Target is expanding the use of AI and personalization across its digital shopping experience, introducing and enhancing tools designed to help customers discover products, evaluate purchases, reorder frequently purchased items and return to products they previously viewed.
The retailer’s recent digital initiatives include AI-powered Photo Search, Review Insights, Buy Again and Continue Shopping, each targeting a different stage of the shopping journey.
Photo Search, which launched in August and is built directly into the Target app, allows shoppers to upload or take a photo and find visually similar products available at Target.
The feature is designed for situations where customers know what they want visually but may not know how to describe it in words. A shopper could, for example, photograph a lamp, throw pillow or piece of décor and use the image to search Target’s assortment for comparable products.
Target has also introduced AI-powered Review Insights, which launched in June and summarizes themes from customer reviews.
Instead of requiring shoppers to read through large numbers of individual comments, the feature identifies commonly discussed product characteristics and organizes feedback into relevant categories.
For a cordless vacuum, for example, Review Insights can surface recurring feedback about suction power, durability, weight and ease of use. For apparel, it can summarize themes including comfort, fit, stretch and breathability.
Target said early results indicate Review Insights is helping increase conversion and add-to-cart activity while reducing decision fatigue.
Another area of focus is making repeat purchases faster.
Target’s Buy Again experience uses AI-driven personalization to surface frequently purchased products, previous purchases and relevant deals based on a customer’s shopping history.
The feature is accessible through the Target app’s main navigation and allows users to quickly retrieve previous orders and add frequently purchased essentials such as milk, bread and paper products to a new basket.
Since launching last year, Target has continued refining Buy Again with improved recommendations and more personalized deals. The company said the feature has contributed to strong year-over-year purchase growth, particularly across categories such as food and beverages.
Target is also continuing to develop Continue Shopping, an AI-powered personalization feature that reconnects customers with products they recently viewed.
Available across the Homepage, My Target and Search, Continue Shopping can surface previously viewed products alongside relevant alternatives and offers, helping shoppers resume a shopping session without having to search for the same items again.
Target said the feature, which launched last fall, has generated strong engagement and increased add-to-cart activity as customers return to products they had previously considered.
The initiatives reflect Target’s broader effort to use AI selectively throughout its omnichannel retail experience.
The company is focusing on reducing friction between discovery and purchase while giving customers more personalized ways to navigate its product assortment across stores and digital channels.
Target said it plans to continue introducing additional capabilities within its app as it looks to make digital shopping more personalized, convenient and intuitive.
KEY QUOTE:
“At Target, we’re focused on creating a shopping experience that’s easy, inspiring and friendly,” says Sarah Travis, executive vice president and chief digital and revenue officer, Target. “Guests move naturally between our stores and digital channels, and we’re using AI and personalization in purposeful ways to help them find what they need faster, discover new possibilities and shop with confidence. These enhancements reduce friction while also showcasing the style, design and differentiated assortment that make Target special.”
Sarah Travis, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital and Revenue Officer of Target
