UNITED KINGDOM / AGILITYPR.NEWS / November 18, 2025 / Research confirms more than half of UK shoppers abandon their carts due to poor online customer assistance

Brands treating their websites as static shop windows with little in-store style support are likely to miss out this holiday season, conversational search experts Firney warns. In a fast-moving digital economy, online shoppers increasingly expect their eCommerce experiences to mirror the real-world, with proactive, helpful, and responsive tools to support the buying experience.

A growing body of research supports this call, with almost 8 in 10 shoppers saying they’d benefit from getting the right information at the right time from eCom platforms, with the same number saying they’re frustrated by non-personalised experiences and appreciate the human touch when shopping online.

“The best sales experiences have always been built on understanding the customer,” said Marc Firth, CEO at Firney. “When someone walks into a physical store, a good sales assistant doesn’t just wait for questions: they read the customer’s body language, anticipate what they need, and guide them to the right choice.

That intuitive, helpful, direct support is more in demand than ever online, where shoppers often find themselves overwhelmed by too much choice or a lack of guidance.

“To truly succeed over the next 12 months, today’s e-tailers need to adapt the best parts of their in-person experiences and begin having those same conversations, and providing that same ease of information, for anyone visiting their website. Whether that’s booking a ticket or buying an item of clothing, AI-driven conversational support is the key to keeping shoppers happy, informed and heading to checkout.”

Unlike traditional websites that rely on generic menus or one-size-fits-all layouts, conversational search calls on AI to analyse visitor behaviour, search intent, and purchase patterns. The result is a seamless, intuitive journey where every user sees what’s most relevant to them - whether that’s the right product, the right content, or the right offer at the right moment.

“Beyond improving the user experience, this approach delivers measurable business outcomes,” Marc adds. By predicting and responding to customer intent in real-time, we’re now seeing brands enjoy much stronger engagement, higher conversion rates, and increased average order values. For marketing teams, it means less guesswork and more precision: every visitor interaction becomes a data point, helping to refine messaging and targeting strategies.

Firney’s clients range from e-commerce retailers to B2C service brands, all looking to replicate the warmth and effectiveness of in-person sales in a digital format - with AI woven into every layer of the online customer journey.

For more information, visit www.firney.com.