What is your strategy for leveraging the recent advances in generative AI? Google has now released their Bard system and Microsoft has integrated ChatGPT by OpenAI into their Bing search engine. Companies and consumers are all experimenting with these tools and this is creating new expectations for the customer experience (CX).
Why is all this development changing customer expectations?
Customer service very quickly became a key use case of generative AI. Think of the chatbots that many brands are using for a wide range of applications from fraud detection to tech support. Often, they fail if a question is not asked in precisely the correct way or the bot can only handle the simplest of enquiries.
Yet the same customers can now see how simple it is to get very helpful information from a tool like ChatGPT. Customer expectations are bound to increase as the early adopters demonstrate a marked difference in service levels.
There is also an opportunity to dramatically improve systems inside contact centres as well. Many manual processes, such as writing call notes, can be transferred to AI effectively, giving every agent a digital assistant.
But as with all new and emerging technologies, it helps to have a robust strategy in place.
Companies that quickly invest in technology because it is in the news often regret this haste later on because they allow the technology to define their actions—rather than prioritise the needs of the customer.
Without a stable CX footing to build on, AI technology within the contact centre will fall flat.
Where to start? The AI readiness assessment
TTEC has created a 10-question assessment as a place for you to start. Our CX strategists built this benchmark around four key competencies that are critical for AI and customer experience success:
- AI and business: What outcomes do you hope to achieve with AI and how does your business strategy align with those goals?
- Customer interactions: How do your customers view your self-service and automation capabilities today?
- Associate augmentation: In what ways can AI improve associate productivity and engagement?
- Analytics and platform: What tech platforms and analytics tools do you need to power your AI strategy?Our team has deep experience with AI and bots. We have delivered these systems for many clients in the U.S. and that knowledge can be transferred to our European clients—along with our recent experimentation with the latest generation of AI. Our approach keeps the customer at the centre of the conversation.
Based on our readiness assessment, organisations get a detailed report and a rating. Wherever your organisation lands on the rating scale of the assessment, you’ll have taken a solid step forward on developing your AI capabilities. In addition, TTEC offers a customised workshop with a team of experts. Access our AI readiness assessment here.
Meeting customer expectations
The Institute of Customer Service recently published research indicating that 2 out of 5 customers actively avoid companies that are using chatbots. Although this research was only published in September 2022, that does predate the latest wave of generative AI that commenced in November last year.
The opportunity to improve both employee and customer experience with AI is real. There is a chance to really help customers, rather than force them to look elsewhere. However, it does require planning and collaboration. This is where our team has years of experience that we can apply to these emerging systems.
