Many companies in the retail industry have already implemented generative AI into their operations, from marketing to retail media, and many are reaping the benefits. But for others, such disruptive change will understandably feel daunting.
But for businesses that want to continue to grow, innovate, and maintain a loyal customer base, adopting generative AI is a must.
For anyone wanting to take their first steps, it’s important to take three basic steps first to ensure you get a return on your investment.
1. Get (really) ready for AI
Getting ready to introduce generative AI into your business is no different than previous technological advancements.
But the technology's impact is much greater because generative AI is not just a modernization but a fundamental paradigm shift in how organizations operate.
So the first thing any organization should do is ensure they have a business case for deploying generative AI and a clear goal of what they are trying to achieve by doing so.
“Generative AI is not just a modernization. It's a fundamental paradigm shift in how organizations operate.”
Writing this objective down in a charter or plan is a key element to achieving optimal results.
Goals should be easy for people to embrace and work towards, as well as easy to measure progress against.
It’s often the little things that make the biggest difference, so it’s important to understand that not all generative AI applications require systems to change.
Business stakeholders play a central role in finding the most useful potential applications of new technologies, so it’s important to keep them involved.
Retailers should start by testing small applications of generative AI, as test cases to try out the technology in a risk-free way that can be quickly adapted.
2. Scaling generative AI, starting with the team
Once the technology is in place, scaling is a very easy task. However, making sure your employees are on board in terms of skills is a bit more complicated.
To reap the benefits of generative AI and get the most value out of it, it’s important to engage and train your team.
If employees don't know how to encourage it effectively and don't trust the technology, they're likely to stop using it, get better results, and become frustrated that the system isn't adding any value.
Once people know how to leverage generative AI in their daily work, companies with dozens of employees can have more time to focus on tasks that truly require the human element.
3. Add value
As teams start to adopt generative AI, there are three main ways it can bring value to the business, depending on their objectives.
First, the time and resources saved can be invested in driving innovation, improving existing products or developing entirely new ones.
The second option is to expand your product or service by taking it to new markets that many companies have never considered and competing with your competitors.
Finally, the third competitive advantage that generative AI provides is deflationary. In other words, it allows you to produce exactly the same thing as before, but at significantly lower production and maintenance costs.
One step closer to generative AI
The key to implementing generative AI in your business is to break it down into smaller, more manageable pieces.
Setting clear goals for your team to focus on and ensuring employees have the training they need to use the technology correctly are two important steps that every business should take.
This is a turning point for retail. It's an exciting time for the industry and the future looks bright.
It’s inspiring to see businesses evolve into the best version of themselves and realise their ambitions with the support of generative AI, and we can’t wait to see what the retail industry achieves in the coming years.
