Introduction: A Shift Australian D2C Brands Cannot Ignore

Over the past few years, most Australian ecommerce brands have relied on a familiar growth formula: Google Ads to capture search demand, Meta Ads to create awareness, and marketplaces to expand reach. That formula still works. But something subtle is beginning to change.

More Australian consumers are now asking AI assistants for product suggestions before they visit Google or scroll through social feeds. Instead of searching “best protein powder Australia,” shoppers increasingly ask conversational tools which product suits their needs, budget, or lifestyle. This behavioral shift marks the beginning of a new discovery layer in ecommerce, one where recommendations are generated by AI systems rather than ranked lists of websites.

From our vantage point at BOKO, working with performance-driven brands across multiple markets, this moment resembles the early rise of social advertising. Businesses that understood the change early built strong advantages, while late adopters had to compete in increasingly crowded auctions.

How Conversational AI Is Influencing Shopping Behaviour

Generative AI recommendation systems are already shaping how customers evaluate products. Studies suggest that AI-driven assistants can increase purchase motivation and customer satisfaction by simplifying research and offering tailored suggestions (Xie, 2026). In online retail environments, early field experiments also indicate that businesses integrating generative AI into their customer experience can improve conversions and overall sales performance (Fang et al., 2025).

For Australian D2C brands, this means that the decision-making process may begin long before a user clicks an ad. By the time someone searches on Google or sees a Meta campaign, they may already have a shortlist of brands recommended during an earlier AI interaction.

The Early Signals of Conversational Advertising

Technology platforms are already exploring advertising within conversational interfaces. OpenAI has publicly stated that it is testing clearly labeled ad placements within ChatGPT conversations, where sponsored recommendations appear in response to relevant user queries (OpenAI, 2026). Industry analysts suggest that such placements could become highly valuable because they appear precisely at the moment when a user expresses intent through a question (Search Engine Land, 2026).

For Australian ecommerce businesses, this development signals not an immediate replacement of existing channels but the formation of an additional performance layer. Search and social media will continue to drive demand capture, while conversational environments may increasingly shape brand consideration earlier in the customer journey.

Why This Matters Specifically for Australian SMEs

Australia’s ecommerce ecosystem is dominated by small and mid-sized direct-to-consumer brands. Unlike large multinational retailers, these businesses often have leaner teams, faster decision cycles, and more flexibility in testing new channels. Research indicates that smaller firms frequently benefit more from early adoption of emerging digital technologies, as they can adapt faster than large organisations (Fang et al., 2025).

From our experience managing campaigns for scaling brands, agility often matters more than budget size in the early stages of new platforms. The businesses that structure their product data, strengthen their brand authority, and create helpful educational content today are likely to gain visibility advantages once conversational ad ecosystems mature.

Practical Steps D2C Brands in Australia Can Take Now

Preparing for AI-driven discovery does not require large investments or experimental ad budgets yet. Instead, it begins with strengthening the foundations that recommendation systems rely on.

Improve product content clarity
Detailed product descriptions, comparison guides, and FAQ-style information make it easier for AI systems to interpret your offerings accurately.

Build strong credibility signals
Customer reviews, expert endorsements, and consistent brand information across the web improve trust indicators that recommendation engines often consider.

Organise structured product data
Well-structured product attributes, clear categorisation, and consistent naming conventions help ensure that your products are easily retrievable by AI systems.

These practices align with emerging research into generative engine optimization, which focuses on improving brand visibility within AI-generated responses rather than traditional search rankings alone (Bagga et al., 2025).

The Expanding Role of Agencies in the AI Advertising Era

At BOKO, we increasingly view performance marketing not as isolated channel management but as ecosystem visibility management. Winning brands will not only run effective Google or Meta campaigns. They will also ensure that their products, messaging, and authority signals are positioned to appear wherever digital discovery occurs, including conversational environments.

As an ads specialist, I see this transition as an opportunity rather than a disruption. Each time a new advertising channel emerges, early preparation allows smaller, focused brands to compete more effectively against larger players.

Final Thought

Conversational AI is unlikely to replace traditional advertising platforms anytime soon. However, it is steadily reshaping how customers form opinions and shortlist products before making a purchase. For Australian D2C SMEs, the opportunity lies in preparing early. Brands that organise their data, strengthen their credibility, and structure their product content for AI-driven discovery today will be far better positioned when conversational advertising becomes a standard part of the ecommerce marketing landscape.

Free Strategy Consultation

If you are an Australian D2C brand exploring how AI-driven discovery, search, and paid media will shape your next growth phase, the BOKO team offers a free performance strategy consultation. We will review your current advertising structure, product data readiness, and growth opportunities across Google, Meta, and emerging AI-driven channels, and provide practical recommendations tailored to your business stage.

References 

Bagga, P. S., Farias, V. F., Korkotashvili, T., Peng, T., & Wu, Y. (2025). E-GEO: A testbed for generative engine optimization in e-commerce. arXiv.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.20867

Fang, L., Yuan, Z., Zhang, K., Donati, D., & Sarvary, M. (2025). Generative AI and firm productivity: Field experiments in online retail. arXiv.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.12049

OpenAI. (2026). Our approach to advertising and expanding access. OpenAI.
https://openai.com/index/our-approach-to-advertising-and-expanding-access/

Search Engine Land. (2026). OpenAI begins testing ads inside ChatGPT.
https://searchengineland.com/openai-begins-testing-ads-inside-chatgpt-467637

Xie, G. (2026). The impact of generative AI shopping assistants on e-commerce consumer motivation and behavior. International Journal of Information Management.