Online stores (webstores) are about to disappear forever.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Agents are going to transform business across every sector, and e-commerce will be one of the industries that changes the most because every online shopper will have their own AI agent that fetches products, and brings the products to them, displaying the products and details in a format that they like, not that the retailer chooses for them. Any stores; all stores. So, there’s no real need for a store anymore. Product data feeds have existed for a long time. AI agents can ingest data feeds and serve the results in a clear and easy-to-understand display, designed by YOU. They can automatically filter the results, present the best options, and then place the orders.
Why should you have to start with a search, then browse an online catalog, read all the reviews (while having to determine which ones can be trusted), and click back and forth through styles across as many websites as you have the time to spend?
AI agents are intelligent systems that understand language and are able to perceive, analyze, and act upon complex data and/or workflows. “Act” is the key word. AI Agents take autonomous action on your behalf to complete the task or achieve the desired outcome. Need a pack of white undershirts? Feed the requirements into the agent using natural language and pick from the results that used YOUR search criteria, YOUR size, YOUR gender; not the results determined by Google or Amazon using algorithms and rankings nobody understands.
Now that may be a provocative thought experiment, but it will happen, it’s only a matter of when. But, retailers and brands will always need an Order and Inventory Management System because there needs to be a central repository for all the master product catalog data, customer data, all the transactions such as orders, returns, and cancellations, the need to capture (or receive) payments, track inventory and keep channel listings up-to-date, the ability to analyze all the data from all the sales channels and make business decisions accordingly. So an OMS/IMS is the central nervous system for all the critical business data. And now these SaaS platforms are being supercharged with AI agents to perform tasks and generate insights with unprecedented speed and accuracy. Let’s take a look at some examples:
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- Best-in-Class Inventory Management and Procurement
Modern Order and Inventory Management Systems (OMS/IMS) predict demand with remarkable accuracy by using AI agents to analyze tens of millions of data points from historical sales data, supply chain status, seasonality, market trends, and more, to make intelligent, real-time forecasts for demand. AI agents can then automatically create Purchase Orders with vendors taking into consideration things like minimum order quantity, vendor lead time, and estimated transit days including current port congestion forecasts. And the best part is that it’s all based on natural language processing so if you can explain it, an AI agent can do it. - Remove Waste from Fulfillment Workflows
Humans are typically responsible for fulfillment operations (pick, pack, and ship), but traditional workflows are notoriously error-prone and cost the company tens of thousands of dollars that could otherwise be saved by using modern AI-enabled shipping software which removes the human from all (bad) decision-making and creates the optimal pick tours in the warehouse and then creates the cheapest shipping label using the smallest box or mailer that will deliver the order safely and on time. - Optimize (or Better Yet, Eliminate) Reverse Logistics
AI agents can predict potential returns and optimize the reverse logistics process by identifying items likely to be returned and streamlining the return handling procedures and communications. Further, they can proactively notify Sellers and customers about the likelihood of a return before the order is shipped (which is critical for the highest return rate categories such as women’s apparel). Groundbreaking new returns technologies such as the Cahoot AI-enabled Peer-to-Peer Returns Solution are already eliminating returns by enabling the return to be shipped directly to the next customer, which is cheaper, faster, and better for the planet. By eliminating one leg of shipping, eliminating warehouse processing, the returned item is sold faster, and the econ-conscious program enhances brand reputation. - Drive Business Outcomes with Advanced Analytics
AI agents can analyze enormous amounts of data quickly, and all of it, not just the headline data points like sales and returns. AI can identify more trends and answer more questions than retailers can even think of asking. For example, AI agents can identify anomalies in sales patterns, inventory levels, or customer behavior, alerting businesses to potential issues and enabling timely intervention. Another example: Sellers can evaluate supplier performance at a micro-level comparing negotiated agreements and SLAs to actual performance and use the data to negotiate better terms on their behalf, all while humans are working on growing the business.
- Best-in-Class Inventory Management and Procurement
Summary
Online stores (webstores) may be about to disappear forever, but Order and Inventory Management Systems are getting the long-awaited boost that they needed. Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents are set to revolutionize e-commerce by acting autonomously to streamline workflows across inventory management, order fulfillment, and reverse logistics, among other things, and it’s the OMS/IMS that’s leveraging this new technology to do it. By integrating Order and Inventory Management functions with real-time/real-world news and events, AI agents predict demand with precision and automate procurement decisions and actions. By leveraging modern fulfillment and reverse logistics solutions to automate rote but essential work, workflows are optimized and errors and operational costs are reduced. Lastly, AI agents are capable of exceptionally sophisticated analysis of OMS/IMS data that helps to identify actionable insights from untapped corners of the database to drive unprecedented profitability and success.