Embracing Agentic Commerce: A Strategic Imperative for Retail Growth
After attending the Financial Times, Future of Retail event this week in London. It’s fair to say that Agentic Ai is by far the most talked about ‘tech-shift-enabler’ on the planet! So I thought I would share some thoughts to our retail executives.
As retail continues to evolve, the emergence of Agentic Commerce is fundamentally transforming how we engage with consumers. AI shopping agents are becoming integral players in digital commerce, shaping purchasing decisions and redefining shopping interactions.
Key takeaways from recent discussions highlight the urgency for retailers to adapt or risk becoming mere utilities in agent-controlled marketplaces:
– Understanding the Landscape: Over 50% of consumers anticipate using AI assistants for shopping by the end of this year. Those arriving via AI agents are 10% more engaged, indicating a significant shift in consumer behavior that we cannot afford to ignore.
– The Risks Ahead: As these AI platforms ascend, retailers face diminishing direct access to customers, weakened brand loyalty, and a reliance on third-party ecosystems. This disintermediation threatens our traditional engagement channels and customer understanding.
To thrive in this new era, we must optimize our presence within AI platforms, developing proprietary AI-driven experiences that showcase our unique brand value. Investing in three key pillars is essential:
1. Winning with Third-Party Agents: Enhance visibility on AI platforms through generative experience optimisation (GXO) and adapt to emerging paid advertising opportunities.
2. Building Owned Agentic Experiences: Develop brand-specific AI agents that offer unmatched personalisation, alongside workforce agents that empower our teams and partner agents that streamline supplier interactions.
3. Foundational Robustness: Establish a scalable data infrastructure that supports secure AI integration, alongside a strong governance framework that prioritises ethical practices.
– A New Frontier: We are approaching an era of agent-to-agent commerce, where transactions may occur autonomously between AI agents. Retailers must ensure their platforms are discoverable and capable of seamless interactions across the expanding AI ecosystem.
The window to lead in this transformative journey is closing rapidly. By investing in agentic capabilities now, we can redefine customer engagement and operational efficiency, ultimately driving sustainable growth in an increasingly competitive landscape.
Let’s not just embrace change—let’s become the change.
