Shopify’s New ChatGPT Shopping Experience

Online shopping just took a major leap forward. Shopify has officially teamed up with OpenAI to let merchants sell products directly inside ChatGPT conversations. No new tabs, no redirects, and no checkout forms that make you lose steam mid-scroll. Just chat, click, and buy — all in one place.

Source: CNBC

HOW IT WORKS

This new shopping experience comes from a partnership between OpenAI, Shopify, and Stripe. It has two main parts:

• Instant Checkout

• When ChatGPT recommends a product, a “Buy” button appears in the chat. You tap it, confirm details, and the purchase is complete in seconds.

• Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP)

• This is the secure technology behind the scenes. ACP lets ChatGPT send product details and process payments without sharing private customer data.

Source: OpenAI

What This Looks Like for Shoppers

Imagine this: you’re chatting with ChatGPT and say, “Can you recommend a good vitamin C serum under $50?”

A few products appear. One looks perfect — brightening, lightweight, and in your budget. You hit “Buy,” confirm your shipping and payment information in the chat, and your order is done. No browser tabs. No redirect. No abandoned carts.

For now, the feature supports single-item purchases and is available to U.S. ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Free users. Multi-item carts and broader merchant rollouts are coming soon.

Why Merchants Are Paying Attention

For Shopify sellers, this integration opens a whole new sales channel without rebuilding your store.

1. Easy setup: Orders show up in your Shopify dashboard like any other sale.

2. Full control: You handle shipping, returns, and customer support.

3. Secure payments: ACP works with your existing payment processor, making transactions smooth and safe.

More than 700 million people use ChatGPT every week. This gives Shopify sellers a huge audience to reach.

The Commerce Shift Has Begun

OpenAI takes a small transaction fee from purchases made in ChatGPT. That means merchants pay only for real sales, not clicks. This changes the cost model for digital commerce.

Shopify’s stock rose 8.1% after the announcement. Big names like Glossier, SKIMS, Spanx, and Vuori are joining the rollout soon. Etsy sellers are already live, and early results show strong demand.

How to Prepare

Online shopping just took a major leap forward, and merchants need to be ready. This isn’t just about having a good website anymore — it’s about being optimized for AI‑driven discovery.

This marks the start of AI optimization — the next step beyond SEO. Merchants will need to think differently to get noticed and recommended in ChatGPT. At the core of this is having clean, detailed product data and feeds that AI can easily understand.

Here are the key focus areas:

• Clear product data: Honest, detailed product titles and descriptions make it easier for ChatGPT to surface your items.

• Up‑to‑date pricing and inventory: Keep information accurate to avoid disappointed shoppers.

• Feed optimization: ChatGPT’s product results are powered by conversational search and rely on structured, accurate data. This means making sure your product pages and feeds are fully optimized.

Revel recommends these best practices to prepare your feeds for AI:

• Ensure ChatGPT’s crawler (OAI‑SearchBot) can access your site by reviewing your robots.txt file.

• Improve product detail pages with clear titles, rich descriptions, and schema markup.

• Use tools like IndexNow to keep your product data fresh and accurate in real time.

• Optimize Google and Microsoft Merchant Centers, as ChatGPT pulls data from multiple sources.

• Sign up for early access to feed submission opportunities when OpenAI launches them.

The question is no longer just “How do I rank on Google?” It’s “How do I get recommended by ChatGPT?” To explore this further, check out Revel’s ChatGPT Shopping Results Optimization Guide.

Embracing Headless Commerce

As AI-driven shopping experiences like ChatGPT Instant Checkout become more prevalent, adopting a headless commerce architecture can provide significant advantages for merchants.

Headless commerce decouples the front end (what customers see) from the back end (your Shopify store), allowing for greater flexibility and customization. This separation enables businesses to deliver personalized and consistent shopping experiences across various channels, such as websites, mobile apps, and even voice assistants.

Key benefits of headless commerce include:

• Omnichannel experience: Deliver a seamless shopping experience across multiple touchpoints.

• Rich personalization: Tailor content and product offerings to individual customer preferences.

• Flexibility and agility: Quickly adapt to market trends and customer demands without disrupting the backend.

• Best-of-breed integrations: Integrate with specialized tools and platforms to enhance functionality.

• Scalability and performance: Scale your business efficiently as it grows.

By adopting a headless approach, merchants can future-proof their stores and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving e-commerce landscape.

The Bottom Line

The Shopify ChatGPT integration is more than a feature. It’s a shift in how people shop online. Conversations become transactions. Shopping becomes instant.

For merchants, it opens new opportunities. For shoppers, it makes buying effortless. This is the future of online shopping — and it’s already here.

SOURCES

• Big Commerce

• Yahoo Finance

• EC Digital Strategy

• CNBC

• OpenAI

• Shopify

• Eesel.ai

• CBS News

Photo: © CNBC

Unlocking Growth with Demand Gen: Go Beyond Search Marketing to Find New Customers

Reimagining display and YouTube campaigns with Demand Gen for smarter awareness marketing.

Introduction 

At Revel, we see Google’s Demand Gen campaigns as the bridge between awareness and conversion—meeting over three billion monthly users, according to Google, right where they're exploring, not just searching. For brands ready to expand beyond search, Demand Gen unlocks new scale and reach, comparable to social platforms in Google’s own ecosystem. It’s a fit for clients with strong conversion tracking, visual-first assets, and a minimum $3,000/month budget. Brands that are starting to plateau in search and want to compete with the influence of social without paying inflated costs should explore Demand Gen as an option for top to mid funnel customer acquisition. 

Content & Audiences

Demand Gen thrives on visuals; matching creative to context helps our clients pair the right mix of video, imagery, and UGC depending on their vertical. For e-commerce, that means balancing lifestyle storytelling with product-centric assets; for B2B and services, it’s about weaving in trust, expertise, and social proof. Each industry requires its own creative rhythm—beauty moves fast with trend-driven content, while education and construction benefit from longer, credibility-focused narratives. Our role is to guide clients in building the right blend so their content feels native, engaging, and persuasive across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail.

Reaching the right audience is just as critical. Revel’s “audience stack” approach starts with lookalikes and custom intent, then layers on in-market signals, retargeting, and life events. Unlike broad affinity audiences, this precision keeps campaigns focused on high-intent prospects while still allowing Google’s AI to optimize. We structure campaigns around prospecting or retargeting, excluding converters to maximize efficiency that scales reach without losing relevance.

Why Demand Gen 

Demand Gen isn’t search—it’s mid to upper-funnel—and success means looking at the bigger picture: engagement, assisted conversions, and lifetime value. Early weeks are about learning and reach; months two and three bring stabilization as CPAs normalize, creative winners emerge, and campaigns scale. With clear benchmarks by vertical and a disciplined refresh cycle for assets, we help clients measure what matters most: sustained growth, not just short-term clicks.

Demand Gen captures audiences earlier in the journey. By combining Google’s owned inventory with Revel’s creative, targeting, and measurement expertise, we help clients harness Demand Gen as a growth engine. This isn’t about running ads for the sake of ads—it’s about building an adaptive, data-driven system that continuously learns, optimizes, and drives meaningful results. Reach out to the Revel team for more info.

Source:

• Google Ads Help. "About Demand Gen campaigns." Google Support.
• Google Ads Help – Ad customizers
• Google Ads Help – Campaign-level assets
• Google Ads Help – About ad extensions
• Google Ads Help – Video action campaigns

This blog was edited with the help of Claude AI.

Photo: © Brett Jordan from Pexels

5 Ways Email Marketing Enhances the Customer Journey for Beauty Shoppers

In the world of beauty, it’s not just about the products—it’s about the experience. From the moment a shopper discovers your brand to the day they reorder their favorite serum, every touchpoint matters. Email marketing is your chance to educate and surprise your customers—whether you’re dropping skincare tips, sending restock reminders, or just saying “happy birthday.” For beauty brands, email isn’t just a marketing channel—it’s part of the glow-up.

So how does email marketing build on the overall customer experience with your brand? Read on for a few tips!

PERSONALIZED PRODUCT RECOMMENDATIONS

From skin type to shade matching, email lets beauty brands deliver suggestions based on quiz responses, past purchases and more —making shopping feel curated, and truly personal.

POST-PURCHASE EDUCATION AND CARE

Automated flows that include skincare tips, how-to videos, ingredient education, or seasonal routines will keep customers engaged.

REPLENISHMENT AND REORDER REMINDERS

Email reminders based on when a product will run out helps bring customers back right when they need to restock, making their lives easier and boosting retention. This is also a great place to suggest a “subscribe and save” option if that’s something your brand is able to offer.

BUILDING LOYALTY BEYOND THE PRODUCT

Birthday discounts, VIP perks, or early access to new products sent to email subscribers show appreciation and bring value to your customers.

EDUCATION DRIVEN STORYTELLING

Education-Driven Storytelling: Email marketing is a brand’s opportunity to sell your USP (unique selling proposition) like cruelty-free formulas, sustainable packaging, or expert-backed formulations—building brand loyalty over time.

The brands winning in today's competitive beauty landscape aren't just selling products—they're building relationships, one thoughtfully crafted email at a time.

If you have email marketing needs, drop us a line! We’d love to chat all things email with you!

2025 Demand Generation Campaign Landscape: Supplement & Expand Your Ecommerce Strategy Across Google Ads

As the Google Ads landscape keeps evolving, ecommerce marketers are continuing to look for ways to optimize their advertising strategies, reaching potential customers at every stage of the marketing funnel. While campaigns like Search & Performance Max still continue to play crucial, bottom-of-the-funnel roles, Demand Generation campaigns have emerged as a powerful tool for engaging higher-funnel audiences. But how do Demand Generation campaigns fit into the broader Google Ads ecosystem, and what does the future hold for this advertising tactic in 2025? 

What Are Demand Generation Campaigns? 

Demand Generation campaigns leverage display tactics to engage users across Google’s most popularly owned products, including Gmail, the Discovery Feed, YouTube, and the Google Display Network (GDN). This campaign type allows advertisers to reach large audiences with visually engaging ads that grab attention, making it a key strategy for building awareness and expanding your brand’s reach. 

Demand Generation campaigns are not typically geared towards immediate conversions but are instead designed to create awareness and interest. As of 2024, these campaigns can also include video ad placements, allowing for even greater creative flexibility. The combination of eye-catching imagery and video formats, paired with the most expansive audience targeting options of any Google Ads campaign type, makes this an ideal solution for engaging users who may be unfamiliar with your brand. 

A hallmark of Demand Generation campaigns is the use of “Similar to” audiences, a feature that was largely disabled across other Google Ads products in late 2023 and early 2024. This allows advertisers to target users who exhibit behaviors similar to their existing customer base, creating a fertile ground for new customers and incremental purchases. 

The Evolution of Demand Generation Campaigns in 2025

As digital advertising becomes more visually oriented, Google has invested heavily in evolving Demand Generation campaigns to meet the needs of a more dynamic market. In 2025, several updates and features are set to revolutionize how these campaigns are executed, including new controls for audience targeting and a more seamless online shopping experience.

• Increased Control Over Where Your Ads Serve: Unlike other visual-forward campaign types like Performance Max or standard YouTube campaigns, which do not allow advertisers to control where their ads are shown, DG campaigns are expected to introduce Channel Controls in March of 2025. This feature will enable advertisers to choose which Google properties to serve their ads on, including specifying where ads will appear on YouTube. For instance, if your target audience is particularly active on YouTube Shorts, you’ll be able to serve ads on this placement & later retarget those users via Gmail or other Google properties, creating a more cohesive customer journey to purchase. 

• Seamless Shopping Integration: In February 2025, product feeds began rolling out for DG campaigns, a feature that presents significant opportunities for e-commerce advertisers. With product feeds, users can swipe up to view product options directly from the ad, allowing them to purchase without ever leaving the platform. This “instant purchase” option is especially useful for products that are visually appealing or seizing offers that make a consumer’s decision to purchase more urgent. 

Additionally, advertisers promoting in-store offerings will soon be able to integrate local product availability feeds, encouraging foot traffic by showing real-time inventory at physical store locations. This feature is currently in beta but is expected to become a standard part of the DG toolkit in coming months. 

• Goodbye Video Action Campaigns: as part of the broader trend towards consolidating Google Ads offerings, the Video Action campaign type will be phased out in 2025. Starting in April, advertisers will no longer be able to create new Video Action campaigns, with existing ones being disabled by July. However, Google is offering an “upgrade” path for these campaigns, transitioning them into Demand Generation campaigns. This change further underscores the increasing importance of DG as a key pillar in Google’s plans for their advertising platform. 

What Does This Mean for Your Marketing Strategy? 

As Demand Generation campaigns become an increasingly vital part of the Google Ads marketing funnel, they offer tremendous potential for businesses seeking to connect with new audiences in a meaningful way. While traditionally seen as a tool for creating awareness, the visual nature of these campaigns-especially with the addition of video & shopping features-means that they can also be conversion-focused, driving sales in new & innovative ways. 

For brands targeting younger generations, the ability to leverage YouTube Shots for highly engaging short-form video content will be crucial. Gen Z, in particular, spends significant time on platforms like YouTube & TikTok, often turning to them as sources of product discovery. DG campaigns, with their focus on video & visually rich content, are perfectly suited to this trend. 

The introduction of product feeds also makes Demand Generation campaigns even more valuable for an e-commerce business. As users are exposed to ads featuring products they can quickly purchase, this creates a seamless & intuitive shopping experience, making them more likely to convert & become customers. 

To Conclude:

In 2025, Demand Generation campaigns are poised to become an indispensable tool for digital marketers looking to grow their brand & expand their audiences. With the ability to leverage visual content, expansive audience targeting, & seamless shopping integrations, these campaigns will offer both awareness & conversion opportunities. As Google continues to refine & expand this campaign type, it’s clear that DG will play a central role in shaping the future of Google Ad’s place in the digital media plan. 

By understanding the strengths and new features of DG campaigns, advertisers can position themselves to meet the evolving expectations & needs of today’s consumers, all while driving better results for their marketing dollar.

Source:

• This blog was produced with drafting support from ChatGPT
• New Demand Gen Features for 2025 - Google Ads Blog

Photo: © grinvalds from Getty Images Pro

You’ve Heard About The Shopify Extensibility Update: What Is It About?

August 2024, Shopify rolled out their mandatory Upgrade to Checkout Extensibility for Enhanced Checkout Experience. Read on to find a quick explainer!

First off, Shopify’s Checkout Extensibility is a set of tools and apps that allow brands to customize their checkout experience, while also being more secure than checkout.liquid.

With that in mind, let’s jump into the capabilities of this Update!

Custom Checkout Experiences: The update introduces tools that enable merchants to create bespoke checkout flows. This flexibility allows businesses to tailor the checkout experience to match their specific brand requirements and customer expectations - i.e. custom fields, unique design elements, etc.

Extended Integration Capabilities: One of the most notable enhancements is the improved integration with third-party applications and services. The Extensibility Checkout Update supports more extensive API integrations, enabling merchants to incorporate additional functionalities such as loyalty programs, custom shipping solutions, and advanced analytics tools directly into the checkout process.

Improved Performance and Scalability: Shopify has focused on optimizing the performance of the checkout process with this update. Enhanced load times and scalability ensure that merchants can handle high volumes of traffic and transactions without compromising the user experience. This is particularly beneficial during peak shopping seasons and high-demand events.

In summary, brands now have the ability to implement complex customizations that were previously constrained by the platform’s standard checkout options. This flexibility supports a range of operational needs, from subscription services to complex product configurations.

In addition, enhanced integration capabilities mean that merchants can collect and analyze more granular data from the checkout process, allowing them to fine-tune marketing strategies and operational workflows based on real-time insights.

Most importantly, once your team makes the update, ensure that purchases across channels (paid search, social, affiliate, etc.) are tracking!

Source:

• Upgrading to Checkout Extensibility - Shopify Plus
• Shopify Announces Mandatory Upgrade to Checkout Extensibility - KXAN

Photo: © CarmenMurillo