AI is unlike any technology we have ever seen, with potential that is still largely unknown. At this year’s NACS Show, industry professionals Brian Gray, managing director, Accenture; Jerome Rose, general manager, U.S. retail and consumer goods, Microsoft; and Sanjeev Satturu, chief information officer, Casey’s, shared how retailers can save time, money and stress by implementing simple AI strategies.
As of today, according to Gray, roughly 24% of workers use AI at least weekly, with 1 out of 10 reporting that they use it daily. This type of usage for an offering that is essentially still in its infancy is unheard of, and it provides retailers with plenty of opportunities to capitalize.
“This is the fastest growing technology humans have ever seen,” said Gray.
To begin, the panelists agreed it is safer to walk before you run with the technology. Gray sees the potential in four buckets — administrative tasks, pricing, marketing and customer service. What AI can do, he said, is free up time to focus on more important matters.
It can also be used to brainstorm ideas, streamline customer service operations and much more, but Casey’s Satturu noted that retailers need to be intentional.
“Clarity about how you are going to leverage your AI is very important — defining the problem is 95% of the solution,” he said. The first step is looking for value — once value is found, then retailers need to focus on scaling it across the whole value chain.
Satturu noted that this needs to be done carefully, however. The proper security checks need to be in place before the technology is used, ensuring that data and privacy are top of mind. He also said that c-store retailers, while competing with each other, are going to need to work together on this.
“We all have to compete, but we all have to partner,” he said.
With this evolution coming so rapidly, customers are going to elevate their expectations. To stay on top of this, retailers need to actively listen to their customers, hear their feedback and implement timely change.
“We have to start to realize that our customers are going to start to demand (AI), and that’s why you need to get ahead,” said Microsoft’s Rose.
Customer feedback is essential, but so is employee feedback — it is very likely, Rose said, that many employees already use AI in their day-to-day lives. Listening to employees’ AI techniques can give retailers ideas about how to leverage the technology across its operations.
The panelists all agreed on one point — we are just scratching the surface of AI, and the sky is the limit.