Don’t let the A.I. revolution start without you

By Joseph Dobrian, Contributing Editor

Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) will probably boost retail sales of furniture dramatically in the next few years, according to those who watch the technology closely.

As the technology develops, it will almost certainly conduce to quicker purchasing decisions, greater buyer satisfaction and less post-purchase regret. It’s also likely to cut down the store space needed for product display, making the staging and displaying processes more varied and efficient.

A.I.’s role in furniture design ranges from initial conception to the manufacturing process; it could result in almost unimaginable customization possibilities. Designers also can analyze an almost infinite number of existing designs, to predict customer responses. A.I. might also be used to reduce wasted effort and materials in the manufacturing process and improve the overall quality of the product.

One possible concern is that it might take customers a while to fully accept A.I. Customers will always want to touch a piece of furniture, sit or lie on it. But before long, most customers will feel comfortable using A.I. at least to pre-shop, to develop a short “want” list. And they might, thanks to A.I., end up happier, for longer, with whatever furniture they buy.

Implementing in e-comm

Alex Back, CEO of Couch.com, reports that he spent the better part of 2023 immersing himself in A.I. technology and has used it in many different ways in the building of his company, which he calls “the Match.com of couches.

“Artificial Intelligence is incredibly important to retail, especially furniture retail, because it offers consumers much easier access to information than they had before, thereby reducing the need of the retailer to provide or spoon-feed it to them,” Back said. “Furniture is an industry that the typical consumer knows very little about, and its details and specifications can often mystify shoppers. This can create a level of buyer discomfort that is not very conducive to fast conversions.

“Typically, retailers have had to do a lot — at all stages of the sales funnel — to educate consumers about their products and services,” he continued. “Their salespeople have to spend considerable time with most customers prior to placing the order. With the emergence of A.I. filling in knowledge gaps and providing more direction to shoppers, salespeople should have to do less selling to achieve conversion.”

A.I. provides an array of visualization tools, reducing the need for large retail footprints in the furniture space, Back added. His company is building an A.I.-powered quiz that can conversationally interact with customers to gather all the information necessary to point them toward their eventual new couch.

“From pricing to comfort to size and timing, A.I. can address all sorts of key variables at the start of a shopping experience to better equip both shoppers and retailers for a smooth and speedy sale,”…