What is conversational commerce?
Definition: Conversational commerce refers to using chatbots, messaging apps, or voice assistants to facilitate interactions between businesses and customers throughout the buying process.
By leveraging AI and NLP technologies, conversational commerce enables customers to browse products, ask questions, get recommendations, and make more intuitive and conversational purchases.
This approach enhances the customer experience by providing personalized, real-time support and streamlining the shopping process, ultimately leading to increased customer engagement, satisfaction, and loyalty.
Types of conversational commerce
The most common types of conversational commerce are:
- Chatbots: AI-powered chatbots embedded on websites or messaging platforms that can understand and respond to customer inquiries, provide product recommendations, and guide users through the purchasing process.
- Messaging apps: WhatsApp, WeChat, or Viber, are common places for conversational commerce, where businesses communicate with customers and offer support, promotions, or transaction assistance.
- Voice assistants: Amazon's Alexa, Google Assistant, or Apple's Siri enable conversational commerce through voice commands, allowing customers to ask questions, receive product suggestions, and purchase using spoken language.
- Social media platforms: Many social media platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, have integrated messaging features that enable businesses to engage in conversational commerce.
- SMS and text messaging: Conversational commerce can also occur via traditional text messaging or SMS.