Note: This Venturescale Trends report is part of the Startup Ideas & Trends Library, which covers topics such as 🤖AI SaaS, ✍️Creator Economy, 🔵Web3 Startups, and the 🚀Unbundling of the Internet.
In this report, I’ll cover:
- How AI is changing the future of e-commerce?
- How generative AI is scaling e-commerce content creation?
- How to monetize niche e-commerce business opportunities?
Section 1: Key Market Trends
(1) Voice commerce is the future of shopping:
- The future of shopping lies in voice commerce, where AI-powered voice assistants enable customers to interact with businesses through voice-activated shopping experiences, AI voice assistants and customer feedback.
- Voice Plug creates ecommerce plugins that allow customers to place orders using voice commands through various systems, including online ordering sites, apps, and call centers.
- Commerce AI provides voice-based survey tools that use speech recognition and natural language understanding to gather customer feedback.
- Amazon Alexa allows customers to directly buy products using their voice.
- Google Assistants allow customers to shop for products, add items to their cart, and make purchases.
- Best Buy and Walmart Voice Order launched voice shopping features using voice commands.
(2) Conversational shopping is on the rise:
- Companies are building AI-powered chatbots that remember customer purchase history, contextualize support queries, automate customer experiences, and provide fast and efficient support.
- Ada’s AI chatbots offer assistance with a range of customer queries, from shipping FAQs to order tracking, refunds, and returns.
- Rep AI offers Shopify stores an automated conversation re-engagement solution that prompts shoppers who are about to leave the website, leading to increased engagement and sales.
- Pypestream enables shoppers to complete tasks 24/7 in an “app within app” interaction such as purchase, payment, tracking, refund, etc.
- Heyday helps retailers increase sales by deploying a multilingual AI chatbot on their e-commerce platform.
- Boost.ai is developing an AI-powered chatbot assistant that can provide automated customer self-service shopping experiences.
(3) Buy online, pick-up in store (BOPIS):
- The BOPIS commerce model or ROPIS (Reserve Online, Pickup In-Store) is a hybrid online/in-person shopping experience. Shoppers can save shipping costs by placing orders online and picking up their purchases at a physical store. This approach increases pre-order revenue for merchants and provides a more convenient shopping & returning experience for their customers.
- Kibo simplifies the delivery of complex customer experiences that span order management, eCommerce and subscription commerce.
- Hotwax provides Shopify merchants with a solution to manage “Same-Day Buy Online Pick-Up In Store” orders efficiently.
- Stockinstore helps businesses increase sales by offering “Click & Collect” order management solutions.
- Quivers provides online/offline pickup by connecting customers with a network of resellers via in-demand fulfillment options.
more…!!
(🔒 MEMBERS-ONLY) +5 more key trends, backed by real company examples:
🔑 (4/8) Optimize e-commerce sales using AI recommendation (5 examples)
🔑 (5/8) The visualization of online shopping search (5 examples)
🔑 (6/8) AI-powered e-commerce marketing (7 examples)
🔑 (7/8) Generative AI for e-commerce content creation (5 examples)
🔑 (8/8) Rise of metaverse e-commerce (6 examples)
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Section 2: Market Players & Company Databases
(🔒 MEMBERS-ONLY) Access the full database:
- 🏢 Total 94 market players.
- 📍 Total 8 niche segments.
- 🗃 Data points: value proposition, website, stage, total funding raised, year founded, company size, location and LinkedIn
Section 3: Problems & Market Needs
(1) Limited search functionality:
- Text-based search is limited as humans process 90% of information visually. This poses a challenge in e-commerce as customers often have trouble finding the products they want to purchase due to inadequate search functionalities.
- AI visual search allows shoppers to upload photos of products they are interested in, and get search results based on the visual features of the image. This makes search more descriptive and intuitive for shoppers.
- Cadeera is an AI powered product search and discovery search engine for home decor.
- Syte.ai is a visual search solution for fashion retailers.
- ViSenze helps retailers implement visual search functionality on their e-commerce sites.
- Donde Search (acquired by Shopify for $50.7 million) helped users search and discover apparel items based on visual characteristics.
(🔒 MEMBERS-ONLY) +4 more insights to validate customer needs:
🔑 (2/5) Monetize by solving repetitive tasks (5 examples)
🔑 (3/5) Monetize by solving lack of e-commerce sales (4 examples)
🔑 (4/5) Monetize by solving lack of shopper’s engagement (6 examples)
🔑 (5/5) Monetize by solving online shipping (5 examples)
Section 4: Startup Opportunities & Predictions
(1) Blockchain-enabled e-commerce will continue to emerge:
- Blockchain technology will be increasingly utilized in e-commerce to provide greater efficiency, security and transparency through blockchain-based payment, decentralized marketplaces and smart contracts creation.
- BitPay is a payment processor that enables businesses to easily accept cryptocurrency payments and allows customers to seamlessly pay for products and services with cryptocurrencies.
- CoinGate provides payment processing solutions for merchants and businesses, along with a virtual banking app that enables users to buy, store, and spend cryptocurrencies.
- @Pay is building the buy now, pay later solution for web3 ecommerce businesses.
- Niftify.io is building the “Shopify for Web3 e-commerce” where users can easily create NFT storefront and deploy smart contracts without any coding.
(2) Automate inventory management:
- AI will automate ecommerce inventory, resulting in more accurate demand forecasting, optimized supply chain management, and reduced costs. Businesses can avoid overstocking or understocking products, which can lead to lost sales and decreased customer satisfaction.
- Google Cloud has launched new AI tools for retailers such as shelf-checking and product availability tracking, which enable retailers to monitor their stock levels in real-time and respond quickly to any fluctuations in demand.
- Levi uses AI and machine learning to optimize inventory management to streamline and improve order fulfillment.
- Addepto delivers AI solutions for retailers in demand forecasting, shelf analysis and inventory management.
- Peak.ai uses AI to optimize inventory allocation, replenishment, and assortment planning to efficiently meet customer demand.
(3) No-code e-commerce solution:
- No-code e-commerce software is making it easier for businesses to create and manage online stores without technical skills, with more solutions emerging to facilitate setting up online storefronts, managing orders and payments, and customizing website design and features.
- Builder.ai helps you create a fully functional retail management system without writing any code.
- Universe lets you create an online shop using drag-and-drop.
- Pixpa’s e-commerce website builder allows users to easily create and sell both physical and digital products online.
- Printful enables you to create custom merchandise with your branding, and handle the printing, packaging, and shipping for you by connecting with warehouses and fulfillment centers, allowing you to sell without maintaining inventory.
(🔒 MEMBERS-ONLY) +5 more startup opportunities:
🔑 (4/8) Create no-code tools for visual commerce (6 examples)
🔑 (5/8) Drive more E-Commerce sales using content automation (5 examples)
🔑 (6/8) Monetize niche e-commerce apps (5 examples)
🔑 (7/8) Deploy a creator-first e-commerce business model (5 examples)
🔑 (8/8) Help businesses scale video content creation (6 examples)
Section 5: Product Strategy & Recommendation
(1) Optimize e-commerce websites using AI:
- Chatbots: Use LivePerson AI-powered chatbots to provide personalized and expert-level customer support, including answering inquiries and troubleshooting.
- AI reselling/upselling: With Wizard, sellers can automate the entire shopping experience, including product discovery, payments, marketing campaigns, and customer service, all via text.
- AI product recommendations: Implement an AI-based search engine using Algolia to offer personalized product recommendations based on customers’ browsing and purchase history.
- Visual search: Use Pixyle.ai for visual search, allowing customers to upload a photo and find similar items on your website to increase conversions.
(🔒 MEMBERS-ONLY) +4 more actionable ideas and recommendations:
🔑 (2/5) How to increase online shopper’s engagement (+ 4 tools)
🔑 (3/5) How to create a no-code e-commerce site (+ 5 no-code tools)
🔑 (4/5) 4 tactics to implement creator-first commerce (+ 3 tools)
🔑 (5/5) How to automate e-commerce product content (+ 5 AI tools)
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