AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 13-1199.06
Will AI replace Online Merchants?
Online Merchants: AI can already handle 29 of 34 tasks; the work mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 34 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Online Merchants, from most to least exposed. 29 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare or organize online storefront marketing material, including product descriptions or subject lines, optimizing content to search engine criteria. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Create or distribute offline promotional material, such as brochures, pamphlets, business cards, stationary, or signage. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Upload digital media, such as photos, video, or scanned images to online storefront, auction sites, or other shopping Web sites. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Maintain inventory of shipping supplies, such as boxes, labels, tape, bubble wrap, loose packing materials, or tape guns. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Compose descriptions of merchandise for posting to online storefront, auction sites, or other shopping Web sites. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Develop or revise business plans for online business, emphasizing factors such as product line, pricing, inventory, or marketing strategy. | Observed | Frontier | |
| Calculate purchase subtotals, taxes, and shipping costs for submission to customers. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Fill customer orders by packaging sold items and documentation for direct shipping or by transferring orders to manufacturers or third-party distributors. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Create, manage, or automate orders or invoices, using order management or invoicing software. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Receive and process payments from customers, using electronic transaction services. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Deliver e-mail confirmation of completed transactions and shipment. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Purchase new or used items from online or physical sources for resale via retail or auction Web site. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Determine and set product prices. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Compose images of products, using video or still cameras, lighting equipment, props, or photo or video editing software. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Cancel orders based on customer requests or inventory or delivery problems. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Select and purchase technical web services, such as web hosting services, online merchant accounts, shopping cart software, payment gateway software, or spyware. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Transfer digital media, such as music, video, or software, to customers via the Internet. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Determine location for product listings to maximize exposure to online traffic. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Promote products in online communities through weblog or discussion-forum postings, e-mail marketing programs, or online advertising. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Collaborate with search engine shopping specialists to place marketing content in desired online locations. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Investigate products or markets to determine areas for opportunity or viability for merchandising specific products, using online or offline sources. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Initiate online auctions through auction hosting sites or auction management software. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Measure and analyze Web site usage data to maximize search engine returns or refine customer interfaces. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Investigate sources, such as auctions, estate sales, liquidators, wholesalers, or trade shows for new items, used items, or collectibles. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Implement security practices to preserve assets, minimize liabilities, or ensure customer privacy, using parallel servers, hardware redundancy, fail-safe technology, information encryption, or firewalls. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Participate in online forums or conferences to stay abreast of online retailing trends, techniques, or security threats. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Disclose merchant information and terms and policies of transactions in online or offline materials. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Create or maintain database of customer accounts. | Observed | Standard | |
| Devise, select, or purchase domain name and web address. | Observed | Standard | |
| Correspond with online customers via electronic mail, telephone, or other electronic messaging to address questions or complaints about products, policies, or shipping methods. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Design customer interface of online storefront, using web programming or e-commerce software. | Observed | Standard | |
| Calculate revenue, sales, and expenses, using financial accounting or spreadsheet software. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Integrate online retailing strategy with physical or catalogue retailing operations. | Observed | Standard | |
| Order or purchase merchandise to maintain optimal inventory levels. | Estimated | Standard |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 10 of 34 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 24 of 34. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 100% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 100% of the work is something AI can address at some tier.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 1,087,090
- Median annual wage
- $83,050
- Middle half of earners
- $62,640 to $114,010
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +3.0%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034. BLS publishes these figures by SOC code, so O*NET occupations that share a SOC code show the same figures.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Merchandise Displayers and Window Trimmers 55% skill overlap, about 16 months to move Exposure36
- Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products 54% skill overlap, about 16 months to move Exposure39
- Order Clerks 54% skill overlap, about 17 months to move Exposure43
- Search Marketing Strategists 53% skill overlap, about 17 months to move Exposure50
- Retail Salespersons 53% skill overlap, about 17 months to move Exposure36
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Online Merchants and AI
Will AI replace Online Merchants?
AI already handles 29 of the 34 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 71 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by +3.0% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Online Merchants?
71 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 10 of the 34 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 24 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Online Merchants tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Prepare or organize online storefront marketing material, including product descriptions or subject lines, optimizing content to search engine criteria; Create or distribute offline promotional material, such as brochures, pamphlets, business cards, stationary, or signage; Upload digital media, such as photos, video, or scanned images to online storefront, auction sites, or other shopping Web sites. They are three of the 29 tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 100% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Online Merchants, and what do they earn?
1,087,090 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $83,050 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +3.0% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Online Merchants. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/online-merchants
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