By Martin Heubel, Amazon Strategy Consultant at Consulterce
Amazon’s new AI shopping assistant ‘Rufus’ rings in a significant change to how shoppers will search for products. And how brands need to adapt to this new future.
The key difference to current search results:
Shoppers can ask the assistant questions like “What are good gifts for Valentine’s Day?”.
And will get answers tailored to their individual needs.
Compared to a keyword-based search, this opens up new opportunities for Amazon to display and monetise search results.
So what are the commercial implications for brands?
1. Steep learning curve
The introduction of Rufus marks a new phase for brands to optimise their listings.
It’s no longer about stuffing keywords or tricking the algorithm. But about providing relevant content that serves the actual intent of customers.
This is crucial as conversational search is more aligned with how users already search for content and products on other platforms like Google or TikTok.
2. Product search will become more personalised
What makes Rufus so groundbreaking is that it allows Amazon to better serve the needs of each shopper.
As Amazon already has access to a wide range of customer profiles, we can expect search results to become much more personalised.
This means that organic growth will likely be harder to achieve, posing a key opportunity for Amazon to monetise search results.
3. Profitability will become more important – not less
And what happens if brands aren’t willing to invest in ads? Well, we don’t have to look too far to speculate.
Current vendor negotiations remain laser-focused on margin gains for the online retailer. This indicates that ASIN-level profitability will likely become more important as a ranking factor in conversational search in 2024 and beyond.
For further information and support, contact Martin Heubel here
