As the retail apocalypse continues in America, more entrepreneurs and mom-and-pop shops increasingly turn to online business models and e-commerce to remain viable or profit from their products and services. However, with so much attention given to online privacy and financial details, online business owners need an equalizer to stay ahead of cyberthieves. That equalizer continues to be AI. There are five ways that AI will revolutionize online businesses in 2024.
1. Online Security
Unfortunately, every time you log in to check updates, your email, or reach out to customer support, cybercriminals have a chance to plant crippling ransomware and other viruses to extort money. As a result, online businesses turn to AI to spearhead their cybersecurity measures. The first way AI works on the cybersecurity front is through new member registration.
AI takes the personal details that a new member submits on the registration form and checks it with biometrics like photo identification and social security numbers. Even after a successful registration, AI uses multi-factor authentication to verify and authenticate genuine members.
2. Automates Fraud Detection
Shopping online or casually using online banking involves financial payments. This means that members have to feel comfortable leaving their financial details on the site. Because hackers love to steal these details, online businesses again turn to AI to detect fraud in real time and stop it.
Through behavioral AI, an online business, online casinos, and e-commerce shops know their members’ habits when interacting on the site and their usual financial payments. For example, if a customer historically exclusively uses PayPal to make transactions and then suddenly uses a credit card, that online business might ask for further verification details. Until it receives it, it will lock that member out of their account to maintain the privacy and security of the entire group.
3. AI Leads Customer Support
The reality is that not every company is a corporation or a Fortune 500 company with seemingly no spending limit. Today, many companies are middle-sized or entrepreneurs working with Woocommerce or Shopify sites. Therefore, their budgets are highly tight. However, having a viable customer support system is essential for any site to maintain its brand reputation, let alone retain its current membership.
When you run a massive e-commerce site like Amazon and eBay, it’s not practical to have 100% human agents. It also doesn’t make fiscal sense to invest only in human agents because your business would go bankrupt.
Thankfully, most medium—to large-size online businesses, such as online banking and the medical field, invest in having chatbots serve as the primary customer support option. The first benefit is having 24/7 service with chatbots. Furthermore, a chatbot can process a member’s questions and information faster than a human agent, thanks to the advancements of behavioral AI.
Chances are you’re already logged into your account when communicating with the AI chatbot. Through extensive records on file about you, the AI chatbot might have already arranged pre-information based on your previous questions for further efficiency. The second reason AI helps online businesses with customer support is that it frees up funds for other departments to boost the overall bottom line.
4. AI Boosts Membership Engagement
There’s no question that adding new members continues to grow profits for online businesses. However, what good is adding new members if you’re losing the ones that you have? One way online businesses attract new members and reward their current member base is through promotions. AI really shows its value in creating personalized promotions for each member.
For example, if you habitually buy gloves, behavioral AI algorithms store this data in vast databases. So instead of potentially wasting money on general ad campaigns, for example, flash sales for shoes, AI will create a personalized ad for you to be used exclusively for gloves. Not only does this improve the chances for sales, but it also helps to retain members and even inspires current members to refer new ones for free.
5. Predictive AI for Future Sales
Predictive AI works closely with personalized behavioral AI. If you go back to the dynamic gloves ad, you’re halfway there understanding predictive AI. Because behavioral AI knows you like gloves and has recorded successful personalized glove ads, why not begin advertising future glove releases? The gloves, of course, can be substituted for any other product or service. By knowing what their members currently like and purchase, online businesses can get a jump on future sales with predictive AI advertising.
Conclusion
There’s no question that AI and behavioral AI are reshaping the online business landscape. As technology improves, look for AI to refine its tools and models for more sophisticated cybersecurity and fraud detection responses. When online business members feel safe, the brand reputation and profits continue to grow.
Ruby Stauffer is a prominent technology blogger known for her insightful analysis and in-depth reviews of the latest tech trends and gadgets. Her blog has become a go-to resource for tech enthusiasts seeking reliable information and expert opinions on the ever-evolving world of technology.