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The modern eCommerce landscape is awash in marketing buzzwords like “AI” and “Machine Learning”. These terms usually surface in marketing materials when you’re researching an app, software, or platform. Read on to learn how to decode these terms and ask useful questions to vet the value of those solutions.
Decoding The Terms
Many merchants nod and smile when presented with these terms, imagining the software as an intangible black box where something unknowable happens and the result is some kind of “smart” output that will somehow drive better outcomes. At best, the software fulfills its promises. At worst, seeing these terms can instill an artificial sense of value for the merchant, while mentally preparing them to spend more money. From the app or software sales side of things, dropping “It has Machine Learning!” in a presentation or presales can be a handy shortcut for the same reasons. If you want to assess the true value of these features, you don’t always need to know exactly how they work under the hood. You just need to know what they will do for you, in your specific case, and how long it will take for them to prove that value.
AIs Aren’t Stranger Than Fiction
Any learning algorithm takes time. You may have seen a fictional AI become sentient and super intelligent within moments of accessing the internet. Ultron, we’re looking at you! In reality, most software algorithms are built for more specific and far less extreme purposes. For example, an app could ingest your order data and learn which products are bought together to recommend to future customers. In this case, the quantity and quality of the order data can determine the speed of the learning process.
When assessing a solution that requires data and time, try to get a sense of how long it might take for it to become useful in your case. Ask what kind of data the solution needs and if possible, try to get some example outcomes for businesses with similar volume.
Machine Learning For Your Business
A solution powered by AI or Machine Learning isn’t automatically the best solution for your business based solely on those features. In the case of cross-sales, many merchants prefer manually setting up products because they know their customers and business best. However, they can be powerful weapons in your arsenal given the right circumstances.
Companies market algorithms and machine learning to solve commonly shared challenges with consistent and replicable methods. The human engineers behind these technical marvels are generally working to solve a simple challenge: given a dataset [X], how do we output a different and useful dataset [Y]? The methods that can be used to build those algorithms are limited only by imagination and the available data. Merchants should be encouraged to ask questions about the methods and proven efficacy of solutions powered by advanced automation.
Need help determining if “smart” solutions are right for your business? Give us a call at 678-402-6378 or email info@eystudios.com. Our eCommerce consultants would love to help dive into your business and provide the perfect solution.