Author: Dailyusastory

A superior shopping and post-purchase experience may be the best way to retain ecommerce customers. Here are nine books that offer ideas, inspiration, and tips for achieving customer-service excellence. The AI Revolution in Customer Service and Support AI Revolution in Customer Service by Ross Smith, Emily McKeon, Mayte Cubino The authors, who have worked at Microsoft, aim to help experienced customer experience professionals understand AI (and its human and ethical aspects) and learn how to apply it to improve service and support. The Art of Seducing Your Customers Art of Seducing Your Customers by John Boccuzzi Jr. Boccuzzi, a retail…

A combination of fear and necessity may create a renaissance of sorts for brand marketing. Many retail and direct-to-consumer companies that have essentially ignored branding now worry that generative AI is merging their advertising and marketing copy into a single, industry-wide sameness. Yet these businesses also recognize genAI’s importance. Source of the Fear Consider the decline of regional accents in America. Years ago, such accents were common. Texans had a drawl. Georgians sounded Southern. Bostonians didn’t pronounce the letter “r.” The accents still exist to some degree, but multiple studies attribute their decline to mass media and improved transportation. The…

We publish a rundown each week of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants. This installment includes updates on AI-powered site-search, shopping assistants, product listings, merchant financing, point-of-sale solutions, cross-border transactions, and warehouse automation. Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com. New Tools for Merchants Miva expands ecommerce platform with AI search infrastructure and no-code tools. Miva, an ecommerce software and service provider, has launched Miva 10.12, introducing tools to help ecommerce teams move faster and scale. The update adds platform infrastructure for Vexture, Miva’s AI-powered search engine that uses vector-based technology to interpret shopper intent. Merchants can…

Pope Leo XIV is taking a bold stance on artificial intelligence, calling it “a challenge to human dignity, justice and labour” in his first major address since being elected leader of the Catholic Church. The new pontiff is placing AI at the center of the Church’s moral agenda, warning that we’re entering a new industrial revolution with the same threats to workers and human rights seen over a century ago. “In our own day… developments in the field of artificial intelligence pose new challenges,” Leo said, addressing the College of Cardinals on Saturday in the New Synod Hall. He echoed…

Google instructs its human quality raters to apply “EEAT” when evaluating a page on search results. “Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness” are quality indicators, per Google. Google cites EEAT in its documentation, prompting many search engine marketers to advertise “EEAT optimization” services. Unfortunately, I’ve seen tactics that fabricate EEAT with fake authors, bios, and experience. Moreover, many marketers claim better EEAT can overcome losses from Google’s “helpful content” ranking algorithm. Yet Google has offered no such recovery method. Humans, not Algorithms The rise of “EEAT optimization” services has reached the search giant. In the January 2025 update to its quality guidelines…

Raphael Schneider launched Gentleman’s Gazette in 2010 as a blog for men’s style and apparel. He added his own product line in 2013, selling menswear and accessories. He emphasizes quality in clothing and content. His YouTube channel, launched in 2015, remains essential for traffic and conversions, owing, he says, to the quality of the videos. “Ten years from now, someone can still benefit from a video we produce today,” he told me. Raphael first appeared on the podcast in 2018. In this our latest conversation, he addressed the company’s origins, Google search, and, yes, his focus on YouTube. Our entire…

ChatGPT, the popular AI chatbot from OpenAI, is unintentionally leading users into full-blown spiritual delusions, and families are sounding the alarm. On Reddit’s r/ChatGPT forum, a chilling thread titled “ChatGPT induced psychosis” is gaining traction. Users are reporting a disturbing pattern: their loved ones are convinced that ChatGPT is a divine being, a spiritual guru, or even a portal to God. Rolling Stone journalist Miles Klee spoke directly with affected individuals. One woman shared how her partner became obsessed after ChatGPT gave him cosmic nicknames like “spiral starchild” and claimed he was on a divine mission. He ultimately told her…

Chinese tech powerhouse Baidu has filed a patent for a system that could use AI to decode animal sounds and behaviour then translate those signals into human language. For the millions of pet owners wondering what their animals are thinking, this could be the first real step toward bridging the communication gap between humans and animals. The tech Baidu’s system would collect animal vocalizations, body movements, and biological signals. It would merge that data and feed it into an AI model trained to identify emotional states. These emotional states could then be rendered in human language to boost “cross-species communication”.…

In a bold move to tackle one of streaming’s biggest frustrations, endless scrolling, Netflix just unveiled a major redesign of its TV and mobile apps featuring a ChatGPT-powered AI chatbot and TikTok-style video reels. You’ll soon be able to ask Netflix in plain language what you’re in the mood for “funny and fast-paced” or “dark thrillers with strong female leads” and get instant, tailored recommendations. Netflix is partnering with OpenAI to power this feature, part of a broader overhaul aimed at making content discovery faster, more intuitive, and (finally) less painful. What’s changing Conversational AI Search: Powered by OpenAI, this…

These 10 books by academics, regulators, journalists, and business practitioners can help ecommerce merchants understand contradictory news stories about international trade and how it affects their businesses. Why Politicians Lie About Trade . . . And What You Need to Know About It Why Politicians Lie About Trade by Dmitry Grozoubinksi The Financial Times states, “Despite being an entertaining read, his book is no joke,” and includes it on its list of “Five books to boost your understanding of tariffs and trade wars.” Avoiding technical and academic language and adding a generous dose of humor, Grozoubinski uses engaging case studies to explain how global…