Will ChatGPT change how we work?: My analysis of its output

Curious to find out how effective ChatGPT can be to my business, I decided to ask ChatGPT to write an article on “How chemical suppliers can benefit from digital commerce.” The response I got was quite amazing! In the following paragraphs, I have analyzed it, shared my comments and concrete examples on the quality of ChatGPT’s response. Overall, I would give it a straight A (but not A+). Almost all the points summarized were on the money! It missed one key point that I have highlighted in red. What is more remarkable (and scary at the same time) is, it gave this response in less than a minute! As soon as I finished writing the prompt and hit Enter, the response came in ~40 seconds! Without doubt, the evolution of this technology has significant potential and consequences to the labor market. But that’s a conversation for some other time. Enjoy the analysis.

Jay: Write an article on benefits of digital commerce to chemical suppliers

ChatGPT:? In recent years, digital commerce has transformed the way businesses operate and interact with their customers. This shift has been particularly significant for chemical suppliers, who have traditionally relied on face-to-face interactions and a limited pool of customers to drive sales. In this article, we will explore the benefits of digital commerce for chemical suppliers and how it can help them grow their business.

1. Increased Reach and Visibility

One of the most significant benefits of digital commerce is that it can help chemical suppliers increase their reach and visibility. By creating an online presence through a website or online marketplace, chemical suppliers can showcase their products to a global audience. This allows them to tap into new markets and customers that were previously inaccessible. Additionally, digital commerce enables chemical suppliers to target specific industries or niches, allowing them to tailor their offerings and marketing efforts to attract the right customers.?

My analysis: This is very much true. We have delivered this outcome to dozens of chemical companies. A global producer identified 100s of new prospects around the world for a specialty product line within 12 months of launching a digital commerce channel with my company, Agilis Commerce. Another customer, a global distributor, launched a digital commerce portal for an obscure market segment like Vehicle Care Solutions. Even before they could formally launch the channel and start promoting it, they started receiving new leads within a few weeks of the portal going live!?

2. Cost Savings

Another advantage of digital commerce for chemical suppliers is that it can lead to significant cost savings. By moving sales online, chemical suppliers can reduce their overhead costs, such as rent and utilities for physical stores, and streamline their supply chain. Additionally, digital commerce allows chemical suppliers to automate many of their processes, reducing the need for manual labor and lowering operational costs. These cost savings can be reinvested into the business, enabling chemical suppliers to expand their product offerings and improve customer service.

My analysis: Incorrect: Chemical suppliers do not have physical stores. This was the only flaw I found in ChatGPT’s response. So, I asked a follow up question to clarify this. See ChatGPT’s response at the bottom of this article.

3. Improved Customer Experience

Digital commerce also provides chemical suppliers with an opportunity to improve the customer experience. By offering an online storefront, chemical suppliers can make it easy for customers to browse and purchase products, without the need for a sales representative. Additionally, digital commerce enables chemical suppliers to provide 24/7 customer support through chatbots, email, or phone. This can help build customer loyalty and increase repeat purchases.?

My analysis: Very true! A global chemical producer we support launched a digital commerce portal to attract new customers but found a surprising outcome. They saw a 66% growth in sales from current customers who increased their repeat purchases (instead of switching suppliers for a better price) due to the ease and convenience of the digital channel!?

4. Data Analytics

Data analytics is another area where digital commerce can benefit chemical suppliers. By collecting and analyzing data on customer behavior, chemical suppliers can gain valuable insights into customer preferences, purchasing patterns, and market trends. This information can be used to refine product offerings, optimize pricing strategies, and improve marketing efforts. Additionally, data analytics can help chemical suppliers identify potential supply chain issues, allowing them to take proactive measures to mitigate any disruptions.?

My analysis: This is the holy grail of the benefit of a digital channel! Configured correctly,? a digital channel can provide great insights into your own business. Chemical suppliers need to realize that your long-term portfolio of products and customers is a gold mine of data. You don’t need to hand over this data to a marketplace. By configuring your own digital channel, you are creating a pathway to data-driven opportunities in sales, marketing, customer service, product development, and supply chain.

5. Increased Efficiency and Flexibility

Finally, digital commerce can improve the efficiency and flexibility of chemical suppliers. By automating many of their processes, chemical suppliers can reduce the time and effort required to complete routine tasks, such as order processing and inventory management. Additionally, digital commerce enables chemical suppliers to be more agile and responsive to market changes, allowing them to quickly adapt their product offerings and pricing strategies to meet evolving customer needs.?

My analysis: Primarily true. However, in order to realize this benefit, chemical suppliers need to adopt end-to-end digitalization. The digital commerce channel must be fully integrated with other enterprise systems like ERP, CRM etc. However, one pitfall chemical suppliers should avoid is to try do it all at once, and not launch the digital channel until everything is in place. You cannot afford to delay getting and applying customer feedback before you invest heavily into integration and all other nuances. By launching an MVP (minimally viable product) of your digital channel, getting customers feedback, iterating your solution you will, in fact, reduce your costs and risk in the long run - even if your teams have to live with the short term discomfort of working with two systems or daily data syncs via flat files exchanges between the two systems.

In conclusion, digital commerce offers a range of benefits to chemical suppliers, including increased reach and visibility, cost savings, improved customer experience, data analytics, and increased efficiency and flexibility. By embracing digital commerce, chemical suppliers can tap into new markets, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction, all of which can help them grow and thrive in an increasingly competitive industry.?

My analysis: Bingo! I couldn’t have written this article better than this. Definitely not in 40 seconds!!

After getting this outstanding output in less than a minute, I got curious, how would ChatGPT respond to the mistake I identified? Here is how well it responded.

Jay: But chemical suppliers do not have physical stores. So will the benefit in cost savings be limited?

ChatGPT: While it is true that many chemical suppliers do not have physical stores, there are still cost savings to be gained through digital commerce. Even without a physical storefront, chemical suppliers still have operational costs, such as rent and utilities for warehouses, transportation and logistics costs, and labor costs for order processing, inventory management, and customer support. By moving sales online and streamlining their supply chain, chemical suppliers can reduce these costs and increase their profitability.

For example, digital commerce can help chemical suppliers optimize their inventory management by providing real-time data on stock levels, sales trends, and demand forecasts. This can help them avoid overstocking or understocking, which can lead to waste, spoilage, or missed sales opportunities. Additionally, digital commerce can reduce the time and effort required for order processing, payment processing, and invoicing, freeing up resources that can be allocated to other areas of the business.?

Thoughts: Wow! What a comprehensive list of benefits! Summarized in just a few sentences!?

Furthermore, digital commerce enables chemical suppliers to compete with larger players in the industry by offering competitive pricing and customized offerings. [My thoughts: That’s the benefit we are touting to regional chemical distributors and midsize chemical producers. Digital channels offer a level-playing field to smaller players.] By leveraging data analytics and automation tools, chemical suppliers can create personalized product recommendations, bundle deals, and loyalty programs that appeal to their customers and drive sales.

In short, while chemical suppliers may not have physical stores, digital commerce can still offer significant cost savings and other benefits. By embracing digital commerce, chemical suppliers can improve their efficiency, agility, and competitiveness, regardless of their business model.

My final thoughts:?

This was really impressive overall! As a technology leader, it is exciting to see the great potential of promising new technology in transforming day-to-day operations. The ease of use of ChatGPT also underlines one of my core beliefs - unless a new technology solution is extremely user-friendly, it will not find adoption by non-technical users. If users have to go through hours of training and refer to training manuals, user adoption will drop significantly. This is the core principle we follow in designing our software - eliminate or minimize the need for training.?

Any new technology, however, is not without its pitfalls. ChatGPT still requires human intervention to verify the response and eliminate the outliers. Secondly, ChatGPT’s response is generic and broadly applicable to any industry. It cannot replace the real-world experience and insights of industry professionals.

Want to try it out on your own? Here is the link: https://chat.openai.com/chat?

Welcome to the world of disruptive AI!

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