When Bots Don't Buy Your Hype: The Platform-Killing Disruption Retailers Didn't See Coming
Carol dives deep into the retail disruption that's hiding in plain sight – and why retailers and brands might be seriously underestimating its impact. While some retailers are treating AI shopping agents like just another optimization challenge, Carol's here with a reality check – this isn't about tweaking your marketing messages. It's about attempting to tame AI agents that couldn't care less about your beautiful product photography, emotional brand storytelling, or those conversion funnels you spent months perfecting.
These retailer and brand-agnostic bots can dart in and out of carefully constructed platforms, completely unimpressed by all that stickiness retailers have worked so hard to create. But here's the upside: retailers and brands that get ahead of this curve will have conquered a mighty beast that could leave competitors scrambling for answers.
Episode highlights:
What makes AI actually "agentic" – Why 94% of companies claiming to use agents probably aren't (spoiler: your chatbot doesn't count)
The content conundrum – How do you serve emotional humans AND data-hungry bots when they're after completely different details?
Retail media mayhem – How AI shopping agents could derail retail media goldmines overnight.
The nail in the coffin(s) – Why narrow-focused retailers like Party City and Bed Bath & Beyond were just the warm-up act for what's ahead.
Ready or not, the shopping bots are coming. Will your retail strategy survive first contact?
