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Nibble, a chatbot that allows consumers to negotiate lower prices online, promises to significantly improve conversion rates and average order value (AOV) for sellers while driving a fun and engaging experience for shoppers.
The Nibble experience begins on the online product page. Consumers see a “Negotiate Price — Instant Chatbot” button underneath the “Add To Cart” button. Clicking the button starts a conversation and potential negotiation with the bot, named Nibble.
Consumers can then strike a deal with the chatbot to earn a specified discount or free shipping if they complete the acquisition within a certain time frame, acquire a second item, provide an email address, or take some other action. The discount or incentive is determined by the retailer.
In many cases, retailers are using the chatbot to encourage bundling to increase overall spending. Nibble can offer suggestions to pair with the initial selected purchase.
For many retailers, Nibble reduces cart abandonment. Baymard Institute concludes that, based on its analysis of 49 different studies, the average cart abandonment rate is 70.19%.
Direct-to-consumer furniture retailer Industry West, which works with Nibble, finds the average discount offered through Nibble to be slightly below the standard 20% it offers when a shopper abandons their cart. However, the Florida-based retailer is fine with a higher discount if it completes an online sale. Ian Leslie, chief marketing officer for Industry West, told Digital Commerce 360, “This person, what they wanted was 20.6%. If that 0.6% was all I needed to gain the sale, that’s amazing. I’m all for that.”
The bot further helps with clearance. Personalized discounts promise a better margin return than broad discounts across items.
Sucharita Kodali, a Forrester analyst, told Forbes, “Instead of having to give a blanket 30% discount to everyone, they instead give a 20% discount to one person who’s ready to buy.”
For consumers, successful haggling feels like they’ve scored a deal. While the business was inspired by an interaction at a Turkish bazaar, Nibble’s founders note that the art of haggling still exists within car dealerships, mattress sellers, flea markets, and other spaces where both sellers and buyers feel they’ve benefited.
When asked if there was a “lightbulb moment” in inspiring Nibble, Rosie Bailey, CEO and co-founder, told Founders Hub, “Realizing what is missing in e-commerce was a win-win approach where the buyer feels like they have paid what they believe the value of a product is worth to them, and the seller still makes a profit from the sale, which is personalized and fun.”