As AI shopping assistants become increasingly influential in how consumers discover products, many retailers are questioning what this means for the future of ecommerce. While some predict that AI will reduce the importance of the retailer’s own website and checkout, Peter Smith, UK Managing Director at Sovendus, argues the opposite. He explains why checkout, post-purchase engagement and data-driven partnerships will become even more valuable as AI reshapes the customer journey.
Every new wave of retail technology is followed by predictions that one marketing channel is about to become obsolete. Just as search was supposed to kill loyalty, social commerce was meant to replace retailers’ websites. Now, as AI shopping agents become more sophisticated, some are predicting the end of the checkout page as we know it. In reality, the opposite is true.
Unless retailers focus on the elements of the shopping experience they can control, such as checkout and email marketing, they risk becoming entirely dependent on AI for customer acquisition – a channel that’s likely to become increasingly expensive.
The rise of agentic commerce
The pace of change is hard to ignore. Consumer use of AI shopping tools almost doubled in just three months this year, rising from 15% to 26%, according to Merkle. Nearly three-quarters of Millennials now use AI to help them shop, and AI has already become one of the most influential sources informing purchase decisions.
This uptick in popularity for AI shopping tools means, increasingly, customers aren’t arriving on a retailer’s website because they’ve searched for a product or clicked an advert. They’re arriving because an AI assistant such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude has shortlisted that retailer for them. AI is becoming the new gatekeeper of customer traffic.
This is an uncomfortable prospect for retailers. The discovery stage of the customer journey is moving outside their control, creating greater dependence on platforms they don’t own and algorithms they can struggle to influence. Competing for visibility inside AI-generated recommendations will become just as important as competing for search rankings once was.
But brands shouldn’t mistake this as a sign that they must accept less influence over the customer relationship. In reality, AI isn’t replacing the purchasing journey, it’s just reshaping the beginning of it. Everything after the first interaction will become more crucial than ever, when it comes to keeping shoppers in your network and converting repeat customers.
Why relationships are still crucial
Despite the excitement around agentic commerce, consumers still want to make the final decision themselves. Research from Gartner found shoppers are happy to use AI to compare prices, discover deals and narrow their options, but they’re far less comfortable handing over the purchase entirely. OpenAI’s decision to pull back its in-chat checkout reflects the same fact.
That means retailers still own the moments that matter most: the website experience, checkout, order confirmation, post-purchase communications and the ongoing customer relationship. As AI takes over more of the discovery process, those moments become significantly more valuable.
Generic discount codes, blanket retargeting and irrelevant offers only serve to undermine customer trust and threaten to jeopardise the moment of conversion. Instead, retailers need checkout marketing tactics that feel genuinely useful because they’re based on what customers are likely to need next, not broad demographic assumptions.
The role of transaction data
That’s where transaction data becomes increasingly important. AI may understand the question a customer asks, but it doesn’t necessarily understand everything that happens after a purchase. The traditional approach to checkout marketing has been to link purchases to other products that would logically follow soon after – someone buying luggage today is likely to need travel accessories, holiday clothing or airport services tomorrow.
Yet what we’ve actually seen across our network of 3,000 ecommerce partners is that the most unexpected cross-sells are the most valuable, as customers have multiple interests that they’ll purchase based on, many of which will be unrelated to the purchase they just made. This is where transaction and partnership data, as only through multiple tracked transactions can these user behaviour patterns and interests be identified. By focussing on timely, relevant recommendations delivered when customers are most receptive, brands can avoid the random cross-sells that customers brush away. Across Europe, 22% of customers engage with post-checkout offers through our network – that’s more than one in five.
As AI shopping becomes more widespread, that level of relevance will become the expectation rather than the exception. For retailers planning the months ahead, three priorities stand out.
Tips for retailers
First, invest in the parts of the customer journey you still own. Checkout, confirmation pages, post-purchase emails and loyalty programmes will become increasingly important as discovery shifts towards AI. These touchpoints should actively strengthen the customer relationship.
Second, build partnerships around customer intent rather than brand similarity. The best partnerships aren’t always the most obvious ones. They’re the ones supported by real transaction data that reflects what customers genuinely do after they buy.
Finally, stop judging partnerships solely through last-click attribution or redemption rates. Those metrics tell you who converted, but not whether a partnership changed customer behaviour. Retailers should increasingly measure incremental revenue, repeat purchases and long-term customer value instead.
AI will undoubtedly transform how consumers discover products. But it won’t replace the need for retailers to build trust, create relevance and give customers reasons to come back.
The brands that succeed won’t necessarily be those that appear first in an AI recommendation. They’ll be the ones that make the most of every interaction after the recommendation has been made. Optimising the checkout page and prioritising brand partnerships will become one of the most powerful ways to remain memorable long after a customer’s first interaction with a retailer.
Peter Smith
Peter Smith is UK Managing Director at Sovendus, a European leader in checkout marketing and brand partnerships, used by international brands including IKEA, Hello Fresh, and H&M. With a strong sales background, Peter’s focus is on helping top-tier clients grow through high-performing brand partnerships. He works at the intersection of data, digital strategy and omni-channel sales, with a strong belief in building high-performing teams and delivering real commercial outcomes.
