Customer Experience AI requires substance and it must be effortless

Customer experience AI must be of substance or it is doomed to fail.

Let us explain.

AI has virtually slipped in and integrated into our lives. That spam feature in your inbox that filters out dangerous and soliciting emails? Thank AI for that. Recommendation algorithms from Spotify or Pandora that suggest artists and songs based on your previous listening habits? AI. Virtual assistants, such as Siri or Alexa, who can ascertain context and intent based on your former requests and tone of voice? You guessed it, AI. In our modern world, you can run from AI but you can’t hide, try as you might. 

AI in the business world

Besides the ease this technology brings to our daily lives, it has shaken up the way businesses interact with their clients. Intelligent routing and online customer support are just some of the ways these kinds of advances enhance customer self-service while updating the customer experience.

There are incidents where AI can do more harm than help, though. Have you ever been incorrectly routed to a department that couldn’t help you after speaking with a robot? That’s pretty frustrating, right? First of all, you already spent a good chunk of time trying to solve the problem on your own so you could avoid having this interaction in the first place. Now, you’ve wasted more time waiting for them to redirect you to the correct person. 

The point is, when AI isn’t able to appropriately respond to a customer’s needs, it is increasing the amount of effort customers exert in order to get their needs met. This is the opposite of what any company wants.

There’s someone behind the curtain

The problem is that there are AI experiences more focused on form than on the quality of the experience. When it comes to customer experience, an effortless experience must be the primary focus. If scripted interactions are the focus instead, frustrated customers will become part of your future.  

If the bedrock of AI is tech functionality—the artificial part of AI—it misses the most challenging part of getting AI right over the long term: the “intelligence” part rises and falls on an algorithm that, by nature and design, is incomplete.

Remember that robots aren’t capable of thinking on their own, they are programmed by humans. The team who teaches the machine and the way they teach it directly impacts the amount of value AI can bring to a business. Effective AI-based speech analytics platforms require Intellectual Property (IP) roadmaps. The AI roadmap provides a solid foundation of knowledge to start; the machine draws conclusions at a rapid clip not because of tech functionality, but because people taught it to look for specific correlations. 

Customer Experience AI as a CX asset

AI done right can be the key to excellent customer service and an outstanding overall customer experience. When the right information is provided at the right time and place, everyone’s lives can be simplified. When correctly tuned, machine learning can be one of the most powerful assets in your CX toolbox.

If you’re ready to start using effective customer experience AI speech analytics in your organization, request a demo with Tethr today.