A new survey claimed that 71% of UK brands invested in AI (artificial intelligence) services to attract consumers over the Christmas and New Year period. Credico UK investigated if this is really what consumers want.
A study released this month from managed cloud communications provider Olive Communications found that 71% of UK retailers invested in AI to improve customer service over the Christmas period and into 2019. The study found that the key driver for this investment is to increase the speed in which customer queries are resolved. Specifically, having to repeat their issue to multiple agents is a core frustration among consumers.
Credico UK is pleased to see that brands are acting quickly to improve the customer experience and resolve customer problems more efficiently. However, the firm is concerned that relying too heavily on AI could cause more harm than good.
Relevant Research
Research published back in March by PwC found 59% of customers are concerned that brands are so focused on automation that they’ve lost touch with the customer experience. The results made plain the difference a human element can make when dealing with issues.
“When something goes wrong for a customer, they want more humanity and for a brand to offer a personalised resolution. Relying on AI at this crucial point in a customer’s journey is risky, and could leave customers feeling dissatisfied or frustrated that their issue wasn’t fully resolved, due to being unable to speak one on one with a real person,” outlines a spokesperson for Credico UK.
The firm itself offers nationwide coverage of the UK and Ireland, armed with first class communicators available to support new customer acquisition, customer retention, product promotion and product utilisation efforts.
It Doesn’t Take Much
Credico UK also points to PwC research in revealing that 60% of consumers would drop a brand after just a few sub-par experiences. The firm is asking brands to think carefully before implementing an AI led customer service system;
“These technologies are meant to be time-saving. But if consumers are unhappy with the AI experience and still want to speak to a customer service agent to resolve their issue, brands need to make it easy for consumers to do this. Forgetting the value of personable support is not an option in this current climate and will drive customers away. If brands are keen to integrate some form of AI in 2019 there needs to be balance. Often, in-person support at retail locations can be the quickest, easiest and most personal way of resolving customer questions,” concludes Credico UK’s spokesperson.