AI-driven shopping conversion rate rises in UK retail

Adobe stated that UK shoppers clicking through to retail sites from AI sources were more likely to complete a purchase than those arriving after using online search engines. The company has tracked AI referrals to retail sites since August 2024. AI-driven traffic grew 393 percent in the first quarter of this year compared with the same period last year.

Figures for May show the UK AI shopping conversion rate was up 182 percent year-on-year and 543 percent since January last year. The conversion rate measures the percentage of online visitors who interact with AI-powered tools such as conversational chatbots and then buy an item.

Shoppers are asking AI a question and receiving a single answer, often with a direct link to buy, instead of typing keywords into search engines.

Adobe found that 37 percent of UK consumers have used an AI assistant for online shopping. Among those users, 43 percent used it for research and 40 percent for product recommendations. Sixty-five percent of AI users trusted the tools to provide accurate results, and 70 percent said AI assistants were now their primary source of product research.

Vivek Pandya, director of Adobe Digital Insights, said: “As shoppers have learned to trust AI tools, they feel more assured about their purchases and return fewer items.