EXCLUSIVE: Businesses lag in readiness for AI search and shopping
While a majority of businesses expect artificial intelligence-based discovery and shopping tools to have a major impact, many have not prepared their sites.
Results of recent survey of 500 business owners conducted by secure web hosting provider Liquid Web that were exclusively released to Chain Store Age reveal close to eight-in-10 (78%) respondents believe AI-driven shopping tools like GPT will significantly change how consumers find products in the next 12 months.
[READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Consumer comfort, interest in AI shopping assistants grows]
Yet nearly nine-in-10 respondents (87%) haven’t audited their product pages for GPT or other AI-driven tools in the past six month and 65% aren’t taking steps to optimize their site or product pages for AI discovery. Almost half (47%) of respondents say their product pages aren’t AI-readable today.
Top reasons why businesses lack confidence in their site’s AI-readability:
- Haven’t prioritized it yet: 60%.
- Unclear what AI tools use to evaluate product pages: 35%.
- Not sure if metadata or schema is implemented correctly: 20%.
- Content is outdated or inconsistent: 9%.
- Infrastructure slows things down: 8%.
Other findings
- More than one-quarter (27%) of respondents plan to boost investment in AI tools that support on-site search and merchandising.
- One-in-four respondents are increasing search engine optimization spending to improve visibility in AI-powered search engines.
- Almost half (49%) of respondents are taking steps to improve their product pages for AI readability in the near future.
- About one-in-three (32%) respondents say AI-driven recommendations are already influencing their merchandising or product categorization strategy.
- Three-in-five (61%) respondents believe their competitors are more prepared for AI-driven discovery than they are.
- Three-in-five (60%) respondents lack confidence that their current hosting environment supports fast, AI-accessible performance.
- Twenty-seven percent of respondents plan to boost investment in AI tools that power on-site search and merchandising, and 25% are increasing SEO spending to improve visibility in AI-powered search engines.
In commentary emailed to Chain Store Age, Amanda Valle, global girector, Organic Search & marketing at Liquid Web, said the two-thirds of respondents who haven’t started optimizing for AI discovery represent a launchpad, not a roadblock, to AI preparedness.
"By prioritizing AI-readiness now, companies can position themselves as pioneers in the emerging era of AI-powered shopping," Valle said in the email. "By conducting regular AI-readiness audits and verifying that every product page is machine-readable, you stay ahead of evolving AI algorithms. These actions transform your site from a follower into a frontrunner in tomorrow’s AI-driven e-commerce landscape."
Read more survey results here.
