Ecommerce has entered its consideration era. The gap between browsing and buying is widening, with the “look-to-book” ratio up 20% year over year. Shoppers aren’t rushing to check out—they’re lingering. They’re comparing, researching, and using brand sites the way they once used store aisles: to explore, not just to buy.

That means your site experience is the new sales associate, and personalization is the new persuasion. The question isn’t just how to capture attention, but how to keep earning it—and turn every browse into a deeper, smarter, more connected relationship.

Use pre-purchase engagement to build anticipation, like browse abandonment flows and educational series that keep shoppers inspired while they’re comparing. Then, layer in AI-powered recommendations to surface relevant products dynamically. Not sure where to start? Use K:AI Marketing Agent to spin up an educational campaign in minutes.

The latest data shows that how—and how much—shoppers explore varies dramatically by category. Apparel & accessories continues to dominate, with sites earning an average of 21 product views per order, up from 16 last year—a reflection of ecommerce’s transformation into an experience as much as a transaction. Consumers aren’t just shopping. They’re curating, exploring styles and stories before they commit.

Meanwhile, food & beverage—a category once defined by habitual, low-consideration purchases—has seen the fastest growth in product views. Shoppers who once reordered without thinking are now taking time to compare ingredients, packaging, and values. Even in routine categories, discovery is becoming part of the ritual.

Together, these shifts point to a new kind of shopper: more intentional, more research-driven, and more attuned to the details behind every purchase. Browsing is no longer a passive prelude to conversion. It’s a signal of curiosity, confidence, and control. For brands, that means the path to purchase starts long before the cart.

Customize your merchandising approach by vertical.

High-browse brands (like apparel or home goods) should lean into inspiration, and use Klaviyo’s AI-personalized product recommendations to feature “complete the look” or “frequently bought together” recommendations.

Low-browse brands (like food or beauty) should keep discovery friction-free with AI-personalized product recommendations that anticipate need before shoppers lose momentum.

It begins with the quiet hum of curiosity in October. The latest data shows that November and December still drive 1 in 4 annual product views, but October drives more of a site’s product views than any other month. Shoppers aren’t waiting for the deals to drop. They’re already researching, comparing, and deciding what they want weeks in advance.

The days leading up to Black Friday now form a distinct intent window—a period of intense digital activity when browsing surges, carts fill, and decisions crystallize. Shoppers are signaling intent long before they click “buy.” When the clock strikes Black Friday, conversion simply catches up with consideration.

For brands, this reframes the season entirely. Winning BFCM isn’t just about the sale. It’s about owning the anticipation. The brands that shape perception in October will capture conversion in November.

Don’t wait for Black Friday to start your storytelling. In October, launch discovery campaigns highlighting gift guides, bundles, and loyalty offers to capture attention while browsing is at its peak. Use K:AI Marketing Agent to get something spun up in minutes, or analyze what worked well for you over BFCM 2024 and plan a similar variant before the end of October.

The rise of agentic shopping, where AI tools like ChatGPT can research, recommend, and even complete a purchase, marks a turning point in ecommerce. The act of browsing is no longer confined to brand websites. It’s happening in conversations, in chat interfaces, and across an expanding ecosystem of intelligent assistants. As AI redistributes the buyer journey, the bar for relevance has never been higher.

To stay visible in this new landscape, brands must deliver personalization that feels as natural and immediate as the experiences powered by AI itself. Since early 2025, 14% more brands have added product recommendations to their automated flows, and emails containing recommendations are up 19%. Clearly, marketers are already racing to keep pace with the expectation of hyper-relevance.

Personalization is no longer a differentiator. It’s the price of entry. The brands that stand out this BFCM will be those that don’t just react to behavior but anticipate it, using AI not merely to automate what already exists but to elevate every moment of connection.

Meet the moment with intelligence. Use Klaviyo to automatically generate product recommendations, personalized flows, and dynamic content that reflects what shoppers have browsed or considered. Pair that with A/B testing to continuously test which messages or offers convert best during peak demand.