'The customer is always right?' Is AI the antidote to bad customer experiences? | Opinion

“The customer is always right” may be the most famous expression of customer loyalty, but do businesses and brands consider it an antiquated slogan from a by-gone era?

The world of instant gratification we live in today is vastly different than it was at the turn of the 20th century when the earliest known printed mention of the phrase appeared in a September 1905 article in the Boston Globe about pioneering retailer Marshall Field.

Today, customer satisfaction is historically low.

A recent survey by Arizona State University's W.P. Carey School of Business found Americans are experiencing record-high problems with products and services, with 74% of customers surveyed reporting issues, up from 66% in 2020 and 56% in 2017.

The numbers don’t lie.

Worldwide, organizations are putting $3.7 trillion annually at risk because of bad customer experiences, according to research from Qualtrics XM Institute.

U.S. businesses risk losing $846 billion annually because of poor customer service, according to the research, which found that more than half of consumers reduce or stop spending with a brand after a negative customer experience. 

As a result, I am seeing the most forward-thinking companies and industries I work with from finance to healthcare take a different approach to customer service.

They are using customer service solutions and technologies to build a tighter bond with their consumers. They are changing the old mindset that customer service is a cost center and instead view it as an opportunity to build loyalty and grow revenue through standout experiences.

AI in customer care came in handy during the pandemic when the city of Austin was inundated with questions from concerned citizens.

The city used an AI-powered chatbot to quickly deploy an interactive and intuitive communication tool that could deliver information about the public health crisis 24/7.

Since then, we have seen AI powered virtual assistants deployed across industries ranging from banking to government, healthcare to insurance, and of course retail.

AI might not be a panacea to poor customer service, but I believe it can be a powerful ally in an organization’s pursuit to create experiences that can help customers, foster loyalty, and drive growth.

First, I strongly believe the best utilization of AI is not to replace human interaction, but to enhance it and decrease the friction in the customer experience.

Freeing up human agents so they can pivot to more personalized customer engagements—where it matters most—is one of the most immediate ways organizations can offer enhanced value to customers, differentiate their brand, and begin transforming customer service from a cost center into a revenue accelerator.

As an example, a public utlity deployed AI to enhance its customer support and streamline workload management. Their AI-powered contact center chatbot replaced their antiquated phone-tree system with 100% reduction in customer wait time, increased customer self-service by 50%, and improved CX by 100%.

Simply put, AI can help lighten the load for customer service agents who are often overworked and underpaid.

AI isn’t just a buzzword anymore, it’s a catalyst for business transformation. By harnessing its capabilities, businesses can elevate customer satisfaction, build lasting relationships, and change the long-held perception that good customer service is a thing of the past.

So, let’s welcome AI support in the pursuit of customer satisfaction.

Piccininni lives and works in Austin where she leads IBM's Global Salesforce Service Transformation practice, delivering Customer Care, Contact Center and Field Service transformations for clients.