How CPGs Are Prepping for the AI Shortlist Reckoning
While we haven't reached an era where most shoppers will hand over their credit cards so AI agents can transact on their behalf, this doesn't mean that artificial intelligence isn't changing what makes it into baskets.
As consumers turn to the plethora of AI-enhanced search and conversational tools for meal plans, shopping lists and product recommendations, brands are challenged with ensuring they’re among the options the tools suggest. Conversations at the Groceryshop industry event last week shed light on how that work is taking shape, including why getting discovered is moving beyond keywords and shelf placement.
CPG manufacturers have already begun rethinking how they describe and organize product information so an AI assistant can connect what they sell with what a shopper needs.
"In the past, your product's discovery was mostly based upon humans searching the systems," noted Ramesh Kollepara, global chief technology officer of Mars Snacking. "Now, both the discovery and how your product pages talk is dependent upon how the agents work. So your product pages need to be agent-friendly or identifiable for agents and agent-assisted shoppers."
This includes adapting to question-and-answer types of queries and ensuring content is surfacing details to assistants like Alexa for Shopping.
Making Products Discoverable by AI
Preparing for that shift starts with the information brands provide about their products. Descriptions need to help AI connect a product’s attributes with the needs shoppers express in a conversation.
“Some of the best practices include making sure that your product data is structured for a machine to interpret,” said Jessica Wright, SVP of product at SPINS.
That becomes particularly important when shoppers are looking for products to meet a specific preference or goal, such as staying hydrated while training for a marathon.
“When a consumer has a very specific need or preference, the way that shoppers are using these AI platforms is they're expressing that preference through these conversations,” said Wright.
Making the preference cut matters. Even when shoppers complete the purchase themselves, they may already have handed AI the job of narrowing their options.
“If you're not showing up in the first three to four spots in the shortlist of recommendations, that is a huge missed opportunity for a brand,” she stressed.
For food brands, those recommendations can influence an entire meal. At agency Blue Chip, conversations with clients about AI include its role in helping shoppers build lists and plan meals.
Though they're not seeing consumers hand over the keys to conduct all of their shopping, “AI is certainly a big part of list building and meal planning and preparing for big events,” said Dan Eisenberg, chief marketing officer of commerce marketing agency Blue Chip.
Separately, it fits a broader priority for the food companies it works with: helping busy shoppers put together a complete meal, with opportunities to introduce complementary products.
This has enabled the brands to take single purchases and then turn that into a much larger basket, Eisenberg said.
Putting AI Discovery to Work
The company is currently in its third three-month cycle of monitoring results, with top-line growth recorded in the first two, according to Kollepara.
For Kollepara, the work reflects a broader shift in how Mars approaches AI: making it part of everyday processes and grounding it in the company’s data, supplier relationships and brand guidelines.
“The access to the models is pretty much democratized. The access to the big technologies is pretty much democratized,” he said. “What makes it different is your context, your brand guidelines, your right to win, your consumer insights and institutional knowledge.”
