ChatGPT unleashed AI to the masses. Though artificial intelligence and machine learning are not new, in the last few months generative AI like ChatGPT and others moved out of the IT lab and onto consumer devices to become available to anyone with a use case and sense of adventure.
Launching any large-scale generative AI program in the customer experience space must be done carefully, methodically, and with the right set of CX tools and expertise. If done right, AI has enormous potential to significantly change how customers interact with brands, and how brands do business.
According to Goldman Sachs, generative AI is predicted to boost labor productivity and increase global GDP by 7%, representing nearly £5.6 trillion.
In addition, aspirational efforts to reduce friction in the customer experience will become reality as vast amounts of data and machine learning help improve personalisation, speed, and quality across the customer journey for customers and employees.
The impact of AI on the customer experience
Large language models flip AI from a rules-based engine based on scripts to a model that is trained to learn and create something new (the generative in generative AI), including answers to customer questions. Instead of making users follow a specific path through a maze to get information (rules-based AI), generative AI takes them directly to the answer with pinpoint accuracy.
However, the quality and success of AI is entirely dependent on the quality of information and training it receives, as well as ongoing refinement and learning. Poor training or faulty data will lead to “hallucinations” and wrong information.
In the CX world, a poor AI experience can do more to destroy customer trust than no AI experience at all. So it’s incredibly important that CX leaders understand where and how to deploy AI within the contact centre and at moments that matter in the customer experience.
TTEC sits at the intersection of AI and CX, combining technology and human intelligence to help the world’s leading brands optimise experiences at the point of conversation, whether conducted by a human or AI.
We understand the value of a brand’s customers, and why firms are cautious about applying new AI technology to elements of the customer and employee journey. Potential costs savings and reduced customer friction can be hard to balance against the risk of destroying customer value.
Introducing the TTEC AI Centre of Excellence
TTEC recently launched its AI Centre of Excellence for Customer Experience -- https://www.ttec.ai -- to explore the topic with a customer experience and contact centre lens. This global community of leaders from across the TTEC ecosystem includes experts from the company's technology, analytics, consulting, IP, and vertically focused operations practices. This cross-functional team is working together to continue to develop solutions, thought leadership, guardrails, and guidance to help companies explore this exciting new AI-enabled frontier.
The centre emerged from AI-driven work that is already being done with TTEC clients across the globe, including data annotation and enrichment; AI-enabled virtual assistants to quickly train licensed associates and support front-line associates with knowledge management and contact summaries; and the recruitment of AI trainers, prompt engineers, conversational designers and managers to support the growing need for AI experts in the CX environment.
In our work so far, four key themes have emerged as top thought leadership topics for brands looking to thoughtfully innovate their customer experience with AI. As a result, we are launching a new content series based on these themes to provide resources and insight that educate the market as AI matures and evolves:
- AI foundations – What you need to know about AI’s past, present, and future and how it fits in current and future CX ecosystems
- Humans in the loop – AI is about augmentation, not replacement. Explore where, when and how people play a role
- AI + CX – Where AI has the biggest impact on customer experience efforts and the applications of AI in the CX domain
- Responsible AI – Examination of the guardrails and capabilities needed to manage AI in appropriate, ethical, and responsible ways
Stay tuned for upcoming content and insight on TTEC.AI, TTEC, TTEC Digital, and the Customer Strategist Journal to inform and assist CX leaders in their AI efforts from TTEC experts across the enterprise. It’s an exciting time, and decisions made now can lead to a more CX optimised organization and happier customers.
