Month: July 2025

Most retail brands sell their products in two markets: online and offline. They are both very competitive and crucial for success. LION Digital helps businesses grow online through effective marketing campaigns. But what about your physical presence? To help eCommerce brands secure prime retail locations at the right price, we have partnered with Your Leasing Co., Australia’s leading commercial leasing specialists. They support tenants in finding the ideal shop, office or warehouse and negotiate the best lease terms. A great partner for LION Digital to bring our clients maximum profitability, on- and offline.

Solving the Tenant’s Dilemma

Most business owners are experts in their industry, not commercial leasing. It puts them in a disadvantaged position when dealing with experienced landlords and property agents and creates what Your Leasing Co. calls the “Tenant’s Dilemma”. Most businesses prioritise convenience over cost, missing out on significant savings and better lease terms.

Your Leasing Co. was created to level the playing field. Working for over 25 years in the commercial and retail leasing industry, they give business owners the same market data and negotiation advantages typically reserved for landlords. They work exclusively for tenants and don’t receive any commissions from landlords.

How Your Leasing Co. Delivers Results

Your Leasing Co. operates on three core principles: Save Time, Save Money and Add Value. They know how landlords think and operate and have the expertise to achieve the best outcome for their clients in terms of price and lease terms.

Your Leasing Co. offers a comprehensive approach that addresses all challenges faced by retail businesses expanding or renewing their leases. What they do:

• Complete market research and property inspections. They search for sites, organise inspections and create shortlists so you can choose from the best options.
• Expert negotiation on your behalf. They handle all conversations with landlords and negotiate on your behalf with your interests in mind. 
• Finding off-market opportunities. Your Leasing Co. team is always on top of market developments and has access to  deals that aren’t publicly available.
• Deal optimisation. They maximise value through rent reductions, fitout contributions, rent-free periods, and a variety of negotiable lease terms. 
• Documentation management. They check everything and ensure the final lease reflects exactly what was negotiated.

Consistent Results for Every Business

Your Leasing Co’s. track record speaks volumes about their effectiveness across various retail sectors. Here are just some of their work examples:

• King IT achieved $64,817 in total savings, including $61,730 in rent savings and $3,087 marketing levy savings. Plus the annual rent reviews down to 2% with no survey fees charged.
• Just Sunnies achieved $45,513 in total savings over a 5-year lease period. This included $24,298 in net rent savings, a $20,000 fitout contribution and a 2-week rent-free period, plus favourable annual rent reviews at just 3%.
• Aquira Wealth Partners secured $38,535 in savings over five years, including $22,785 in net rent savings, a $15,750 cash contribution and complete fit-out and furniture inclusion with no personal guarantees required.

These client success stories demonstrate consistent value delivery. Your Leasing Co. always manages to secure better lease terms and bring substantial savings.

The Smart Partnership for Retail Growth

The collaboration between LION Digital and Your Leasing Co. creates a comprehensive solution for businesses expanding into or optimising their retail presence. While LION Digital works on your online performance through expert eCommerce development, digital marketing and customer acquisition, Your Leasing Co. ensures your physical locations are strategically positioned and financially optimised.

Together, we address both sides of modern retail success, building high-converting on- and offline stores. We want LION’s clients to have expert support for both digital and physical growth strategies, and this partnership with Your Leasing Co. helps increase profitability across all channels.

Ready to Update Your Retail Strategy?

Contact LION Digital today to learn how our partnership with Your Leasing Co. can benefit your brand. Whether you’re an eCommerce brand looking to expand into retail, a multi-site operator who needs professional lease management, or an Australian retailer seeking to optimise your operations, we can help your business scale.

Ecommerce has got a major upgrade. This year, OpenAI launched two impressive features: ChatGPT Shopping that lets users search and compare products and ChatGPT Checkout that allows shoppers purchase goods directly through conversational AI. Instead of jumping between multiple websites and tabs, users can now ask ChatGPT to search across different platforms for product recommendations and also add specific requirements to refine the results. And if they go to a specific site for purchase, an AI-powered bot will lead them through the payment process, apply discounts, and provide shipping information.

It’s the beginning of conversational commerce, when artificial intelligence becomes your personal shopping assistant. For retailers and eCommerce brands, it means more competition while also more opportunities in digital marketing.

Product Shopping with AI: How It Works?

The ChatGPT Shopping tool transforms product discovery into a conversation. Users can ask questions like “What’s the best laptop to buy for work?” or “Show me the best sofa bed under $1500” and receive curated product recommendations with detailed information.

The AI shopping app analyses purchase intent in real time, considering query content, commercial relevance, reviews, and product popularity across merchant sites. The results come in a carousel of product cards, each with a high-quality image, current pricing, customer reviews, technical specifications, and a list of merchants where you can buy that product. ChatGPT Shopping assistant may also provide helpful tags like “Popular” or “Budget-Friendly” and ratings. 

What makes this different from traditional search is the conversational flow. Shoppers can ask follow-up questions and refine their buying criteria. They can specify budget constraints or brand preferences or tell what resources to use when choosing products. It’s an ongoing dialogue that helps narrow down the perfect product and gives ChatGPT more info about users’ preferences to create a better-customised search feed next time.

The tool also provides explanation sections like “Why you might like this” and “What people are saying” to clarify the AI’s reasoning and guide purchase decisions.

Chatbot Shopping vs. Google Shopping

At first glance, ChatGPT Shopping looks similar to Google Shopping since both show product cards with prices and retailer options. However, the core difference is how the results are chosen. 

Currently, the ChatGPT Shopping feed is entirely organic—no paid placements like in Google Shopping. AI shopping helper selects products based purely on relevance, popularity, and data quality, so retailers can’t pay for prominent positioning. This creates a more unbiased shopping environment: the best-matching products naturally get to the result feed.

While Google’s algorithms weigh paid campaigns and SEO signals, ChatGPT Shopping assistant relies on natural language processing. It feels more like consulting a knowledgeable friend or an industry expert than searching a database.

Furthermore, the ChatGPT Shopping feature can be added into Shopify stores, completely transforming the way people shop online.

ChatGPT Checkout System: A Powerful Tool for Shopify Stores

The shopping experience doesn’t end with finding the right product, and ChatGPT now can lead shoppers all the way through checkout. This is what the Shopify ChatGPT Checkout system offers—a comprehensive solution.

Instead of browsing through endless product pages and adding everything into the shopping cart, customers just talk to ChatGPT-powered bots embedded on Shopify storefronts.

These AI assistants handle every aspect of the buying process:

• Product discovery. Customers describe what they need in their own words and receive instant recommendations—a specific product or a list of products that match the description.
• Queries resolution. If customers have questions about sizing, stock availability, fit, shipping times, or return policies, the AI provides all the requested info like a knowledgeable sales associate would in a physical store.
• Recommendations. Based on customer preferences, purchase history, and current trends, the AI chatbot suggests complementary products or upgrades that may add value to the purchase.
• Discount application. The ChatGPT Checkout system can automatically detect and apply available discounts and promotional offers during the conversation.
• Payment. Once customers confirm their selections, the AI guides them through a secure payment process within the chat interface. It doesn’t redirect you to a separate checkout page—you enter your payment details in chat, and the bot confirms the purchase.
• Post-purchase support. The AI sends order confirmations, shipping updates, and helpful care instructions after the payment is complete.

That’s the “magic” of the Shopify integration with ChatGPT Checkout. AI gets access to Shopify’s structured database of products and leverages its payment system. Shopify merchants get a smart tool to reduce cart abandonment, lower customer acquisition costs, and improve conversion rates. Customers get an easy way to find, choose, and buy products. It really is a new era of online shopping.

What It Means for eCommerce Brands

The use of AI in shopping changes everything in marketing strategies. ChatGPT Shopping could potentially redirect significant traffic away from Google and major marketplaces, so brands must find ways to appear in this new AI-driven shopping search engine.

Since results are selected based on relevance, popularity, and data quality, merchants need to focus on creating meaningful content and building a trustworthy reputation. Their products need to show up in context-relevant, high-trust places: editorial ratings, forums, review platforms, and other resources AI systems learn from.

As the shopping feature is new, OpenAI welcomes retailers to submit product feeds directly to ChatGPT. The system has not yet been launched, but brands can send their applications now to stay ahead of the competition.

For Shopify merchants, ChatGPT Checkout integration is a must now. You can use Shopify apps powered by ChatGPT or build a custom GPT and connect it via Shopify’s API. Either way, AI checkout systems give an opportunity to create exceptional shopping experiences for customers that make your store stand out.

However, these AI shopping innovations call for new optimisation strategies. With AI-powered shopping on the rise, traditional SEO alone is not enough. Advanced marketing agencies, like LION Digital, are now exploring GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation) or LLMO (Large Language Model Optimisation) and looking at overall customer “search” opportunities. This approach focuses on maximising brand visibility within an AI-generated shopping feed. The main aspects to work on:

• Clear, detailed titles and descriptions
• Up-to-date availability, pricing, shipping costs, and return policies
• High-quality images and verified reviews
• Well-structured content using natural, conversational language.

AI favours content that fits naturally into dialogue, so product pages should address real-world questions like “Which office chair works best for remote work?” rather than generic terms like “office chair”.

At LION Digital, we stay ahead of current digital trends and create customised SEM strategies for each client using advanced marketing tools. Our team monitors updates and AI shopping innovations to integrate these developments into our work. Our goal is to help brands position themselves effectively in current markets, and since conversational commerce is becoming the norm, we adapt our approach to ensure their businesses succeed in this new reality, too.

Looking Ahead to Conversational Commerce

ChatGPT Shopping is just the beginning. Other platforms are also working in this direction. Perplexity chatbot now offers shopping recommendations for Visa users. Google has already integrated generative search and is doubling down on AI-powered shopping.

The future of eCommerce is evolving. Conversations are replacing clicks, and smart recommendations are replacing static results. Brands must evolve alongside these tools to stay competitive. If you’re ready to adapt to the future of eCommerce, contact our team for a personalised consultation. With a flexible multichannel marketing plan and a carefully crafted SEO strategy, LION Digital can help your brand stand out and lead the market.