CX Insights
A tale of two chatbots
Automated customer service may all feel the same to consumers, but CX pros know that not all chat tools and experiences are interchangeable. Here’s an example:
In its Q4 earnings call, Royal Caribbean shared how with a 35% increase in usage of its customer service chat app, it cut down its physical customer service line onboard ships by 20%. That’s a clear way to use automation to deliver a better travel experience - less time in line, more time on vacation.
Meanwhile, Virgin Money’s chatbot told off a customer for using the word “virgin” which, as you may have noticed, is in the brand name. The exchange happened on an older chatbot model that was relying on basic language processing models.
It’s a humorous yet clear example of what happens when you run against the limitations of a rules-based chatbot. AI-powered customer service can do a lot, but this illustrates how it is not just a plug-and-play solution. Taking the time to set it up and customize it to your brand’s needs and the lingo your customers use is essential to having it work smoothly
Get your CX questions answered
It’s still early in the realm of AI-powered customer service, but automation has already made big changes for customers and agents alike.
It has us all thinking: what will a CX workforce look like in the near future?
Audrey Weber and Sam Chandler are taking on your questions about how the CX workforce will evolve in a live, interactive session.
Tune in on Tuesday, February 11th at noon ET.
Register today!
Beauty brands: how are you meeting support needs?
The number of e-commerce users for the skincare segment alone has grown for 12 consecutive years and is estimated to reach 1.1 billion people by 2029.
The projected biggest growth channel for sales? E-commerce.
If you want to capture this additional revenue by being where your customers are and delivering a better customer experience, you'll need the right support platform.
Read more on why beauty brands need an all-in-one customer support platform.
AI Insights
Tech titan Google makes big waves
- The AI race is heating up in big tech with news breaking of Google’s planned $75B spend on capital expenditures (up from $52.5B last year) to facilitate AI investments.
- Google Cloud is also expanding its partnership with ServiceCloud to bring generative AI into the enterprise technology stack, bringing this technology to millions of users.
- Saving the best for last: within Search Lab, Google launched an AI Agent that can call businesses to handle inquiries for you, piloting with nail salons and mechanics. Here’s how the experience works: the user fills out a questionnaire about what information it needs or appointment it wants to make, then the AI Agent calls on the user’s behalf and they get an email with the responses from the business. It’s a similar experience to using a chatbot or inquiry form from the customer’s side, but can help them reach small businesses that just have a phone number and lack customer service tech.
All of these developments show how AI is becoming more integrated into our everyday lives from the tech companies we use most. Consumers, regardless of their current feelings of AI, will over time adjust and come to expect the convenience and level of service it brings.
How are you keeping up with AI in your CX org?
Interview Insights
How does a former tech cofounder approach CX? I chatted with Jared Loman, the Head of Operations and CX at Kick, He says, “the root of every successful business is where a win for the customer is a win for the business.”
We dig into what CX lessons he gained from his engineering background:
- Getting comprehensive data visibility as soon as possible
- The implications when CX agents miss context
- Why it’s so important not to over-engineer solutions
Check out the full interview with all the insights here.
