a product will look on them before buying it. Just hearing about it puts a smile on your face, doesn’t it?

Enhanced customer support

Intelligent chatbots and virtual assistants, driven by GenAI, are revolutionising customer support and engagement. Imagine skipping wait times and finding instant answers. That's the magic of GenAI. AI chatbots learn your needs and answer questions anytime. In a recent survey, 47% of respondents agreed that GenAI could revolutionise automated customer service, making it smoother and more satisfying.

Feeling lost? Virtual assistants walk you through complex tasks, offering calm guidance every step of the way.

With GenAI, customer support isn't just efficient; it's an experience. The future of support is here, and it's powered by intelligent, helpful, and even a little empathetic AI.

Dynamic advertising copy

Gone are the days of one-size-fits-all ad copy. Google's Responsive Search Ads (RSAs), powered by GenAI, take advertising to the next level. By dynamically generating unique ad variations from your headlines and descriptions, the system leverages AI's advanced language processing and data analysis to create highly targeted and compelling advertising content that resonates with specific audiences based on their search queries and preferences. This approach delivers not just adaptability but significantly higher click-through rates, improved conversions, and a maximised return on your ad spend.

Dynamic content generation

GenAI is revolutionising e-commerce content, from product descriptions to personalised recommendations. Walmart, a retail giant with millions of products, leverages AI to dynamically generate high-quality, engaging, and keyword-rich descriptions that maintain brand voice and factual accuracy. This ensures consistency across their vast catalogue and also improves conversion rates and customer satisfaction.