What Does 2023 Look Like for AI & Ecommerce? with Brent Peterson

Summary

In this Twitter Space audio discussion, e-commerce experts explore how AI could transform online retail. They discuss AI applications like automating product catalog creation, generating engaging content, building chatbots for customer service, and more. However, they note risks like an over-reliance on AI content quality, potential search engine penalties, and implementation costs. Overall, they express excitement about AI’s potential to enhance merchant and shopper experiences through contextual recommendations and nuanced Q&A while acknowledging the need for human oversight.

Takeaways

• 😊 AI can help generate better product titles, descriptions, metadata, images, video and audio content for ecommerce
• 📝 AI content will likely get flagged by Google eventually for lacking human touch; merchants need to proofread
• 👍 Smaller companies can benefit more from AI since they have less bandwidth for content production
• 🌟 Biggest opportunities are for developers to build AI apps that help merchants improve products
• 😮 AI bots could have entire scripted conversations impersonating real people without any human involvement
• ❓ Merchants should research AI tools and do due diligence to ensure validity of content
• 🔎 Risks include false information, bias, discriminatory behavior, privacy issues, and high costs
• 💡 Ideas include product chatbots trained on user data to answer specific customer questions
• 🎥 Future opportunities in video and audio content generated by AI
• 😊 Overall AI will bring many new capabilities but human oversight is still needed

Q & A

What are some potential uses of AI in ecommerce catalog management?

AI could help generate better product titles, descriptions, metadata, images and videos. It can also help with content creation like blog posts and product demo videos.

How can small ecommerce companies benefit the most from AI?

Small companies with limited bandwidth can use AI to generate content like product info and descriptions. AI can act as an unlimited brainstorming resource.

What are some risks of using AI-generated content in ecommerce?

The main risks are poor quality content, repetition leading to penalization by search engines, and over-reliance on unstable AI platforms.

How can chatbots be used in ecommerce customer service?

AI-powered chatbots can provide 24/7 automated customer service. They can also be contextual, knowing details about the specific product page the customer is on.

Should AI-generated content be trusted fully?

No, merchants should review and edit any AI-generated content before publishing it. Humans should still be accountable for final content.

What privacy and compliance risks exist with using AI services?

If AI services access customer data, there could be risks of data breaches. Companies need to ensure services are PCI and GDPR compliant.

Can AI help with SEO and metadata optimization?

Yes, AI could help generate title tags, meta descriptions and other metadata optimized for SEO. But quality control by humans is still needed.

Will AI replace human jobs in ecommerce?

In the short term AI can augment human capabilities, but humans are still needed for oversight, quality control and accountability.

What creative ways can AI-generated images and video be used?

Tools like DALL-E 2 and Midjourney allow endless possibilities for unique product images and art.

Could AI ever fully replace human customer service?

Possibly in the future. With enough training data, AI chatbots may provide even better service through unlimited availability and knowledge.