Voice commerce and shopping are on the rise. Despite their popularity, the definition of both terms is often confused. Voice commerce refers to transactions, while voice shopping relates to an item’s discovery, consideration, and purchase. In both areas, voice AI can smoothen the customer journey.
In this week’s video, Bret Kinsella, host of The Voicebot Podcast, discusses voice commerce and shopping. He references the critical points of a 2021 report on voice shopping and consumer adoption, delving into consumer interest in voice shopping, popular areas for voice AI use, where to find customers and future benefits of voice assistants. A study of 1,000 American adults showed a 62% growth in consumers willing to use voice assistants while shopping between 2018 and 2021. This growth suggests an increase in the adoption of voice assistants in the future. Why are they popular? They can aid each step of the shopping life cycle. In the discovery phase, voice assistants are easier to use than typing. For the consideration phase, they allow consumers to compare products and pricing and ask questions about potential purchases. Finally, in the purchasing phase, voice assistants are convenient for multitasking.
In the future, voice assistants may have agency. Consumers would provide general parameters on what they want and what makes life easier for them, and these assistants would order products on their behalf. In preparation for this not-so-far-off tomorrow, brands should be diving deeper into voice commerce and shopping.