Dive Brief:
- As more retailers integrate AI into the shopping experience, AI is on pace to drive more than $200 billion in holiday sales, a 12% jump from last year, according to a Salesforce analysis.
- Since Cyber Monday, retailers’ usage of generative AI and agents has grown 23% week over week, Salesforce said.
- Global online sales from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15 have reached $849 billion — a 4% year-over-year increase, per the report.
Dive Insight:
Salesforce’s analysis shows the growing imprint of AI on the retail industry, from product recommendation to customer service. Since the start of November, AI has influenced 19% of orders internationally through custom promotions, product recommendations or order support. Companies that have used AI during the holiday season have seen higher engagement (38%) than businesses that didn’t (21%), Salesforce said.
“As retailers work to cash in on the final spending frenzy, AI agents are a lifeline,” Caila Schwartz, director of consumer insights and strategy for Salesforce, said in a statement. “By handling questions, order issues, and recommendations with a personalized touch, they are making last-minute gifting feel effortless. These retailers will win a bigger slice of the holiday pie.”
Meanwhile, some research suggests that shoppers are leaning more into AI, but trust issues are slowing greater adoption. Among the reasons why shoppers rely on AI are to receive help from virtual assistants (26%), use virtual try-on technology (23%) and access product personalization search options (23%), according to a Perfect Corp. report.
However, shopping with generative AI is split among consumers with nearly half (48%) saying they don’t use the tech, but 52% said they currently use AI or plan to do so in the future. Another survey from Bain found that the primary reason why shoppers aren’t using generative AI is that they’re happy with their current shopping habits.
As shoppers weigh whether to use AI, retailers are rolling out generative AI tools to court consumers. This month, Target introduced its Bullseye Gift Finder, which uses generative AI to recommend products, and its new generative AI-powered Shopping Assistant, a chatbot that provides product recommendations and answers questions. Nordstrom also recently streamlined its holiday shopping experience with a refreshed mobile app that leverages generative AI.
