Voice commerce to change retail landscape
Voice shopping is set to become the next major disruptive force in retail, jumping to $40 billion in 2022, up from $2 billion across the US and UK, according to OC&C Strategy Consultants. The driving force here will be a surge in the number of homes using smart speakers, rising to 55% from 13% today, with Amazon leading the way.
John Franklin, Associate Partner, OC&C, comments: "Just as e-commerce and mobile commerce changed the retail landscape, shopping through smart speaker promises to do the same. The speed with which consumers are adopting smart speakers will translate into a number of opportunities and even more challenges for traditional retailers and consumer products companies."
Coye Nokes, Partner, OC&C, adds: "In order to properly position themselves, retailers must ask themselves key questions, such as: What objectives am I trying to meet? How should I tailor my voice proposition to meet those objectives? Which AI system is best suited to enabling those objectives? How can I build consumer trust in my product recommendations? How can I make the order economics work? The companies that are able to answer those questions most clearly are likely to be the winners in this next phase of retail disruption."
