AI edges social 65-64 in festive shortlists

Diwali used to end with a shopper staring at nearly identical products on a marketplace, trying to decide before a discount timer expired. This year, the first step may have already happened inside an AI chat window. Consumers are asking ChatGPT or Gemini to compare cookware, phones and televisions, then arriving at Amazon or Flipkart with a shortlist already made.

The 65% that resets the funnel

BCG’s latest research puts LLM search in 22% of Indian purchase journeys, behind social media’s 29% reach. But the more telling number is further down the funnel. Among shoppers who encounter it, LLM search influences final brand choice in 65% of journeys — narrowly ahead of social media at 64%. More than half of those AI-assisted journeys also introduced brands the shopper had not originally considered.

Nielsen IQ’s separate look at India’s top eight metros points the same way, with AI used widely for comparison, reviews and product discovery.

From Share of Voice to Share of Recommendation

Dabur’s head of media, Rajiv Dubey, says the shift is not about replacing television or social, but adding a new layer at the consideration stage. He argues that Share of Voice may increasingly need a companion metric: Share of Recommendation — how often and how favourably a brand shows up in AI answers.

“The objective is not to replace traditional media, but to ensure that the brand is part of the consideration set when consumers move from awareness to evaluation,” Dubey said.

For Shiprocket’s Gaurav Mangla, the key window opens before the shopper has narrowed choices. AI recommendations shape discovery early, so understanding the signals behind them becomes central to building consideration.

The shelf becomes defence

Cumin Co. co-founder Niharika Joshi describes a decade of search and retail media as demand-harvesting — paying to be visible at the point of purchase. If AI builds the shortlist earlier, that same spend increasingly buys visibility with someone who has already decided. Retail media, she says, becomes conversion and defence rather than discovery.

That matters because the downstream pool is huge: Indian e-retail advertising reached Rs 17,601 crore in 2025, up nearly 56% year-on-year, per the dentsu-e4m Digital Advertising Report.

What to do before the first query

Winning the AI shortlist is less about chasing vague adjectives and more about retrievable specifics.

• Structure brand facts. Certifications, test results, warranties and material details are easier for LLMs to surface than claims like ‘premium quality.’
• Track Share of Recommendation. Monitor how often and how well AI-led answers include your brand at the consideration stage.
• Use retail media as conversion defence. Once the shortlist is set, price, offers and visibility can still close the sale.

Honasa Consumer’s Syed Sibtain Iman adds a useful brake: AI can get someone to try an unfamiliar brand, but it cannot make them stay if the experience disappoints. Recommendation is not loyalty.

AI is not abolishing the funnel. It is quietly deciding who gets into it.

Source: Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media