"Tell Me the Heel Height"… Naver Tests Generative AI Ad 'CLOVA for AD'

Naver announced on the 24th that it has started testing 'CLOVA for AD,' the country's first advertising product utilizing generative artificial intelligence (AI).

This advertisement, launched in collaboration with the global sports brand Nike, represents a new form that connects the brand's desired experience to the user's hyper-personalized experience. It is based on Naver's AI, 'HyperCLOVA X.'

When a user searches for a specific brand in the Naver search bar, a new button (expanded bubble) appears below the brand search or branding DA (banner ad) to initiate a question. Clicking this leads to Brand Chat, a chatbot-style search service, where brand-specific answers to the user's queries are provided. Through a series of linked queries, various forms of conversation continue, ultimately leading from product recommendation to purchase. For example, if a user inquires about the heel height of a particular sneaker, product-related information is provided along with a purchase link.

With AI acting as a brand manager, users can efficiently obtain information, and business owners are expected to achieve lower bounce rates and higher purchase rates. Brand Chat, implemented as a generative AI brand manager, offers an expanded experience by enabling a chain of conversations that feel like real-time consultations, helping to clarify purchase intentions and lead to final purchases.

CLOVA for AD is a new type of advertisement focused on connecting the flow of users' information consumption from discovery, exploration, purchase, to repurchase, providing a hyper-personalized experience. It is expected to be linked with various Naver service entry points such as integrated search, search ads, display ads, and standalone content. The button to enter Brand Chat may appear alongside search ads, and sports brand ads may be displayed together in display ads encountered while watching sports content.

During the pre-test period, ads exposing the entry point of CLOVA for AD showed about a 20% increase in click-through rate (CTR) compared to existing ads. It was also found that about 30% of users who engaged in product-related conversations through CLOVA for AD moved to the advertiser's site to explore products. Additionally, cases of users who experienced conversations through Brand Chat subsequently purchasing actual products continue to be confirmed.

Ha Sun-young, Head of Advertising Product Planning at Naver Biz CIC, said, "CLOVA for AD will become a new advertising channel where brands and consumers communicate by providing a comprehensive experience of a single brand within the various experiences users have on Naver. Generative AI-based advertising can show different results to various queries, so it is expected to contribute to improving the profits of SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises)."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.