Artificial Intelligence Enables Better Data-Driven Decisions
And for good reasons. AI-powered systems process, sort and analyze copious amounts of data, extracting patterns much more quickly and deeply compared to humans or even first generation data analytic tools. AI systems also infuse an added dimension of context to the analytics, adding potency.
For instance, luxury hotel brand Dorchester Collection set a new paradigm by developing a custom AI-powered analytics system that leveraged content from the many online review sites to evaluate nearly 7,500 guest reviews from 28 hotels across 10 brands, to deliver the findings in a 30-minute video.
AI Understands Customer Needs Better
AI’s ability to consume and analyse vast amounts of data from various sources enable accurate and fast prediction of customer buying behaviour. For instance, an AI-powered system could collate weather forecasts to stock up on umbrellas and raincoats.
Today, few customers have the time or even the inclination to painstakingly type in their requirement and search the inventory. AI’s image recognition capabilities allow the customer to simply click and upload the image of a dress she likes. The AI engine would locate a similar match from the stock inventory, or even better, work towards sourcing a similar dress from available sources anywhere in the world.
Artificial Intelligence Delivers a Human Touch to Automation
Gartner estimates that by 2020, 85% of a client’s relationship with a business will be managed without interacting with a human. Such widespread automation brings benefits in terms of accuracy, internal cost-cutting and process efficiency. However, unbridled automation comes with the risk of losing the personal touch, and with it the capability to get a nuanced understanding of the customer. Also, it is impossible to hand-program automated system with rules to handle every conceivable customer history.
Artificial Intelligence offers the best of both worlds. Chatbots and other virtual assistants leverage AI to obey commands or answer questions, understanding customer requirements through simple conversations. AI powered solutions such as Amazon Alexa, Siri, and Nest thermostat, make recommendations, automatically order goods and services, and do more, after understanding customer preferences. The Intelligent prediction and customization that AI brings into the automation mix could make customers feel as if the brand experience was tailored just for them.
AI Drives Extreme Personalization
In retail, the top 1% of customers is usually worth 18x the value of an average customer. Engaging with such high-value premium customers requires extreme personalization, which goes much beyond a customized interface.
Extreme personalization is breaking down customer segmentation to one and takes the form of customer-tailored promotions delivered at the right time to the right device, ensuring timely and relevant touch-points. The Royal Bank of Scotland delivers a good paradigm through its new AI-powered system, which flags customers who repeatedly overdrafts their account, and triggers appropriate bank personnel to contact the customer with financial advice.
Artificial Intelligence Powers Innovative Customer Service
Companies who innovate to offer a differentiated experience, while still being rooted in customer wants and preferences, enjoy a sizable advantage over their competitors.
Today, the overwhelming preference is for consistency across touch points. However, customer behaviors are chaotic. The rules of engagement are undefined and way beyond the comprehension of an ordinary data analytic tool. Customer facing executives and call center agents often falter since they have no way to understand the customer’s entire history and derive insights from it in real time.
AI-powered advanced analytic engines find patterns across an overwhelming number of data points, overcoming such hurdles, and in the process deliver a coherent experience across all enterprise touch points. For instance, AI enables the call recording system to analyse customer sentiment during calls, transcribing it, and delivering it in a text file, for easy and effective follow–up, and co-opting text analytics to gauge customer sentiment.
Also read: The Importance of Analytics in CX and DT
AI Enhances the Integrity of the System
Consider the case of online ticketing. While offering a world of convenience to customers, it also raises the prospects of cyber-criminals unleashing advanced bots. These bots are especially active during live events (sports championships!) to buy up large blocks of tickets, depleting supply, and then instantly re-selling the same for mark-ups using forums such as Craigslist. Ticket sellers now deploy AI to rewrite the rules, enabling the system to identify and block scraper bots with ease.
The path to memorable customer experience lies in how effectively the enterprise can apply emerging technologies such as AI to enhance their capabilities. AI-powered CX will enhance the quality of interactions between the enterprise and the customer, improving customer trust, loyalty, and netting repeat business.
