04/29/22

Trends: next-gen clienteling, voice tech's potential, artificially intelligent

For this week's brand and marketing innovation news round up, our researchers saw these patterns in the big pool of bookmarks they save each hour: optimizing CX with next-gen clienteling, the consumer power inherent to voice tech's potential, and take a look at the artificially intelligent bots stepping up for sustainable business practices.

Relationship-Building At Every Brand Touchpoint
Over the past few years, the expectations of modern shoppers have evolved just as rapidly, if not more so, than the retail landscape itself. The latest PSFK iQ playbook shows how brands can transact and win loyalty from this new wave of consumers, potentially wary of swapping the convenience and personalized clienteling of online commerce.

How Reformation created a service-oriented store experience
The sustainable clothing and accessories brand is finding success by leveraging next-generation clienteling tools, technologies, and techniques to elevate the customer experience. Read More

Target and Apple team up for special shop-in-shop training program
To provide an enhanced Apple product shopping experience for its customers, Target is giving its own employees and team members specialized training in concert with the Cupertino giant. PSFK

Ulta Beauty and Haut.AI develop new AI engine for hyper-personalization
An innovative, personalized artificial intelligence solution for skin health and beauty is helping reimagine the guest experience across key Ulta Beauty touch points. Read More

Download Today: A PSFK Guide to Personalize & Cultivate 1:1 Brand Relationships
5 clienteling strategies to deliver superior brand experiences and strengthen consumer loyalty. Details

Voice And Audio Features Let Consumers Take Control Of Brand Experiences
Going all the way back to the book of Genesis, voice and audio commands have, well, commanded. And now, just a few (million) millennia later, brands are realizing the transformational, user-led experience voice and audio tools can provide consumers with. New technology platforms and next-generation APIs are allowing for an increasingly always-on experience that gives control back to the user, turning brand occasions that were once static one-way streets into quite literal two-way conversations.

Spotify Live lets users drop in on podcasts and chat with the hosts
Formerly known as Spotify Greenroom, the newly revamped Spotify Live feature lets users go beyond just listening by allowing subscribers to ask questions, chat with other podcast fans and the hosts during recordings, and even share GIFs in the discussion board. Spotify

Alexa upgrades Ford experience with personalized voice commands
Ford and Lincoln drivers will be able to set custom Alexa voice commands for their vehicles through an upgraded ‘Car Control.’ The feature lets drivers teach Alexa how they prefer to issue commands, even if it’s an indirect comment on an issue that the car voice AI can address, such as “Alexa, my windshield is foggy” to turn on the defroster. Ford

Clubhouse is testing an audio gaming feature
In order to play, Clubhouse users invite their friends and choose the “Games” option under +Rooms. The platform’s debut game, called “Wild Cards,” presents users with icebreaker questions and challenges like “pitch a movie in 30 seconds.” Clubhouse

Speechly adds conversational AI for gaming and metaverse experiences
Speechly recently launched a Real-Time Voice UI as a feature for AR/VR, gaming, and metaverse applications via the cross-platform game engine Unity, which powers popular mobile games like Cuphead and Pokemon Go. Speechly

Bots Step Up To Help People And Brands Get Sustainable
While there are still a few things automated bots can't do, that list seems to be shrinking by the day. One important, and increasingly potent application of bots and AI-powered models is to cut through the noise around businesses' environmentally impactful initiatives. Top of mind for shoppers is how brands are driving meaningful change through their sustainability efforts, and technology might just hold the key.

Bots and AI may succeed with sustainability where humans have failed
A study shows that 84 percent of respondents believe businesses would make more progress towards sustainability and social goals with the help of artificial intelligence, and 61 percent believe bots will succeed where humans have failed, as 96 percent of business leaders believe human bias and emotions hurt corporate sustainability efforts. Press Release

Nibble’s AI-powered negotiation chatbot helps power the circular economy
Negotiation and customer conversion chatbot Nibble is specifically focused on supporting businesses in the circular economy and B Corporations, offering them discounts and helping to boost environmentally-responsible sales. Nibble

Twig’s “Bank of Things” wants sustainability and capitalism to coexist
Twig is a sustainability-first, circular economy fintech and certified B corp that wants to tackle the fast-fashion market and throwaway culture. The AI-powered platform decides and places how users can best sell or trade-in their used fashion and electronics items for other goods and credits, and also provides carbon tracking and offsetting, tree planting, health and wellbeing training and philanthropy services. Press Release

Sustainabl makes fashion shopping, well, more sustainable
The eco-driven platform’s AI-powered Shine Index takes into account fabrics' sustainability attributes, recycling practices, waste prevention techniques, water consumption and the use of chemicals at product level before listing items for sale on its marketplace. It also incorporates data regarding a product’s manufacturer’s energy management to help make shopping for sustainable fashion a better experience than shopping for non-sustainable fashion. Sustainabl

Report Library is a War Chest for Brands and Marketers
Leading business intelligence firm PSFK has the best selection of guides and research reports to help retailers, brands, agencies and solution providers innovate today. Available as single downloads or as part of an all-you-can-eat membership package for your whole team:

Full Library

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