The most effective AI strategy starts with automating simple, internal back-office tasks, not with a big, flashy customer-facing launch. On an eCommerceFuel Podcast episode about prioritizing AI, the clear advice was to use a phased implementation. The idea is to begin with simple, repetitive jobs inside your business to build familiarity and demonstrate a return on investment before you move to more complex applications. This approach also helps you maintain what Adam Ortman called the "human touch" on the eCommerce Marketing Podcast, ensuring you don't over-automate your brand's voice and customer interactions.
Once you have some internal wins, you can turn your focus to the customer. As Chris Perry explained on Ecommerce Braintrust, AI is fundamentally changing the shopper journey, especially through search. The way customers find products is shifting, and your content needs to be optimized for these new AI-driven discovery paths. But trying to tackle that on day one is a recipe for failure without first building a foundation.
Your first step should be to identify one repetitive, low-risk task in your business, like drafting initial product descriptions or tagging customer feedback, and find a simple tool to help with just that.