The article further explores the role of technology in customer experience (CX), stating that while technologies like chatbots have been transformative, they also have shortcomings and can leave customers frustrated. The author introduces the concept of generative AI (GenAI), which is seen as a way to balance cost and service delivery at scale. However, the author warns against over-reliance on AI, emphasizing the need for a balanced service model that includes both AI-powered and agent-supported channels.
Key takeaways:
- Despite customer expectations being higher than ever, many companies are cutting their customer service budgets, with technology and specifically artificial intelligence (AI) playing a significant role in these decisions.
- Technologies like chatbots have been transformative in handling high-volume, repetitive tasks, reducing the number of required agents and allowing them to focus on high-value interactions.
- Generative AI (GenAI) is seen as a potential solution to balance cost and customer service delivery at scale, with its ability to learn from historical data and understand context, language and prompts.
- However, it's important to strike a balance and not overstep with AI adoption, as not every customer engagement can or should be automated. A service model that encompasses multiple AI-powered touchpoints is recommended.