80% of respondents said they’ve given up on an online search, and over 65% believe retailers use descriptions that make it challenging for them to find what they want; AI is an opportunity
CEO, Purva Gupta, to highlight insights during her Artificial Intelligence Summit session for retailers
at eTail Palm Springs 2025
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Feb. 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Lily AI, the leading AI-powered product content optimization platform for retailers and brands, today released new consumer shopping research that highlights the evolving needs and expectations of online shoppers and what retailers and brands need to do to stay competitive.
The survey, conducted in January 2025, included 2,081 consumers — all of whom shop online for clothing, shoes, accessories, home goods, and/or beauty products an average of at least once a month.
The findings uncover fresh insights that reinforce known opportunities for retailers:
- Consumers are online to buy, not simply browse, but lack of detailed and understandable product content is sending them to the store, or causing them to abandon their purchase altogether
- Brand loyalty can’t overcome a poor search experience; consumers will find alternatives, offering less well-known brands an opportunity to stand out
- Merchant speak, or industry jargon, creates a product disconnect between consumers and retailers; clarity is key
- Retailers with good search experiences are rewarded; relevant and high-quality product details are imperative
- AI will empower a new era of online shopping growth and profitability
“Despite efforts to curate amazing assortments, retailers and brands are leaving money on the table,” said Purva Gupta, Co-founder and CEO, Lily AI. “Merchants and marketers have a real opportunity to elevate customer satisfaction, increase sales, and drive operational efficiency, all by describing their products more clearly and comprehensively, both in customer-facing content as well as on the back-end.”
The survey looked at buying preferences across clothing, shoes, accessories, beauty products, and home goods, as well as at differences by gender and generation. Other findings include:
- Consumers still find search a challenge: 80% of respondents have given up on a search because they couldn’t find what they wanted. 85% of shoppers said they would consider purchasing a similar item from another brand if they weren’t able to find what they were looking for from the brand they originally had in mind.
- Women (87%) are more likely than men (82%) to purchase a similar item from another brand if they can’t find what they want from their originally preferred brand.
- Consumers expect their product searches to be met with relevant results: More than half of respondents (57%) reported using a retailer’s search bar and said it’s important for the results to be relevant and aligned with their specific search phrases.
- Three-quarters of shoppers have used extra details or more descriptive terms when searching for a specific occasion or need; 54% used descriptive words to convey a specific style or vibe to help narrow down their search or when they are looking for something specific.
- Consumers want retailers to use clearer, more obvious descriptions: 66% of surveyed shoppers believe that retailers use descriptions that make it challenging for them to find what they want. For example, retailers will use descriptions like “cardinal luxe sweater” versus “red cashmere sweater.”
- Colors are also nuanced depending on the person: Nearly half of respondents said the color “midnight” represents black, while almost 30% said it is blue. 13% said “midnight” could even be gray or blue/green, in addition to black and blue.
- Consumers need far more informative product details: 89% of respondents said they’ve previously found a product online and then bought it in-store because they still had questions regarding quality, fit, color, or size, among other details.
- Consumers will use many different types of content to inform their purchase decisions, including product images (74%), reviews (60%), short product descriptions (52%), long product descriptions (44%), and videos (31%).
- Gen Zers, Millennials, and Gen Xers were consistent with product images, reviews, and product short descriptions as their top 3 selections, respectively. Baby Boomers preferred long product descriptions over short descriptions and were more likely to use reviews compared to Gen Z.
- When looking at how genders differed, 66% of women used product reviews to help make their purchase decisions compared to 49% of men.
- Consumers will reward a positive online experience: 71% of people said they’d spend extra dollars per visit when they had a good search experience. Of those, 74% estimated they would spend $25 or more per visit with retailers where they had a positive search experience; 15% said they would spend more than $100 per visit.
- Consumers are using AI: 40% of the shoppers surveyed said they have experimented with a new AI-powered search engine to assist them.
- More men (56%) said they’ve used these newer AI technologies for shopping compared to women (32%).
- More than half of Gen Zers (51%) have used AI, such as ChatGPT, for shopping. The usage was less for Millennials (45%), Gen Xers (32%), and Baby Boomers (22%).
- When consumers were asked if they would pay for Perplexity™’s “Buy with Pro” option, a shopping feature that allows users to research and purchase products directly within the search engine for $20/month, men were more likely to say they’d spend money for the search experience if they loved it (34%) compared to women (22%).
“As AI increasingly influences how consumers shop and buy online, retailers must embrace the full capabilities of AI and optimize their product content to include the details that help consumers find what they are looking for, and ultimately, make a purchase. Without an accurate and relevant product data intelligence layer, retailers put customer loyalty, brand reputation, and revenues at risk,” added Gupta.
Click here to download the full Survey Report. NOTE: All percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.
Visit Lily AI at eTail Palm Springs 2025 to experience firsthand how its AI-powered product attributes platform is transforming online shopping search and discovery. The team will be available at Kisok #12, February 24-27, 2025.
About Lily AI
Lily AI is the leading AI-powered Product Content Optimization Platform that bridges the gap between consumers, merchants, marketers, and machines. Lily AI is transforming eCommerce and advertising by using AI to decode consumers’ true shopping intent and bridge the language and metadata gap between how retailers describe their products and how consumers express what they want. The Lily platform dynamically converts nuanced consumer language into precise product understanding, helping consumers easily navigate millions of products in order to find the perfect item for their unique context. Leveraging a suite of advanced AI technologies fueled by high-quality, human-verified proprietary data, Lily optimizes product content, enabling retailers to understand complex consumer search behaviors, improve product attributes, titles and descriptions, and personalize shopping experiences, resulting in operational efficiency and increased sales. More information can be found at https://www.lily.ai/.
Media Contact:
Zer0 to 5ive for Lily AI
Abby Tydings
[email protected]
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/c1454916-dd57-4c67-b90e-e4294e90b601