What Does Agentforce Mean for the Future of Commerce?

Salesforce Commerce Cloud’s AI Roadmap comes to life at Dreamforce ‘24

By Kyle Montgomery, SVP Commerce at Astound Digital

Kyle Montgomery
Global Vice President, Salesforce Commerce, at Astound

Salesforce Commerce Cloud’s AI Roadmap comes to life at Dreamforce ‘24

By Kyle Montgomery, SVP Commerce at Astound Digital

At Dreamforce ‘24, Salesforce introduced Agentforce, a suite of AI-powered assistants set to make an impact across Sales, Service, Marketing, and Commerce. With a focus on enhancing efficiency and engagement, these tools are designed to simplify day-to-day tasks for workers and elevate the customer experience.

For Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Agentforce is coming to life in three key areas:

  • Agentforce for Merchants: A commerce administrator’s new best friend, designed to help business users set up products, campaigns, and broader goals within Salesforce more effectively.
  • Agentforce for Buyers: A concierge for B2B Commerce, helping streamline the buying process for business customers by offering tailored assistance.
  • Agentforce for Personal Shoppers: A B2C-focused assistant that supports customers with order services, product recommendations, and personalized shopping experiences—at enterprise scale.

Implications for B2B and D2C Commerce

For B2B and direct-to-consumer (D2C) businesses, the potential benefits of these tools are clear. Agentforce for Buyers could add convenience and personalization to B2B transactions, making it easier for business customers to manage complex orders. Meanwhile, the Merchant Agent could streamline internal operations for D2C brands, helping businesses respond more quickly to market changes and customer demands.

These are meaningful improvements for merchants looking to simplify operations or improve customer engagement. However, the true impact will depend on how businesses choose to integrate and leverage these tools within their unique environments.

Implications for B2C Commerce

On the B2C side, the Personal Shopper Agent could offer a more personalized and engaging experience for consumers, reducing friction in online shopping. It goes beyond basic chat functionality by offering context-aware recommendations and support, with potential future capabilities like image and media handling.

While WISMO (Where Is My Order?) and other order service features are becoming table stakes, the real strength of Personal Shopper Agent lies in its ability to seamlessly pivot between service and sales functions—just like an in-store associate.

What’s more, the Personal Shopper Agent can be reused across multiple channels, such as WhatsApp or native apps, making the “build once, deploy everywhere” vision a reachable goal. All that said, while this concierge tool is helpful, it might still feel like a natural evolution of AI assistants rather than a revolutionary leap.

Looking Ahead

While excitement surrounding AI in commerce is building, it’s important to recognize that this is just the beginning. Agentforce represents a significant step in bringing generative AI into ecommerce, but there is still much untapped potential ahead.

We expect further innovation in areas like dynamic pricing, supply chain optimization, product discovery, and fully autonomous shopping experiences. For now, Agentforce provides incremental AI innovation that businesses can build upon.

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If you’re interested in exploring how AI can enhance your business, our team is ready to help you navigate the opportunities. Reach out to discuss how we can support your goals with Salesforce and Agentforce.

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