Report: How AI Bridges the Retail Consumer Expectation Gap

“To say the quiet part out loud, there’s a widening disconnect in the world of retail today.”

Our recent publication How New AI Strategies Are Helping Bridge the Consumer Expectation Gap doesn’t mince words in its opening line. This first statement, much like the entire report, directly addresses the gaps between consumer expectations and the reality of what retailers deliver.

In partnership with RETHINK Retail, we surveyed over 1,000 North American consumers across fashion, home, and beauty to learn about these expectations, needs, desires, and interests. Inside the report, you will find details and data on what today’s consumers want from retailers and how those brands can meet their ever-rising, frequently evolving expectations.

People are discovering products in new ways. They’re connecting with brands through a combination of social media, search, word of mouth, and more. With so much competition in the fashion, home, and beauty spaces—coupled with consumers feeling the economic crunch of inflation—it’s more critical than ever for retailers to understand who their potential customers are, how to reach them, and what to offer them. In this day and age, AI is the best way to meet these targets and move forward.

Data-Rich Details on Shifting Consumer Expectations

Our exclusive report delves into the heart of one of retail’s biggest challenges: using valid data to measure customer experience performance. Its focus is on actual consumer sentiments, rather than retailer assumptions. This makes our report a comprehensive analysis that reveals stark differences in how each group views today’s shopping journeys.

By downloading the report, you’ll get insights into:

• How people find the products they want: Are they searching on Google? Are they finding trends on TikTok? We explore the breakdown of how people find the products they actually purchase.
• Details on where disconnects lie: In a world where 70% of customers quit their searches without buying, we uncover the why behind cart abandonment. We poll people on their personal frustrations with product assortments, search results, and quality upon delivery.
• Personalization preferences: Our report examines how people prefer to receive product recommendations, interact with online shops, get discount offers, and more.
• What consumers think and feel about AI: It’s hotly contested and consumers have mixed feelings about the technology . . . but AI can drive 90% revenue increases for retailers who embrace it. Here, we dig into these sentiments and learn how consumers really want AI to be applied to their shopping experiences.

How Does Lily AI Bridge the Retail Consumer Gap?

With all this valuable data on the modern consumer, one solution stands apart from others, when it comes to addressing their needs: artificial intelligence.

Still, not every AI tool connects consumers with products, let alone drives revenue for retailers. Only vertical-specific AI with models that are trained on retailer data can bridge these gaps.

As an AI solution built for retailers and trained on highly-specific industry data, Lily AI injects customer-centric language across entire retail ecosystems, delivering upwards of 9-figure revenue lifts for customers. Lily uses a combination of generative AI, computer vision, natural language processing, machine learning, and deep learning to elevate and enhance shopping experiences for consumers . . . and drive profitability for retailers.

Lily AI addresses the need to optimize products for multiple search types that attract people to your digital storefront. As the report’s survey demonstrates, customers are finding products through both on- and off-site means, and Lily AI delivers enhanced product discoverability across other digital mediums, such as sponsored ads or product listing on Google.

By bringing humanity to shopping through customer-centric language, Lily AI helps retailers understand who their shoppers are, what their priorities are, and how to serve them, ultimately bridging the consumer expectation gap.

If you’d like to learn even more about how AI is ushering in a new era of retail, attend our webinar with RETHINK Retail on April 30.