Salesforce's analysis is based on data from 1.5 billion global shoppers from Commerce Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Service Cloud and AgentForce, showing that AI-driven and agent-referenced traffic is changing consumer shopping.
AI-assist traffic jumped 119% year-on-year on H1 2025 in 2025, with conversion rates of over 700% higher than social media traffic and 200% higher than traditional channels such as search and direct, Salesforce said in the release.
The Salesforce project records global digital holiday sales of $1.25 trillion, with AI driving $263 billion orders. AI traffic surged year-over-year at 119% with 700% higher conversions than social media. The resale market has reached $64 billion, with 77% of shoppers waiting for CyberWeek. Gen Z spends another three times in the store. Retailers have urged them to adopt AI-First, optimize for generative searches and streamline support.
AI tools are increasingly being used for product discovery, with 17% of consumers using AI assistants or LLM for searches over the past year, relying on these recommendations, which are surged from 46% in May to 86%. Retailers are expected to accept Generation Engine Optimization (GEO) or AI Optimization (AIO) so that product lists and promotions can be discovered in AI-driven search results.
Salesforce highlights its rif or sustainability as a major driver this season, with $64 billion holiday sales forecast from the resale market. 46% of consumers plan to give second-hand goods, primarily to save money amid trade and tariff uncertainty. 77% of shoppers are expected to reinforce their importance, refraining from large-scale purchases until CyberWeek.
Despite the surge in digital sales, physical retail is extremely important, especially as three Gen Z shoppers from Gen Z are planning to shop in the store and spend a dollar online. Retailers are encouraged to create seamless omnichannel experiences to capture this generation both online and offline.
Retailers are more likely to scale back their discounts, with rising supply chain costs 2% less orders expected to include promo codes. Meanwhile, AI-powered customer service is expected to increase by 39% this season, which will help reduce daily interactions and drive a 2.5% decline in overall service. This frees human agents to focus on more complex problems.
Salesforce advises retailers to adopt an AI-first mindset and gain a share of forecast growth. Integrating AI across product discovery, promotions and customer support is key to maximizing conversion rates and enhancing your shopping journey from browsing to checkout.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (Hu)
