2024: the Black Friday of artificial intelligence - and how to use it to your advantage

Retailers already know: the five most eagerly awaited days of the year are coming and to make Black Friday the 13th month of 2024, they won't just need to prepare their websites in advance against slowdowns, the lack of a good landing page history and last-minute trend research. We are facing a Black Friday that promises to be a watershed in terms of the effective application of artificial intelligence by companies. At a recent event, directors from Google Brazil stated that the use of AI to optimize processes has everything to boost this year's edition.

Let's think about some possibilities for using technology and how they can benefit sellers and their businesses, thinking about the entire customer journey within e-commerce. There are several stages that the consumer goes through until they reach the checkout, and how companies optimize each one makes a difference in the short and long term, considering that the brands' main interest is loyalty. AI is a tool that can facilitate this journey from end to end, as we'll see below.

Real-time demand forecasting

Using the tool can avoid one of the problems that most afflicts retailers in times of high demand: stock shortages. With AI, demand forecasting takes place in real time, guaranteeing product replenishment.

According to a study by McKinsey, AI-based demand forecasting can reduce inventory costs by 10% to 40%. Brands such as Walmart already report saving billions of dollars by optimizing their supply chains with the technology. In addition, AI can predict logistical disruptions, guaranteeing on-time deliveries.

Greater personalization of offers

Trend research is also a crucial aspect of Black Friday, which requires SEOs to keep a close eye on consumer habits in order to anticipate demand. It is on this basis that the company is able to strategically prepare its stock for the period. This movement is nothing new for retailers, who keep an eye on what's hot every year.

However, when we talk about generative AI, it allows us to analyze large amounts of customer data, such as purchase history, searches and demographic information, creating highly personalized offers based on browsing habits and suggesting much more accurate results. The result is a higher conversion and sales rate for brands.

Fast generation of landing pages and instant pricing

To increase conversion and lead generation, the creation of landing pages is also a key element. And good returns are proportional to the volume of pages created. With AI, it is possible to optimize this creation process automatically, generating a huge number of pages in a short time.

And to optimize competitiveness, AI also makes it possible for prices to adjust instantly.

Efficient customer support and fraud protection

In addition to possible logistical bottlenecks and the other issues I've outlined above, one of the biggest challenges of Black Friday is definitely managing orders and providing efficient customer support. Reports of overloaded and stressed teams are common, resulting in problems in the consumer's purchasing journey, who end up frustrated and often giving up on the product.

The good news is that AI chatbots handle mass requests much more quickly, ensuring a higher level of buyer satisfaction and loyalty. And you, the retailer, should remember that great customer service and an efficient problem-solving channel will bear fruit beyond November.

Another constant headache for both buyers and sellers is fraud attempts, which are only increasing in the country. On Black Friday 2023, they amounted to R$10 million, according to data from Clearsale. And while AI has been a tool for applying scams, it can also offer protection against them. Generative AI algorithms are capable of preserving retailers' revenue by identifying risky situations and deviations from patterns in transactions that suggest counterfeit profiles or products, thus preventing fraud from occurring.

Automated checkout and shorter waiting times

Finally, we come to the checkout. Many customers abandon their carts because of the slowness of the queues at the payment stage. Data from a survey carried out by Salescycle in 2021 revealed that more than 80% of users abandon their online cart. Investing in automated checkout systems can solve this problem, speeding up the purchasing process and reducing waiting times.

In short, betting on AI improves real-time decisions for sellers, simplifies the search for products, personalizes experiences and speeds up checkout for shoppers. And remember to learn lessons this year, because AI is a path of no return. We can expect an even more accelerated application of technology on Black Friday 2025, which will take competitiveness among retailers to another level.