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Customer experience is the most competitive front line that organizations are competing in. The stakes are high — plenty of customers will ditch a brand if they encounter a negative experience or feel as if their interactions with a brand are impersonal. In this environment, organizations need to do all they can to optimize the experience for their customers.
The goal is to drive an end-to-end customer experience by helping users find what they need, starting with self-service and transitioning to human interactions when and where it becomes necessary. From prospects researching on your product page to arming agents with the right information to close cases faster, your organization should provide a seamless, cohesive experience no matter where customers are interacting with you.
In a recent webinar, Dan Gingiss, chief experience officer at The Experience Maker joined Kerri-Anne Beech, senior product marketing manager and Paul Sheridan, sales engineer at Coveo for an in-depth conversation on the current state of CX and how AI tools are well positioned to improve customer experiences.
Self-Service, Human Interaction and Where AI FIts
Many customers embrace (and often prefer) self-service as a means of finding answers to their questions. “If we have to talk to people we want it to be quick and painless; this is why self service is critical,” Gingiss noted. Yet this aspect of CX can often prove tricky for organizations to solve for. Coveo research suggests that some of the biggest problems that make up a negative self-service experience include the inability to find the right information, inconsistency in communication or getting the wrong information in generative answers.
And yet, while customers prefer self-service, they still want to interact with a human for more complex or sensitive issues. This showcasing the need for a seamless experience from self-service to agent support. It's a balance. AI can bridge the gap by helping customers find what they need on their own, while empowering agents with the right information to provide a better and quicker experience when customers need it.
Search is a Critical Facet of CX
Information findability and search have the biggest impact on brand perception, according to Coveo’s most recent CX industry report. Customers expect online transactions to be as good or better than in-person interactions. AI will play a pivotal role in promoting information findability.
Gingiss believes your search bar contains a wealth of information on customer behavior, just waiting to be discovered. “If you have a search bar on your site then you should be reviewing what people are searching for,” GIngiss said, “because they’re telling you what they’re looking for and what they are or aren’t finding.”
Having a search function that is seamless and shows the customer exactly what they want is key to building customer loyalty and fostering trust. “Search is the front door to your content and organization; if you can’t give the customer what they want then you aren’t going any further with that customer,” said Beech.
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Embracing AI Throughout the Organization
It should go without saying, but digital CX represents the entire user journey — including current customers, prospects and employees. For this reason AI shouldn’t be deployed in a vacuum; it works best when implemented throughout the organization as opposed to certain departments or ecosystems. Everyone owns the customer experience, so AI tools should be applied consistently across the entire organization to create a cohesive, end-to-end experience for the user.
“How you solve for many user journeys is by having knowledge of the entire enterprise available so vital customer intel isn’t stuck in silos,” Gingiss said. AI is a crucial tool for delivering superior customer experiences, from providing predictive query suggestions to generating answers and personalizing the support experience. All this is possible only if customer experience is a true end-to-end experience.
Conclusion
Customer experience will only continue to grow as a critical differentiator for businesses. How well organizations listen and respond to their current and potential customers will set exceptional organizations apart from the competition. As Gingiss says, “When we consider the customer in our decisions we make better business decisions.”
Customer experience isn’t just customer service experience; it’s the end-to-end CX that happens from the time prospective customers first learn about your brand to their purchase and beyond. Your tools should reflect this holistic approach to CX, equipping customers with the tools to find answers to their questions and agents with the ability to tackle more complex issues when a human interaction is preferred. Now is the time to examine all the ways customer experience can impact your business, from your internal to your external portals, and see where to incorporate AI tools for best results.
Watch the webinar AI and the Customer Experience on demand here.
