Editorial
The Gist
- Collect quality data. Streamlining data capture to focus on relevant, premium data will support improved AI customer service tools functionality and precision-led machine learning.
- Pair automation with the personal. AI efficiency and data capabilities can create a more effective personal touch along the customer journey.
- Remember that AI is a tool, not a process. Basing all customer service operations on AI is risky when not adequately handled.
There’s no doubt AI customer service tools have transformed the capabilities of customer service, especially in consumer-focused companies. These days, customers want to find that answer they are looking for quickly with a satisfactory resolution to their issue — not be on hold forever.
In order to keep pace with the market and stay ahead of competition, the vast majority of businesses have installed AI customer service tools in one or more service channels.
A recent survey by Gartner found that 54% of respondents are using some form of chatbot or other conversational AI platform for customer-facing applications. The prediction is that chatbots will become the primary channel in customer service before the decade is out.
The rapid adoption of AI customer service tools might make seeing the bigger picture challenging — and clearly evaluating how AI tools are managing data effectively for customer journey enhancement.
Key Benefits of AI Customer Service Tools
With AI’s success in other strategic industries, it’s no wonder customer-facing businesses want to get in on the act. AI involvement almost certainly feels inevitable for companies wanting to mitigate risk and boost their offerings across their omnichannel support for consumers.
In truth, acknowledging the risk factors involved in exponential AI service growth can be a sensible place to start in the evaluation of your company’s management of its AI customer service tools.
We know that customers want results in reduced and refined timeframes. A 2022 IBM report reveals that among people who reach out to a company through social platforms for customer support, 32% expect a response within 30 minutes, and 50% expect a response within the hour.
This level of expectation can create huge pressure burdens for human customer service teams and may be costly in terms of financial commitments for businesses, which prompts companies to search for cost-effective solutions. Luckily, AI tools can provide the answer.
According to the aforementioned research, an AI chatbot has the capability to handle 80% of routine customer queries, thus delivering a 30% cost reduction in customer service provision overall. In fact, companies that integrate AI into their CS strategy can increase average revenue returns.
Related Article: AI-Augmented CX: The New Horizon of Customer Service
How Implementation of AI Customer Service Tools Can Disrupt Operations
Shifting to AI-powered customer service tools evidently delivers measurable results and benefits for consumer-facing businesses. Nonetheless, this is a relatively new frontier for many brands.
Some believe that without the development of a strategic blueprint for the implementation and management of AI solutions, there will be substantial challenges in deployment within customer service.
So, let’s talk about five potential AI hazards in the customer service space:
Missing Those Metrics
If a company is facing an uphill struggle with AI chatbot implementation or the role of other AI customer service tools, a reduced facility to monitor and optimize metrics may be the reason why.
Learning Opportunities
Webinar
May
9
Driving Customer-Centricity in the Financial Services Industry
Discover how financial organizations are leveraging generative AI technologies.
Register
Conference
May
9
An Irish Roundtable in the Valley: The Economic Impact of AI on the World of Work Stanford 2024
Exploring the Impact of AI On the World of Work with Irish diaspora leaders and tech business champions from the North of Ireland
Register
Measuring both success and failure is an essential protocol when it comes to advancing any new strategy, either through AI or more traditional methods. Quality data collation and evaluation are vital to a well-performing customer service department.
This means tracking, assessing and adapting AI solutions — and how CS teams work alongside them — helps remove needless automation and highlights the best aspects for future evolution.
Automation Over Personalization
When AI systems are rapidly integrated into customer service operations, a significant gap between how these services deliver results and the experiences of consumers may arise.
Without the ability to interact with human teams when required, the customer can feel somewhat dissatisfied and frustrated about their needs not being met in a timely manner.
If AI is optimized to improve customer data collation and create quick, efficient pathways for customer service agents to find answers to queries instantaneously, then these scenarios will undoubtedly help support a more effective service.
Using predictive technologies to anticipate customer questions — and helping staff recover improved responses — can cut wait times and reduce workload. Overall, this AI-inspired roadmap may retain greater levels of customer satisfaction.
Absent AI Training
Without suitable and up-to-date training in AI customer engagement, no employee will be able to maximize the potential of your company’s AI solutions to provide excellent customer service.
Regular guidance that keeps pace with the latest AI innovations may sound more costly for your business, but they’re worth it. There is simply no point in investing in AI-driven customer service if your teams cannot use valuable data and insights to create more precision-led decision-making.
To add to this point, research by Gallup revealed that engaged employees are 21% more productive and 59% less likely to move on from their team. Being confidently in charge of AI-driven customer service empowers employees, making them feel aligned with the technology and capable of delivering key improvements in customer service.
Confused Customers
Although your AI chatbot has been kept busy, are your customers best served by this process? Do you have an AI chatbot team, assessing what is happening on the ground on a daily basis?
The main purpose of integrating innovative customer service solutions is to move the dial from good customer service to excellent customer service. This means being omnichannel present and ensuring that wherever your customers are talking, you’re listening and responding effectively.
If your customers feel unheard or unable to resolve a sticky issue, then your AI-powered customer service provision needs refinement to transform every aspect of the customer experience.
Overlooking Omnichannel
Companies that don’t provide omnichannel communication are going to fall behind the times. Customers want to connect in different ways at different times for a wide range of reasons.
Put simply, consumers like to have access to self-service channels for speedy resolution of less complex issues. For example, they may want to communicate with a brand over social media to get quick answers to spontaneous queries. But for more complicated scenarios, calling human customer service teams may be the route they choose to take.
Final Thoughts on AI Customer Service Tools
Future-focused brands are seamlessly combining AI-powered proactive communication with intent recognition and conversational AI to create highly personalized, advisory interactions that fulfill each and every customer’s needs.
In sum, AI customer service tools and chatbots are here to stay. Now, the challenge lies in how to optimize this technology, rethinking touchpoints on the customer journey to reduce friction and propel customer satisfaction.
Learn how you can join our contributor community.
