What is Shopify?
Shopify is a technological tide in the digital advancement of e-commerce. It is not only a tool or a mere feature. Instead, it is a complete solution for people who wish to either start their online store or want to revamp existing services in this realm.
Shopify is quite popular for its unique online store designs, branding tools, customized services, and applications to make insightful decisions based on real-time reporting and other ready-made programs.
You can also develop your brick-and-mortar store with a Shopify POS system and related paraphernalia.
It provides its users scalable business opportunities, selling options across websites, and social media. You can even connect your online store with your traditional store through a unified system.
Currently, Shopify tops the e-commerce industry due to its unique services.
How does Shopify help make eCommerce easier?
Shopify offers user-friendly services to enhance the business experience. The e-commerce service provider engages users with many facilities such as:
Affordable packages for small businesses include a $9 lite version of Shopify which small businesses can use on Facebook for marketing and jumpstart their own businesses with fewer resources.
Easy-to-use features provide a sense of power and control over the business, especially for startups. For instance, its ‘commonly used features’ option allows new store owners to design their online store easily and start selling.
The automated sales option helps you take repetitive tasks off your head. Since customers also prefer automation, it helps you stay ahead of your operations such as the automatic disappearance of the product from the shelf when it is out of stock.
Painless checkout with Shopify payment gateway or multiple other gateways is one of the best features.
Merchant tools such as reports and analytics help you keep an eye on profits and other metrics and make decisions accordingly.
Marketing tools such as custom gift cards, product reviews help sellers increase their sales.
Social network integration, Facebook selling, Facebook ads, Google ads, discount codes, and coupons, and other enticing options are interesting ways to retain customers.
Shopify app development makes it easier to run stores, customized integration of e-commerce stores, manage inventory, and fulfill orders on time and on the go.
Customer Relationship Management offered by Shopify is a content management system to manage your blog and social media, and third-party application integration.
How Artificial Intelligence makes Shopify Smarter?
The shopping experience is transforming with the use of AI in e-commerce. Analytics based on large datasets collected from online stores personalize the buying experience. The deep analysis has increased the performance standard of many companies. AI helps to understand why and how customers engage with particular products and the buying process.AI-based solutions always come in handy for businesses to understand and act according to implications from data reports.
Following factors are the most common in Shopify online stores:
- Personalized experience:
A personalized experience helps your customer make decisions more promptly and engage with your store in more ways.
- Targeted marketing and selling:
With the use of targeted marketing, you have the opportunity to grow exponentially.
- Optimized Timing:
Sending tailored emails at just the right time influences the customers and drives sales.
- Time-saving:
Speedy marketing helps you with targeted solutions that could help save time and show instant results.
- AI Chatbots:
AI powered chatbots are a great way to engage customers and understand their needs.
Top 5 Artificial Intelligence Applications for your Shopify Store
With the help of AI applications, you can achieve more from your Shopify store. AI-powered decisions, intelligent use of data, insights, and direction can target a much larger and direct segment of potential buyers. With many applications utilizing Machine Learning at full throttle to enhance everyday experiences, Shopify doesn’t make an exception.
We have gathered information on some of the top applications which use Artificial Intelligence that can help flourish and scale your business manifold.
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MorphL AI
MorphL AI offers in-depth access to a series of machine learning models which you can implement in your customer’s cycle of buying. It is capable of driving the decision-making process, customer buying experience, and the growth of potential customers.
The app works on the following models:
- User search intent
- Shopping stag
- Next order value
- Abandoned carts
- AI-based segmentation
- Recommendation
All of these models work on the data gathered from your store traffic and customer behavior in full compliance with AI privacy and dataset regulations. For this purpose, you need to provide large datasets to make accurate decisions instead of mere estimations. That is why we recommend coupling MorphL with Shopify Plus as it has the potential to provide 25,000+ tracked users monthly.
Cost: The app starts at $179 or $149 if you go for an annual payment after a 14-day trial period.
Pros:
- Access to AI features with a single click
- Integration with Google Analytics or Big quick
- Modern and Clean interface
Cons:
- Not a good fit for small stores as it requires a large dataset
- Requires the help of a developer for implementation
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Videofy
Creating a video can be time-consuming and a daunting task. Videofy is an AI app that allows you to prepare a unique video by repurposing the images and metadata.
It’s a free application that provides stellar editing, messaging, and branding options to make sure the overall result complies with the layout of your online store.
This could be an efficient yet interesting way to let customers stay longer in your store and engage with your product in meaningful ways.
Cost: Free
Pros:
- Engaging video design
- Variety of templates and features
Cons:
- Low video quality
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Signifyd
Signifyd is a unique and useful application that assists in detection and action against fraud. Since online stores are more prone to abuse or fraud, you need to keep a closer eye on your customers and suspicious activities especially when shipping one-of-a-kind items or expensive packages.
This is where Signifyd comes in. Powered by Big Data, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence you can keep track of customers and your precious items. The app helps you recover your items or identify such customers who abuse and commit thefts on Shopify stores.
The Agent Console on your dashboard provides full transparency of all orders, reports, and insights on all such orders so that you can make effective decisions.
Cost: $1500 per month after a 14-day trial period. EMEA store owners can request a separate pricing list or you can call support for custom quotes.
Pros:
- Receive a detailed summary of all customers and transactions.
- Simple user interface
- Full fraud protection including manual reviews of experts on all issues
Cons:
- Expensive for small store owners.
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AC Email Marketing Automation
A Shopify Active Campaign Email Marketing app is immensely helpful for your content managers to send customized emails to such customers who have abandoned their carts and potentially bring them back to the store by enticing them with discounts or other offers that may interest them.
The machine learning trends of the app help in predicting the best times to send emails to their customers, the app also aids with predictive text which makes customization of messages so easy, fun, and effective.
Cost: Charges $15 after a 14-day trial period and includes unlimited sending, email marketing, automation, and subscription for up to 3 users.
Pros:
- Provides multiple features for marketing with ease of use and implementation
- Tailored emails are a win
Cons:
- The support response is slow
- Can be expensive if you have more than 3 users are required
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Recart
This AI Shopify app connects with Facebook Messenger to converse with your customers directly instead of sending emails. You can grow your list by using the tool easily.
110,000+ merchants use this app to increase the value of their shopping carts, boost their engagement and increase their sales all while maintaining a good close relationship with their customers on the messenger app.
You can send:
- Abandoned carts reminders
- Order receipts
- Welcome messages
- Product review requests and
- Shipping details
Cost: $29/month after a 28-day trial
Pros:
- Easy to use and implement
- A variety of tailored features to replace your email sequence
- Multiple integration options
Cons:
- Glitch reported by customers
- Only useful when most of your customers are active on Facebook
How to Choose the Best AI Applications for your Shopify Store?
Knowing AI applications is one thing, making a choice for your business is yet another challenge. There are many AI applications available for; store management, features, add-ons, and issues.
However, you need to determine the number of apps you will use as the greater the number of applications running in the background, the greater is the effect on the store functions. Some key points to consider:
Theme conflicts: Many users have reported theme conflicts that disrupt their store functions.
Consistency: Before making any decisions you need to first make sure if the apps are compatible with your store and are consistent with the backend programs.
Consult App support: One way to make sure is to contact the app support and run them on part of your store or a small segment of your customers before going all out.
Exorbitant costs: Next comes the massive costs associated with these apps. Small stores cannot afford many of these apps due to exorbitant prices.
Big stores require a more comprehensive AI solution for their large sets of data and consistency of programming apps.
You must ask yourself the following questions before making the final call:
- Are there any customizable options on the client end?
- Do you need the constant help of a developer to implement or repair the apps?
- Does the app come with reporting features and analytics dashboards?
- Do you need a mobile version of these apps as well to make it work in its entirety?
- Any specific ML model which you would need to implement on your data to produce results?
These questions would help you make smart choices, be informed of the technical issues of the applications, and choose the right option for your Shopify store.
Rainmaking with AI & Shopify
Artificial intelligence has penetrated our lives in more ways than we can imagine. It is the right time to make long-term choices. Identify the potential of conscious implementation of AI in e-commerce and witness its fruits in the form of more engaging, satisfied, loyal customers. The combination would push the merchants to take definitive actions on insights produced by intelligent use of data and scale their business growth in more powerful ways than ever imagined.
Image Credit: andrea piacquadio; pexels; thank you!
