AWS for Industries
Take in-store and online shopping experiences to another level using generative AI
In today’s retail, consumers have both the infinite shelf of online shopping and the sensory experience of in-store shopping. As such, there is a natural flow that consumers can follow from one to the other creating an endless wardrobe of possibilities. That flow typically starts online and continues in-store.
However, when those consumers visit a store, their expectations have changed. Today, the modern consumer expects a retailer’s store associates to know them—at least in the sense of their shopping history and tastes. Think about what that means to associates on the sales floor. There is an inrush of data that each store associate must digest, seemingly in an instant, for every customer who walks in. There are prior purchases, what’s in the customer’s online cart right now, clearance and promotional items that may be of interest, next season’s styles hitting the floor, and you get the picture.
Assimilating, processing, and summarizing these data vectors raises an obvious question: How does the store associate, in the few seconds they have when a customer enters the store, learn enough to be a personal shopper? Is there anything we can do to help?
A short story of extending loyalty into the wardrobe
Jen is going shopping today at her favorite clothing store, where she has shopped for years. Usually, Jen mills about the store, looking at the distinctive styles that have arrived for the new season. And, over her morning coffee, she browses the website looking for a new combination of materials, colors, and styles that will add to her current wardrobe. While Jen is browsing, she picks out a sweater and puts it into her cart for safe keeping while she continues shopping.
For Jen, both the online and in-store experiences are important. Sometimes, when she visits the store closest to her, she likes to try on different outfits. And, because sizes and colors can vary, she’s reluctant to order online without first trying on something in the store. For Jen, the infinite shelf she enjoys online, and the in-store experience need to align.
Today, Jen is in for a surprise. Earlier this month, her favorite clothing store upgraded to Mad Mobile’s latest Concierge AI solution with built-in generative AI. Mad Mobile, an AWS Partner, has just updated its mobile Point of Sale (POS) and clienteling solution to integrate with Amazon Bedrock to help store associates make more inspired recommendations for in-store shoppers and more timely, personalized outreach when they are not in the store.
Today, Laura is working on the sales floor when Jen stops by the store. After greeting her, Laura asks if there’s anything in particular that she’s looking to find. Jen says she’s just browsing, and Laura tells her that if she’s a current customer, Laura can look for any promotions that Jen might not know about. Interested, Jen gives her name to Laura, who opens her tablet and quickly finds Jen’s loyalty account.
Laura says, “I’m looking at your wardrobe, and you’ve purchased from us for several seasons now. Thank you!” Feeling acknowledged as a loyal customer, Jen smiles and asks if, based on her prior purchases, Laura can help her find a coordinating outfit for a special occasion—but also something she can wear to the office. Laura enters Jen’s request into Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI to see what it suggests.
The hidden power of generative AI
What neither Jen nor Laura realize is the powerful technology that Mad Mobile has just tapped, using Amazon Bedrock. Mad Mobile’s technology has access to high-performing foundation models (FMs) from leading AI companies like AI21 Labs, Anthropic, Cohere, Meta, Stability AI, and Amazon—all offered through Amazon Bedrock to bring the power of generative AI to the salesfloor.
In a flash, Laura has some remarkably interesting information to share. “It looks like you have a great cable wool sweater in your online cart from earlier today. As we’re now looking ahead to spring, that sweater is on clearance and on a rack here in the store.”
Jen is impressed. “That’s great, I’ll take it! Can you help with a coordinating outfit, too?”
And the conversation continues, as Laura, through the help of generative AI, matches trousers in the store with a blouse that Jen already has in her wardrobe. In addition, Laura finds a new matching belt and other accessories recommended by Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI.
Put yourself in the shoes of a sales associate
Store associates are your most powerful assets. Their job is to know their customers. However, with today’s pace, multiple channels for contact, and ever-changing assortments, those associates simply can’t keep up with the data, think creatively, and quickly provide relevant recommendations. They need help. Now imagine empowering store associates with an AI chatbot that can answer any question about your customers and products.
Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI enables store associates to use natural language querying to discover valuable customer and product insights such as, “Which customers of mine have been most active online this week?” or “Which customers are searching for a new jacket?” From there, Concierge AI can build a list for outreach and generate a text or email message featuring personalized product suggestions with direct links to purchase online. These links contain tags that attribute each online sale to the proper associate.
Mad Mobile has combined natural language processing (NLP) with both predictive and generative AI, running on Amazon Web Services (AWS). With the addition of Amazon Bedrock, Mad Mobile brings data science to the fingertips of your store associates, making them immediate experts—for every customer entering the store.
Bring a similar experience to your customers
If this is a story you would like to see repeated in your retail stores, it’s not the stuff of science fiction—it’s real, and it’s available through Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI solution today. Mad Mobile’s Concierge solution is already the leading application for retail store associates. Major retailers such as Ralph Lauren, Talbots, Anthropologie, Signet Jewelers, and Tractor Supply run Concierge in their stores.
Mad Mobile’s addition of Amazon Bedrock adds the “AI” to its original solution. Now, Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI solution looks for certain customer behaviors and makes relevant recommendations that the store associate can use immediately. Imagine if your store associates had the time to research every customer’s buying habits and could create a personalized summary profile for each one. That’s the hallmark of high-end retailers, where sales advisors are on a first-name basis with their clients—so much so, those customers make appointments with their sales advisors to consult on the latest fashions.
Now, through the power of Amazon Bedrock, sales staff have a new tool to help bring that personalized experience to every one of your customers. Generative AI helps by looking at all the dimensions of a customer’s experience, distilling that information, and then presenting it to a store associate during their conversation with a customer. For example, Concierge AI may recommend extending a customer’s expiring loyalty points (if the customer is likely to buy within the next six months), or it might simply recommend a promotional discount with a current purchase to keep the customer excited about their visit.
For customers who want to interact directly with a chatbot, Mad Mobile will be introducing a customer-facing Concierge AI that runs on a kiosk in the store. That will have a digital person with whom the customer can interact. There will also be an online version available through the retailer’s website.
Conclusion
Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI solution, driven by Amazon Bedrock, empowers store associates to become both design consultants and personal shoppers. Backed with generative AI, which can correlate among multiple sources of information—seemingly in an instant—your store associates can start meaningful conversations with each customer visiting a location. And the more your customers feel that they have a friend at the store, the more likely they are to look forward to their next in-store experience. To bring the power of generative AI to your sales staff, visit Mad Mobile in the AWS Solutions Library to get started.
One last thing. Remember that customer wardrobe? With Mad Mobile’s Concierge AI solution, that wardrobe looks infinite.
Suggested reading
Mad Mobile Launches Concierge AI with Amazon Bedrock: Personalizing Retail Experiences »