Aniket Deosthali, CEO & Co-Founder at EnviveAI.gettyRetail has spent years trying to perfect personalization, with recommendation engines becoming more sophisticated, customer data becoming more detailed and retailers investing heavily in technology designed to surface the products each shopper is most likely to purchase. Although those efforts have made online shopping more relevant, they haven't necessarily made it easier.Consumers can still spend hours comparing products across retailer websites, reading reviews, watching creator videos, scrolling through Reddit discussions and asking generative AI tools for advice before making a purchase. That behavior suggests many shoppers are still looking for confidence that they're making the right decision, something personalization alone hasn't been able to provide.The growing popularity of conversational AI reflects that need. People aren't simply asking for product recommendations. They're asking practical questions that help them evaluate trade-offs. Which stroller works best in a city apartment? Is the more expensive running shoe worth the extra cost for someone training twice a week? Which air fryer is easiest to clean? These are the kinds of conversations shoppers have traditionally had with knowledgeable sales associates, and they're beginning to expect similar guidance from digital experiences.That shift has important implications for retailers, with most digital shopping experiences built around helping consumers discover products. AI creates an opportunity to support the next step in the journey by helping customers evaluate those products with greater clarity. Discovery and decision making are closely related, but they require different kinds of information.A recommendation algorithm can identify products that align with a shopper's interests or purchase history, whereas helping someone decide between two similar products requires context. Customers want to understand how products perform in everyday situations, what compromises come with different price points and which features truly matter for the way they live. Those questions can't always be answered by specifications or marketing copy alone.Therefore, retailers have an opportunity to rethink the role product information plays across digital commerce. Product pages have historically been designed to persuade, with the need to educate becoming just as important. Richer product descriptions, clearer comparisons, detailed compatibility information and answers to common customer questions all give AI systems the context they need to provide useful guidance instead of generic recommendations.This evolution also challenges the way success is measured. Conversion rate, click-through rate and average order value remain valuable metrics, but they reveal little about whether customers felt informed throughout the buying process. Retailers should also pay attention to signals such as lower return rates, shorter research cycles, higher customer satisfaction and fewer instances where shoppers leave their sites to find answers elsewhere. Those indicators provide a clearer picture of whether customers found the information they needed to make a purchase with confidence.Despite all of this, the value of personalization shouldn't be understated or diminished. Understanding customer preferences will remain essential because every recommendation should begin with context about the individual shopper. The difference is that personalization increasingly serves as the starting point for a conversation rather than its conclusion. As AI becomes a more common part of shopping, consumers will expect retailers to help them understand why a recommendation fits their needs, not simply present another list of products.Retailers have spent years competing to deliver the most relevant recommendation. The next phase of digital commerce will reward those that do the best job helping customers arrive at a decision they feel good about after the purchase is complete.​Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?