With every passing year, new trends are developed in the fast changing world of commerce. Today, every brand has no choice but to follow this mandate - keep up or be left behind. With advancements in technology, a rising trend that should not be overlooked is voice commerce. Alternatively referred to as V-commerce in some business quarters, voice commerce is the act of making purchases, searching and finding products using voice recognition technology. It is as simple as that. However, voice commerce is ready take over the whole e-commerce landscape. With customers getting search results faster without having to type, it is a convenient and efficient form of ecommerce.

Today, there are many voice assistants out there that can be used as a tool in voice commerce. Voice commerce is not complicated. A prospective buyer speaks to their phone assistant e.g. Amazon Echo and buys a product while conversing with the voice assistant. Putting the influence of voice assistant tech into perspective, it was projected that by the end of 2017 over 10 million homes would be using Alexa (Amazon's voice assistant). Alexa is convenience personified. Alexa can make appointments, play videos, open doors, set reminders, and do much more. Best of all, the AI-powered echo dot allows customers to shop directly by voice.

Amazon is not alone in the AI department. Brands such as Walmart and Target are working to bring voice shopping to consumers all around the world. Still not convinced, why don't we tell you a few facts about voice assistant technology?

• By 2020, 50 percent of searches will be done via voice or image search
• Voice assistant tech is three times faster than typing and 20 percent more accurate
• Statistics have shown that 19 percent of customers have made buys using a voice-controlled device in the past year
• And another 33% plan to take that leap over the course of the next 12 months

By the end of this year, a vast percentage of retailers will already have plans in place to accommodate voice commerce. More and more customers are turning to voice searches to improve their overall shopping experience. That is why voice commerce is a good tactic to boost the up-selling of products.

Primarily, upselling can be described as the selling of upgraded, slightly more expensive versions of a product. A reputable salesperson will tell you that upselling is good for any business. A report made by For Entrepreneurs and Pacific Crest Securities found that gaining a new customer cost businesses 68% more than upselling to a current consumer. The probability of upselling to a current customer is around 60-70%.

Upselling is profitable and with the advent of voice commerce, it could be more easier. Take into account the fact that buyers are more likely to listen to AI-powered assistants and you would come to that conclusion yourself. The best part of it is that you won't have to lift a finger to upsell to your already existing and loyal customers. Most retailers will have to prepare vigorously to embrace voice commerce via digital assistants using a voice-controlled shopping experience that is both initiative and valuable.

One advice that we can give to brands looking to integrate voice commerce into their shopping experience is to go for brand engagement before sales. Voice commerce doesn't revolve around coming top of the list in search results. Voice commerce is an opportunity to use digital voice assistants as a tool to get consumers actively engaged in your brand. Once that is done, it presents a further opportunity to sell your products to them.

Conclusively, adding voice to your brand's digital strategy is not as simple as adding another feature. It is just as vital as mobile commerce strategies. Voice assistant tech is changing the way we interact with technology. Voice commerce is making buying of products accessible to huge portions of the population. It would therefore be beneficial for your brand to hire the services of a company with experience supplying e-commerce solutions with Alexa, Google or Siri. A company skilled in the art of giving your customers a better shopping experience.

About Kogifi Consutling Group

We’re technology partner and IT services provider, specializing in Digital Marketing, Omnichannel Commerce, Digital Asset Management and Productivity Platforms. We deliver holistic solutions, powered by Enterprise Web Content Management, Artificial Intelligence, Virtual & Augmented Reality and IoT.

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