Walmart-owned Flipkart on Wednesday announced the introduction of a ‘Smart Assistive Interface’ feature called ‘Flipkart Saathi’ to support first-time e-commerce users on the platform. The feature is available in Hindi and English, and assist buyers using audio-guided navigation. The start-up claims that the assistive interface feature aims at mimicking the typical real-life shopping experience for consumers who are comfortable being assisted by a salesperson.
“It uses a combination of text and audio-based instructions to guide new users in their e-commerce journey. This includes a list of key actions in the form of pop-up texts followed by audio for a better understanding. As audio is simple to follow and offers relatability, consumers can follow the instructions in a more immersive manner,” it said.The e-commerce major expects the feature to help it in bringing the next 200 million consumers online who mostly reside in tier II, tier III cities and beyond.
“This personalisation of technology is a key element of our vision for Bharat and all our innovations are centred around this,” Kalyan Krishnamurthy, Group Chief Executive Officer, Flipkart, said, adding it undertook extensive research for nearly a year, after talking to consumers yet to transact on e-commerce, and occasional users in tier-II cities.