By Retailist Team

Storyblok survey of 200 businesses and 200 high-value online consumers*, has revealed how brands are responding to the growing use of AI tools by consumers
40% of consumers report regularly using AI services such as ChatGPT when researching products online, with 17% saying it is now their top source of information when making a purchasing decision, behind Google (45%) and marketplaces such as Amazon (26%). 9% use a brand’s website
47% of brands say AI and LLMs will significantly redefine their SEO strategies, with 20% saying it will cause a complete overhaul
Brands expect AI-based search engines to dramatically alter consumer behavior, with 40% expecting more personalized searches and 25% greater trust in search results
43% of brands are monitoring trends, 38% are investing in technology, 30% are partnering with providers, and 29% are training staff on capabilities. Only 17% are not preparing to integrate AI and LLMs into their marketing strategies.

Storyblok, the modern content management system (CMS) for all teams, has released a survey of 200 businesses and 200 consumers which illustrates how quickly AI has impacted consumer behavior online.

Nearly one in five consumers now use AI tools as their primary source of information when deciding whether to purchase a product. 15% of consumers said that AI tools were their most trusted source of information online. This compares to 37% for Google, 24% for marketplaces such as Amazon, and 23% for a company website.

In response, 63% of brands say AI is impacting their content marketing, SEO strategies, and how their websites work. A further 27% said they did not know how AI would impact their approach, with only 5.5% saying they believed there would be no impact. SEO has been identified as one of the main battlegrounds, with 47% of brands expecting a significant influence on SEO strategies and 20% a complete redefinition.

In an earlier survey of 1,700 marketing professionals, Storyblok found that 38% of companies are investing in AI technology, 30% are partnering with providers and 29% are training staff on capabilities. Only 17% said they were not making any preparations to integrate AI and LLMs. Currently, the most popular use of AI in marketing is content creation (78%), content ideation and research (70%), and content editing (67%).

Thomas Peham, VP of Marketing at Storyblok, said: “The speed at which consumers are adopting AI in their everyday lives is unprecedented. In less than two years, 40% of consumers now use AI regularly to help with their online shopping, with close to one in five using it as their primary source of information. This is a remarkable change in consumer behavior and one that requires a rapid response from marketing teams.

“Most of the companies we have surveyed realize that AI requires an overhaul of their marketing strategies, however, 27% said they didn’t know what the new approach should entail. Identifying the right approach in such a dynamic market is going to be very difficult. Brands can put themselves in the best possible position if they understand the fundamentals of how their customers interact with them, the impact of the user experience, and the effectiveness of all their marketing channels. Most marketers use AI tools to create more content, but the real challenge is found in using AI tools to create better quality content that generates value for the user.”

*High-value online consumers were defined as making at least three purchases online each month