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“The two major problems Froker wants to solve are pricing, by giving customers the choice to decide the price, and recommendations by using AI to understand them better,” said Akshat Saxena, the CEO of Froker, a Bengaluru based startup that bills itself as the world’s first AI social platform.
Talking to indianexpress.com, Saxena said that his company aims to focus on customer value rather than just profits. “I have been working in various quick commerce companies across the globe. And, I realised that nobody was talking about the customer value,” said Saxena.
When asked about the inspiration behind Froker, Saxena said that he wanted to ensure that all the companies in the quick commerce industry got more metrics in terms of average order value that can be increased.
In simple words, on the Froker platform micro-influencers, called Frokers, create content and recommendations for their followers to facilitate purchases. Froker helps users earn rewards and discounts on their next food order by watching videos posted by influencers.
The app uses AI to tailor content and product recommendations to individual user preferences. Froker also partners with merchants to help them reach a wider audience and boost sales. The platform started with food and beverages and plans to expand into apparel and other verticals.
“There are a lot of micro influencers, we call them Frokers, and they are responsible for creating content and ensuring that it can be beneficial for their followers. They provide information enabling their followers to make informed decisions,” said Saxena.
The quick commerce market is currently focused on Tier 1 cities, but Froker believes social commerce will be crucial for expansion.
“In Tier 3 or Tier 4 cities, people use social media, but don’t use Swiggy and Zomato as that is not where they want to be. So what we’re doing is to ensure that people can adapt on the social part and eventually, they get to know more about the commerce part of our platform,” Saxena stated.
Froker is utilising generative AI in search, recommendations, and providing a virtual assistant. However, data and choosing the right use cases remain challenges, admitted the CEO.
“We use generative AI to facilitate two or three crucial use cases, such as search, driven by AI to comprehend individual contexts. Additionally, all recommendations are AI-powered. Furthermore, a conversational virtual assistant is integrated to provide a seamless shopping experience similar to interacting with a knowledgeable salesperson in a physical store,” explained Saxena.
The company has avoided spending on digital marketing and instead relied on influencers and word-of-mouth. “So far, we have spent Rs 5,000 in the last year on digital marketing, but we believe more in organic growth. So we onboard influencers and these influencers get money when they sell something,” noted Saxena.
Saxena believes social commerce could account for over 50% of e-commerce by 2030. Their goal is to be an “aggregator of D2C brands” across verticals like food, apparel, and jewellery.
“We see ourselves as an aggregator of D2C brands. We want to ensure that all D2C brands that have a separate team for influencer marketing, can rely on us as we can act as their aggregator. For all the D2C brands, we ensure the appropriate level of visibility is given to them,” Saxena said.
“I believe a lot of Indian companies are going to adopt AI to a large extent. To be honest, in terms of routine work, a lot of it is going to be replaced by AI. A lot of analysts and developers are going to be assisted by AI tools,” predicted Saxena.
As a company, Froker aims to empower consumers to get discounts, receive highly tailored recommendations, and participate in an engaged community.
