Smart merchandising is a intelligent merchandising of emerging technologies and data-driven techniques that can transform casual browsers into paying customers. It includes tactics like effective product recommendations and re-configuration techniques that automatically rearrange product listings on your website to better match your customer’s shopping behavior.

The Art and Science of Intelligent Merchandising: Elevating the Retail Experience

For example, omnichannel mega-retailer Target combines AI digital merchandising with visual online merchandising to make it easier for shoppers to find the right products quickly and efficiently. The retailer’s ecommerce site is expertly structured so that users can sift easily through eye-catching, colorful product images to discover the specific SKUs they need — from clothes and furniture to household goods.

This streamlined product discovery is possible because the ecommerce store’s site navigation and search results pages are powered by intelligent merchandising technology. By analyzing troves of user browsing data, the smart merchandising technology enables search outcomes to become personalized and relevant for each individual shopper. This creates a dreamy personal shopper experience for your website visitors, increasing conversion potential.

For brand marketers, AI merchandising also improves field merchandising by helping to optimize shelf execution and better understand promotion performance at the store level. By enabling field reps to capture and instantly deliver accurate digital product images via mobile devices, it’s easier for brands to provide immediate guidance during store visits, which helps to increase compliance and reduce out-of-stocks. Similarly, an AI solution that automates the manual process of curating window displays, endcaps and online look books gives retailers the flexibility to optimize product visibility and support business goals while maintaining creative control.