Artificial Intelligence (AI) is shaping the way we shop online. It helps stores suggest the right products, provide instant answers to questions, improve stock management, and even prevent fraud. If used the right way, AI can help ecommerce businesses increase revenue, have happier customers, and achieve faster growth.

But here’s the thing: developing and implementing AI tools isn’t something that’s done overnight or in a rush. It requires skills, expertise, and the right  team to make it work. That’s why choosing the right AI development company is so important.

In this blog, we’ll walk you through what to look for when hiring an AI partner for your online store. 

Why AI Matters in eCommerce

Before going ahead, let’s give a short background on why AI is such a big deal in online shopping.

Here are some quick stats: 

1. 80% of shoppers say they’re more likely to buy something from a brand that personalizes the experience for them. 
2. AI-powered recommendations lead to an uplift of up to 30% in average order value. 
3. AI chatbots can answer and completely resolve more than 80% of the common customer inquiries. 
4. AI-powered smart inventory tools reduce the overstock and understock of popular items. 

In short, AI helps stores sell more, save time, and keep customers happy. But only if it’s built and used right.

1. Ask For Experience in the eCommerce

Not every AI company understands how online stores work. Some might be great at designing AI for banks or in healthcare, but ecommerce is different. 

When choosing the company, ask:

1. Have you worked on any ecommerce projects before?
2. Can you show the work or success stories?
3. Are you familiar with Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, or custom stores?

For example, a chatbot on an online store does more than answer questions. It assists with orders, product recommendations, and maybe even closing sales. That requires experience in ecommerce.

2. Ask If They Know the Tech Right

AI is not a single thing; it includes many technologies like machine learning, natural language processing, predictive analytics, and so on.

Here are some common ways how AI is used in eCommerce with the tech behind them:

1. Product recommendations: Machine learning
2. Search that understands what you mean:  Natural language processing
3. Chatbots that talk like humans: Natural language processing
4. Smart pricing with automatic adjustment: Predictive analytics
5. Fraud detection: Pattern Recognition
6. Forecasting Inventory: AI-Driven Data Modeling and Analysis

When you speak to an AI company, tell them what you want and ask if they have experience with those technologies. A competent team will explain everything to you in simple terms. 

3. Ask About Data Privacy and Security

AI tools need data to function properly. That includes data about your customers, sales, website traffic, etc. But it can be risky to share data with a company that might not handle it well.

Make sure these questions are asked:

1. How do you protect my data?
2. Are you respecting the data privacy laws like GDPR or CCPA?
3. Where will my data be stored?
4. Is data anonymized?

The consequences of a data breach can prove quite costly. In fact, on average, a data breach costs 4.88 million, according to an IBM report. You need to be very careful there.

4. Choose a Company That Builds Custom Solutions

Some companies will sell you a “ready-made” AI product. That might be acceptable for small things; however, if you want it to fit your store perfectly, you will need a custom solution.

1. A customized chatbot will speak your brand voice and assist with your specific products.
2. A custom recommendation engine will tailor suggestions based on your customers’ shopping behaviors.

A custom AI might take a little longer to make and just might cost a little more, but it’s much better from a long-term perspective. Your store is unique and special. So, your AI tools should be too.

5. Make Sure It Can Grow With You

Your online store might be small today, but what about next year? Or in two years? Whatever AI tools you install should be able to grow with your business.. 

Ask questions like:

1. Can this system handle more traffic as we grow?
2. What happens if we add more products or locations?
3. Can we upgrade or change features later?

You don’t want to build something that works for now but breaks when your store becomes more popular.

6. Look for Support

AI is not the sort of thing that you build and then just leave to operate by itself. Depending on the situation, it needs to be updated, improved, or retrained regularly.

Before hiring anyone, ask:

1. Do you provide support after launch?
2. Will you assist us in updating and improving the system?
3. How do you handle bugs or issues?

It is like owning a car. You wouldn’t buy a car if there was no one to maintain it. It works the same way here.

7. Pay Attention to Communication

You’ll be working closely with the AI development company, which means communication will be key.

Ask yourself:

1. Do they explain things clearly?
2. Are they easy to talk to?

8. Look Into Their Experience

Never take their word for anything. You can always ask them for:

1. Case studies or past results
2. Reviews/testimonials
3. Contact information for references, if possible

Depending on the site, you could search for them on Clutch, LinkedIn, and so on. Doing some research will save you from a costly misstep.

9. Ask for Clear Pricing

An AI project could cost from the few thousand dollars to much more, depending on your requirements. Clear pricing is therefore very much needed.

When getting a quote, ask for:

1. A detailed breakdown of costs
2. What is included and what is not included in the costs
3. Whether there are other fees for support or updates

Avoid companies that give abstract figures. You should know exactly what you are paying for and why.

Conclusion

Choosing the right AI development company for your ecommerce store is a big step that can help you grow. With such a team, you will be able to create a much better customer experience, increase sales, and compete with your competitors. Take your time, ask questions, and find a company that understands your goals. 

Work with an Enterprise eCommerce solution  like Klizer. Our advanced AI solutions for ecommerce can help your store grow faster and smarter.