How to prepare an online store for AI shopping agents: a merchant checklist

To be found and bought from by AI shopping agents, a store needs accurate structured product data in a feed agents can read, a checkout that agents can call or a clean hand-off to your own site, acceptance of the scoped payment credentials agents present, clear machine-readable policies, and order updates that reach both the agent and the buyer. Start with the product feed: agents rank and recommend from structured data, so stale prices or missing identifiers keep you out of the answer.

Most of this is ordinary e-commerce hygiene that agents punish more quickly than people do.

1. Get your product data agent-ready

Agents discover products through structured feeds rather than by browsing your pages. Stripe's catalog feed specification is a useful reference for what that means in practice. It requires, among other fields, a stable product id such as the SKU, a title that matches your landing page, a plain-text description with product information only, a working link that returns HTTP 200, a brand, and either a GTIN or a manufacturer part number. It also requires an availability value and, where inventory is tracked, a quantity. Stripe: catalog feed

The same specification stresses refreshing the feed whenever prices, attributes or fulfillment details change, to prevent stale listings. Practical checks:

• Every product has a stable identifier that does not change on update.
• Titles and descriptions describe the product, not promotions.
• Prices, stock and delivery estimates in the feed match checkout.
• Discontinued products are removed or marked out of stock promptly.

2. Decide where checkout happens

You have two broad options. Stripe's feed specification, for example, lets a merchant mark products as discovery-only: agents can index and recommend them, but the purchase redirects the buyer to the merchant's own product page instead of completing inside the agent. Stripe: catalog feed

• Discovery with redirect keeps checkout on your site and is the simpler first step.
• In-agent checkout lets the agent complete the purchase through an agent-ready checkout, using protocols such as the Agentic Commerce Protocol or Universal Commerce Protocol through your provider. Stripe: Agentic Commerce Protocol

Start with the products where a delegated purchase is low risk and well specified: repeat orders, standard items, clear sizes.

3. Accept the credentials agents present

Agents should not be typing your customers' card numbers into your form. Ask your payment provider which agent credentials it supports. Stripe, for example, describes shared payment tokens that grant sellers scoped access to a customer's payment method for agent-initiated purchases, available in the US, Canada and selected European countries. Stripe: shared payment tokens Card network agent programmes are covered in what Visa and Mastercard are building.

4. Make policies explicit

An agent acting within a buyer's limits needs clear answers before it commits: total price including shipping and tax, delivery date, return window, cancellation terms and warranty. Put these in structured fields where your feed or checkout supports them, and in plain language on the product page. Ambiguous policies become disputes.

5. Tell good agents from bad bots

Many stores block automated traffic by default, which can block legitimate shopping agents too. Review your bot management with your provider: allow agents that identify themselves in verifiable ways, and keep rate limits and fraud checks for the rest. KYA as an identity control plane explains the identity problem, and card testing attacks covers the abuse you still need to stop.

6. Keep the order story complete

After checkout, confirmations, shipping updates, refunds and disputes must reach both the agent and the human buyer. The Agentic Commerce Protocol, for example, includes order webhooks for confirmation, shipping, delivery and refunds. Stripe: Agentic Commerce Protocol Treat these like any payment webhook: deduplicate them and keep state consistent, as described in payment webhooks that arrive twice or out of order.

7. Measure agent orders separately

Tag orders that came through agents and compare conversion, average order value, returns, disputes and support contacts with your other channels. A short pilot with clear criteria beats a broad launch; reviewing an agentic commerce pilot shows how. Payment providers preparing their own products for agents will find the provider-side checklist in agentic commerce payment product readiness.

FAQ

How do I get my products into AI shopping agents?

Provide an accurate structured product feed through a channel agents use, typically via your commerce platform or payment provider, and keep prices and stock current.

Do I need a new checkout for AI agents?

Not at first. You can let agents discover products and redirect buyers to your own checkout, then add in-agent checkout through your provider when it makes sense.

Will AI agents see my card payment details?

They should not need to. Agent payment designs use scoped or tokenized credentials rather than raw card numbers.

Should I block AI bots from my store?

Block abusive automation, but review whether your settings also block legitimate shopping agents that identify themselves.

What product data matters most for AI agents?

Stable identifiers, accurate titles and descriptions, brand and GTIN or MPN, current price and availability, and fulfillment details.