Naver Plus Store Sees Increase in Repeat Purchases and Loyal Transactions with Enhanced AI Recommendations

Expanding Technology and Marketing Investments
Focused on Loyal Customers

Naver announced on July 16 that loyal customer spending, such as repeat purchases and subscriptions, is increasing through its AI-powered recommendation service, 'Naver Plus Store' (Naepeulseu).

According to Naver, the Naepeulseu app, which was launched in March, recorded more than twice the number of purchases per daily visitor and conversion rate last month compared to the recommended shopping and price comparison services within the existing Naver app. The proportion of shopping transaction volume by Naver Plus membership users was also 30 percentage points higher on the Naepeulseu app than on the Naver app.

A Naver representative explained, "The more frequently users use the app, the more sophisticated the AI-based personalized recommendations become, increasing the likelihood that users will discover products and stores that match their preferences." The representative added, "AI tools that make shopping more enjoyable, such as the AI shopping guide and Discovery tab applied to the Naepeulseu app, also help to engage users."

It was found that AI recommendations are leading to repeat purchases and subscriptions. From October of last year to last month, the number of sellers who adopted the subscription solution increased by 52% compared to the same period the previous year. The number of buyers using subscriptions increased by 18%, and related transaction volume rose by 26%. In March, Naver revised its commission structure and, starting last month, made the subscription solution free to encourage more loyal transactions.

The number of sellers attracting loyal customers through AI recommendations is also increasing. The specialty coffee brand 'Momos Coffee' joined the Naver Plus Store and introduced the subscription solution in October of last year. As a result, its average monthly subscription transaction volume has increased by 29%, and the number of subscription transactions has grown by an average of 31% per month. As of last month, Momos Coffee's transaction volume increased more than 5.8 times compared to October of last year.

Going forward, Naver plans to focus its technology and marketing investments on activating loyal customer transactions and targeting user segments with high retention. Next month, the categories for shopping queries that provide the 'AI Shopping Guide' will be expanded from digital and home appliances to include preference-based product categories such as golf, hiking, and camping.

Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon emphasized, "We are seeing clear signals that loyalty-based commerce is taking root around the Naver Plus Store, and especially since the launch of the app, many users are experiencing and exploring AI-powered shopping recommendations." She added, "At this stage, we plan to further strengthen our promotional and marketing strategies and concentrate our technology investments to increase retention among loyal users."