AI Case Study
The North Face improves omnichannel experience increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty with natural language processing
The North Face leverages IBM’s Watson as a personal shopping assistant in their online shop to recommend products in natural language based on qualifying questions about location, temperature, among other factors.
Industry
Consumer Goods And Services
Retail General
Project Overview
"The North Face is using big data and artificial intelligence (AI) to make the in-store and online shopping experience more cohesive. It has partnered with IBM’s Watson analytics and Fluid to create an app that will fulfill consumers' personal needs when shopping. The A.I. tool used, Fluid’s Expert Personal Shopper (XPS) software, acts as both a personal shopper and knowledgeable sales associate for the online consumer, creating a more engaging, personalized and relevant shopping experience." (buzzrobot)
Reported Results
The solution supports consumers in finding the right product in a fast and convenient manner and has yielded an increase in click- through rates to 60%. (Deloitte)
Technology
"The artificial intelligence starts by asking where, when and for what activities you will be using the jacket. Based the weather forecast for that location and the end user’s gender, it narrows down the search to 6 options. Based on the activity it rearranges the alternatives from “high match” to “low match”. This will save users time from scrolling through hundreds of jacket options, many of which would not even match their functional needs." (buzzrobot)
Function
Marketing
Channel Marketing
Background
"Although e-commerce has seen large amounts of growth over the past few years many consumers still prefer to buy apparel items in-person. Traveling to brick-and-mortar locations allows consumers to try on different sizes, touch and feel the product and assess its level of comfort. Brick-and-mortar stores also give consumers a level of customer service that has yet to be achieved online, whether that is product feedback or recommendations from knowledgeable sales associates. In contrast, when shopping onine, it is estimated that about 70 percent of shopping carts are abandoned online before a purchase is complete." (buzzrobot)
Benefits
Data