Peter Maas likes to think a lot about the future of online shopping. Where is the market moving? What role can Marktplaats play in it? And how is the game changing for entrepreneurs? "The channeling of supply and demand will remain," he quips. "What does change is where customers get their information." Language models like ChatGPT offer ready-made buying suggestions that match a specific customer demand, for example, for the cheapest, fastest or best-rated option of its kind. "That can generally lead to more quality leads. That in itself is nice, but it comes with opportunities and challenges. In any case, differentiating and profiling is becoming increasingly important to stay relevant."
Having intrinsic added value is one thing, communicating it is step two, Maas continues, "How are you going to explain your added value to an AI? It's a new challenge we're all working on now." He sees generative engine optimization (GEO), a way to optimize content for AI tools, as "a first answer." Maas: "The industry has been busy for decades optimizing toward Google's algorithm, but AI is looking at other parameters."
Optimizing for smart language models is a new profession in its own right.Such an LLM (large language model) will in principle take a searching customer to the source faster, such as directly to Apple for an iPhone, than to a broader telecom provider. As a retailer or other intermediary, you have to offer something distinctive in return, such as direct availability. "Until now, you could get away with quantity if you wanted to be found, but algorithms are going to work differently; they're steering for quality. You also see it at Google, which is showing more and more AI search results." Less, but more relevant information: that's the movement, according to Maas. "It requires sharp choices about how you want to be included in decision-making processes." That's where strategy comes into play: "When making a website accessible to AI, there's always the question of what information you want to give away and what information you don't, think about messages between consumers or the actual sales price. How do you keep the customer with you, how much control do you relinquish? These are issues we've seen before at Google as well."
- Peter Maas
Marktplaats has recently been thinking about its own added value in times of AI. "To remain distinctive," said Maas. So where does that value lie? "We know the customer and try to respond broadly to that. That is in the quality guarantees we issue, in how we bring products from sellers to buyers, in how we resolve disputes, but also in how we help in negotiations and transactions. We have a lot of knowledge about how people act with people. Based on that, we try to make our processes as valuable as possible, which makes generative search engines refer to us."
Whereas Marktplaats anticipates targeted referrals from language models, U.S. trading platform Etsy recently facilitated transactions within ChatGPT. News reports about buying something directly within the various LLMs follow one another in quick succession. "We talk a lot with industry peers," says Maas. "For example, we also have short lines of communication with Etsy. For example, we've also talked to OpenAI and Perplexity about how shopping is going to develop on those platforms." Right now, a lot is being tried in the area of agentic commerce, shopping with AI assistance. "I think we have to be careful in judging those experiments. You really can't say, 'This is how it will work.' Some parties are bringing the AI in, while others are actually positioning themselves on AI platforms. It will take some time to crystallize. It also depends on what the customer wants. There are no fait accompli yet."
Marktplaats is embracing AI. "It's an opportunity to make the customer experience even better, both on our platform and beyond," says Maas. The CTO sees traffic from language models increasing, but he clarifies, "It's not the intention to shift the entire Marktplaats experience to ChatGPT." In the meantime, the platform is bringing in the technology to add value across the entire customer population. "We talked to all kinds of other companies and providers, but creating customer value with AI was slower than we hoped. We were used to developing predictable software, pointing from A to B so to speak. AI is more exciting, it's less clear what added value you're going to create with it. For a long time, it didn't really take off."
- Peter Maas
Marktplaats decided to change tack last spring. "We took people out of the regular processes and put them together in a room. Their assignment was to solve a concrete problem for customers as quickly as possible with generative AI (GenAI), without the need for an immediate business case." It was the basis for Superfast Ads, which Marktplaats now advertises. Smart image recognition and automatic text suggestions by Gemini help users categorize ads and make them faster and more complete. It removes barriers to giving stuff a second life. Maas: "The team created a proof of concept in no time. It quickly became apparent that with an LLM we could remove a lot of the complexity around ad creation."
Internally, the AI functionality actually raised questions, for example about the legal side of things and the implications for Marktplaats's positioning. "Because of the way we worked, those questions quickly surfaced and were answered. You can say we have forced learnings for the organization, for example that we always want a human in the lead." So Marktplaats will not use AI-generated text or specifications without explicit permission from the seller. Ultimately, the advertiser also always remains responsible for what he posts on the platform.
-Peter Maas
In a few weeks, Marktplaats has made posting an ad "super smart and fast" by solving it with GenAI, Maas said. "We initially introduced Superfast Ads to a smaller group, so we received a lot of feedback for further development. All in all, we saved a lot of research and development costs. It has also lit a flame for the whole organization. We can still deliver a lot for our customers, especially now that we have reasonably mastered the technology." Examples include AI-driven price suggestions - "there are still some emotional and legal snags in that" - but also the ability to map everything of value in an attic or garage with a single photo. "'We found ten things you can sell,' the customer is then shown. 'Just take an extra picture of that'."
Marktplaats at the Webwinkel Vakdagen
At Webwinkel Vakdagen, Peter Maas talks about shifts in online search and shopping behavior and its implications for businesses. "There is really something going on and I outline how we can find a way around it together. I don't have any ready-made solutions, but I do have a framework with concrete examples. It's all about how to put the customer first in a world dominated by technology."
Peter Maas, CTO of Marktplaats, will give a keynote presentation at Webwinkel Vakdagen on Thursday, March 26, at 1:15 p.m.