If You Don’t Like Change, You’re Going to Hate Extinction
GUEST POST from Shep Hyken
Depending on which studies and articles you read, customer service and customer experience (CX) are getting better … or they’re getting worse. Our customer service and CX research found that 60% of consumers had better customer service experiences than last year, and in general, 82% are happy with the customer service they receive from the companies and brands with which they do business.
Yet, some studies claim customer service is worse than ever. Regardless, more companies than ever are investing in improving CX. Some nail it, but even with an investment, some still struggle. Another telling stat is the growing number of companies attending CX conferences.
Last month, more than 5,000 people representing 1,382 companies attended and participated in Contact Center Week (CCW), the world’s largest conference dedicated to customer service and customer experience. This was the largest attendance to date, representing a 25% growth over last year.
Many recognized brands and CX leaders attended and shared their wisdom from the main stage and breakout rooms. The expo hall featured demonstrations of the latest and greatest solutions to create more effective customer support experiences.
The primary reason I attend conferences like CCW is to stay current with the latest advancements and solutions in CX and to gain insight into how industry leaders think. AI took center stage for most of the presentations. No doubt, it continues to improve and gain acceptance. With that in mind, here are some of my favorite takeaways with my commentary from the sessions I attended:
AI for Training
Becky Ploeger, global head of reservations and customer care at Hilton, uses AI to create micro-lessons for employee training. Hilton is using Centrical’s platform to take various topics and turn them into coaching modules. Employees participate in simulations that replicate customer issues.
Can We Trust AI?
As excited as Ploeger is about AI (and agentic AI), there is still trepidation. CX leaders must recognize that AI is not yet perfect and will occasionally provide inaccurate information. Ploeger said, “We have years and years of experience with agents. We only have six months of experience with agentic AI.”
Wrong Information from AI Costs a Company Money—or Does it?
Gadi Shamia, CEO of Replicant, an AI voice technology company, commented about the mistakes AI makes. In general, CX leaders are complaining that going digital is costing the company money because of the bad information customers receive. Shamia asks, “How much are you losing?” While bad information can cause a customer to defect to a competitor, so does a bad experience with a live customer service rep. So, how often does AI provide incorrect information? How many of those customers leave versus trying to connect with an agent? The metrics you choose to define success with a digital self-service experience need to include more than measuring bad experiences. Mark Killick, SVP of experiential operations at Shipt, weighed in on this topic, saying, “If we don’t fix the problems of providing bad information, we’ll just deliver bad information faster.”
Making the Case to Invest in AI
Mariano Tan, president and CEO of Prosodica says, “Nothing gets funded without a clear business case.” The person in charge of the budget for customer service and CX initiatives (typically the CFO in larger companies) won’t “open the wallet” without proof that the expenditure will yield a return on investment (ROI). People in charge of budgets like numbers, so when you create your “clear business case,” be sure to include the numbers that make a compelling reason to invest in CX. Simply saying, “We’ll reduce churn,” isn’t enough. How much churn—that’s a number. How much does it mean to the bottom line—another number. Numbers sell!
Final Words: Love Change, or Else
Neil Gibson, SVP of CX at FedEx, was part of a panel and shared a quote that is the perfect way to end the article. AI is rapidly changing the way we do business. We must keep up, or else. Gibson quoted Fred Smith, the first CEO and founder of FedEx, who said, “If you don’t like change, you’re going to hate extinction.” In other words, keep up or watch your competition blow past you.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com.
Image Credits: Pixabay
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