The retail industry is a key economy in Europe: it accounts for 11.5% of the EU’s business value (€1.4 billion) and comprises 5.5 million companies. The industry is growing at an unprecedented speed and the total retail sales of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK are expected to reach €2.7 trillion in 2028, and Germany holds the largest share of the retail market among these five countries, followed by the UK.
Despite the industry's ability to create a positive and more competitive ecosystem, retailers are facing more pressure to equip frontline employees with the tools to improve interactions with customers. The race is on to unlock tech-enabled innovation, embed technology in business strategy, and deliver a standout experience for the customers.
The era of generative AI
Generative AI has emerged as a revolutionary force in the European market. In both Germany and France alone, about 50% of companies have either implemented Gen AI or have created business value from it. Investments in Gen AI are only expected to grow further. Almost half (46%) of retail leaders are keen on using Gen AI owing to its highly efficient customer service.
In the retail industry, there are endless possibilities for Gen AI. It can help customers find relevant deals from a huge listing with just a few text and voice prompts. Several retailers have introduced virtual try-on technology: e-commerce customers can now visualise themselves wearing an outfit and buy things that they want easily. It can take hundreds of lengthy pieces of reviews, summarise them, and give the overall sentiment.
Real-time solutions make a huge impact
Almost three-quarters of European retailers (73%) believe in digital initiatives. Companies that put customer-centricity at the forefront deliver fully functional pre-sales services. These services include video call assistance, chat, product showcasing, and live product demos. Conversion rates and sales are hugely impacted by this strategic approach as 60% of consumers prefer video support for complex issues.
Increased personalisation leads to increased loyalty
The ability to deliver individually relevant retail solutions is the key to connecting and engaging with customers. As organisations strive to build lasting connections with their customers, AI delivers individualised attention by understanding the customer’s specific circumstances and recommending retail products based on individual needs. AI’s personalised offers and sentiment analysis capabilities foster a cohesive experience that strengthens customer-brand relationships for a long time.
The power of real-time shopping assistance
While AI targets customers with relevant and contextualised offers, retail businesses want to take the approach to its next level: real-time shopping assistance. This includes virtual showrooms with live product demonstrations, expert sales representatives available via video calls, engaging visuals with clear messaging to convey the product’s value proposition and building trust by addressing customer pain points. The video format in this approach is well-suited to attract customers as it happens in real-time, it is more engaging, and customers are better informed.
Creating loyalty through customer experience
Customer-focused retailers can enhance their customer experience by offering post-purchase services to promote a loyal customer base. They provide self-service, order confirmation, real-time alerts, delivery scheduling, frictionless return and refund, product replacement, complaint management, gift cards, drop-off/pick-up, data analytics and insights, and omnichannel quality management.
This omnichannel approach is effective in transforming a company’s customer experience i.e. the right channel at the right time for their customers’ specific needs.
Building a customer-centred and transparent retail environment is not intended to end in a one-time business transaction; it is an enduring, mutually beneficial relationship between a brand and its customers.
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