3 Ways to Improve Your Brand’s Customer Experience With AI

Good customer experience is essential for helping your business stand up against the competition, hold on to customers, and retain talent. Sometimes, small changes like folding AI into your processes can offer the workflow and business optimization you need. Below are three ways AI-powered software and systems can help you better serve your customers. 

Good customer experiences won’t just make your business stand out: They’ll help your business stand up to everything from economic recessions to labor shortages.

Right now, consumers are hungry for exceptionalism, efficiency, and delight. Eight out of 10 shoppers surveyed by Qualtrics and ServiceNow admitted that they’ve stopped engaging with at least one business in the pursuit of improved customer experiences. By Qualtrics’ estimates, this shift in customer behavior has the potential to collectively cost companies $3.6 trillion in missed sales.

In other words, you have 3.6 trillion reasons to focus on improving your customer experience. You don’t have to hire more people or totally switch up your operations to do so, though. Sometimes, making small changes — like folding AI into your processes — can offer the workflow and business optimization that you and your buyers deserve.

As such, how can your business leverage AI-powered software and systems to engage and retain customers?

1. Give your customer support reps AI assistants.
   If your business is like most, you’re probably using some kind of AI chatbot on your website. AI chatbots can serve as exceptional frontline customer service tools. Not only can people get 24/7 help, but they can maximize their time, too.

   Still, some problems require a human touch because they’re more emotional or complex. In those situations, AI can play a background role. For instance, AI assistants can “listen in” to customer support reps’ conversations. As the AI assistants “hear” specific words, they can begin to fetch information for the reps. This allows the reps to focus on the conversation rather than spend time looking through tabs or data.

   This process gives the best of all worlds. It elevates your reps’ abilities to gather data quickly, which in turn speeds up the resolution process. An Aircall eCommerce Customer Service Experience Survey shows that about 96% of customers are unwilling to wait in a queue longer than five minutes to speak with someone. Consequently, the faster your reps can make callers happy, the better.

2. Get more from your customer data thanks to AI.
   Every business amasses tons of data each day. It would take forever for your team to sort through it all and find trends. You don’t have that kind of time or ability on your own — but AI-backed programming does.

   CEO Peter Szalontay of DataMilk, an AI tool that autonomously optimizes the user interface of e-commerce websites, explains that many e-commerce sites assume they don’t have the sophistication to use AI to improve their site’s UX — but that this is a costly misconception. He says, “Our research shows that shoppers generally exhibit over 50 clicks and hundreds of other interactions (such as scrolls) before making a purchase. This data is incredibly useful, and with sufficient data science and engineering resources, it can be used to train models that accurately predict a user’s intent and adapt the store’s UI accordingly.”

   With the information in hand, you can then remap — or simply refine — all your customer experiences. Make no mistake: Whittling away at large and small friction points can have a serious benefit. Customers are sensitive to delays of as little as 33 milliseconds. Every little bit you shave from those friction points gets you one step closer to a positive, sticky customer experience designed to impress.

3. Predict what customers want to see and hear next with AI.
   Did you ever wish you had a way to understand your customers so deeply that you could tell what they wanted you to do next? Let AI be your guide.

   AI’s predictive technology makes it possible for your team to deliver a personalized experience that seems intuitive and natural. McKinsey’s findings indicate that 7 in 10 people expect personalization from their favorite brands. The brands that live up to those expectations are 40% more apt to boost their revenue streams.

   As long as you have some customer history, you can tap into AI to figure out different customized pathways. For instance, AI may uncover that customers who buy Product A are more likely to buy Product B six weeks later. Knowing this, you can anticipate the purchase with appropriate messaging. From the shopper’s perspective, you look like a mind reader when really, you’re just doing a little data reading.

Even if you think your company’s customer experience is the best in its class, you can’t afford not to bolster it with AI. Startups and existing competitors that do use AI to improve business will distract your buyers with seamless interactions, which could ultimately prompt them to stop engaging with you. To maintain your competitive advantage in today’s competitive market, ensure that you prioritize integrating AI technology into your operations.

Written by Rhett Power.
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