What Your Customers Really Want Based on Consumer Research

Have you ever ever thought of how an expertise can have an effect on your clients? Not too long ago, I had one of many worst buyer experiences of my life. I wanted to contact my insurance coverage a few declare, however the course of was an absolute nightmare. The decision maintain occasions had been virtually 2 hours lengthy, the customer support consultant was unknowledgeable and unhelpful, and the method was extremely difficult. 

This expertise left me feeling annoyed and offended, and every single day, clients encounter the identical frustrations. 

Good or unhealthy, a buyer expertise can fully change the best way somebody thinks about an organization. An excellent customer support expertise goes past merely assembly the naked minimal. It means offering pleasant, customized, and reliable help wherever and every time the client wants it. Sadly, many companies encounter challenges attempting to ship this stage of service.

To not fear although, on this three-part weblog collection we’ll focus on how one can navigate your buyer preferences and frustrations and the way AI-powered customer support may also help exceed their expectations.

Understanding the Secrets and techniques Behind Buyer Preferences

Not too long ago, we engaged a third celebration analysis agency that helped us research buyer expectations. The Buyer Expertise (CX) Benchmark Report helped us unlock the constructing blocks of an distinctive buyer expertise. Our survey makes use of direct shopper suggestions to reply questions like:

How do customers really feel about AI, and can they use AI-powered digital assistants?
Do customers desire AI-powered chatbots or stay customer support representatives?
What’s the high buyer frustration, and the way can I stop it?

The most recent CX Benchmark Report could be a helpful software to examine buyer expectations and what issues to them probably the most. Wish to skip forward and dive into the report? Learn the Report  

Now, let’s get into it and take heed to what the true MVPs – your clients – need to say. 

In regards to the Report:In partnership with Farrell Perception, a strategic perception specialist, Kore.ai has launched into a mission to give you unparalleled insights. As a part of an ongoing perception technique, we’ve engaged Farrell Perception to conduct three main nationwide research in 2023, specializing in benchmarking, trackable knowledge, and invaluable insights associated to Buyer Expertise (CX), Agent Expertise (AX), and Worker Expertise (EX).

Our custom-crafted on-line research concerned surveying a various group of 500 American customer support brokers or representatives at present employed in touch facilities, each on-site and remotely. These respondents, aged 18-75, signify varied areas of the USA and embody generational and gender variety to align with trade tendencies. The survey was performed in April 2023.

How do customers actually really feel about AI-powered customer support?

These days, there was an enormous surge in curiosity in automated assistants, with growing recognition because the arrival of ChatGPT. The 2023 Buyer Expertise Benchmark Report revealed that there have been vital interactions between customers and automatic assistants. Within the final yr alone, 39% of individuals have had no less than one interplay with a primary chatbot, whereas 32% have labored with a extra clever AI-powered digital assistant (IVAs). 

This report additionally discovered that this rising demand for automated assistants in customer support wasn’t simply an curiosity – it was an expectation. 57% of customers count on corporations to embrace cutting-edge automated assistant expertise in customer support interactions. 

Not solely do customers count on this stage of innovation, however additionally they view these corporations as valuing their time and having a deeper understanding of their wants. By staying forward of the curve and investing in superior customer support options, companies can improve their status and foster stronger connections with their audience.

Even brokers see the worth of AI-powered digital assistants – with roughly 7 in 10 agreeing that clever digital assistants are good for the client and agent alike. 

Can AI-Powered Digital Assistants enhance buyer frustrations?

It is no secret that customer support can generally be a significant headache. For a whopping 79% of customers, customer support turns into irritating after they need to repeat their scenario or drawback over and over. This irritation is aware of no bounds, affecting folks from all walks of life, no matter their gender or age group. The very last thing customers need is to really feel like their time is being wasted. 

61% of customers additionally discover it extremely irritating after they can’t attain a stay agent and respect when an automatic assistant (IVA) intelligently determines when to switch the decision. With the power to seamlessly transfer buyer historical past from channel to channel and robust intent recognition, these clever bots can deal with clean handovers from self-service to stay assist. 

Do customers need AI-powered chatbots or stay customer support representatives?

Whereas it could seem to be a no brainer to go for stay customer support, this story takes an surprising flip. Individuals are more and more counting on AI-powered digital assistants to handle fast points or when pressed for time. Each AI-powered chatbots and stay brokers work collectively to create nice buyer experiences. Adweek additionally seen this pattern, discovering that 65% of customers really feel comfy dealing with a problem and not using a human agent. 

Do you know that two-thirds of customers desire getting updates on their orders inside 30 seconds from an Automated Assistant relatively than ready for a stay agent? Salesforce discovered the same stat, with 69% of customers preferring to make use of chatbots as a result of they supply immediate responses. 

Why waste your valuable time when you will get the data you want lightning-fast with an AI-powered digital assistant? Solely a 7% hole in approval scores for IVA (70%) and Dwell Agent (77%) modes nonetheless exists, however shopper choice for IVAs is rising for each easy and sophisticated interactions.

The true function of clever digital assistants is to reinforce the connection between customers and gross sales or customer support representatives by facilitating customized conversations. As an alternative of changing human interplay, this AI-powered expertise will work alongside people to supply a extra partaking expertise for customers.

Why there’s a rising appreciation for AI-powered digital assistants

Prospects at this time extremely prioritize effectivity and comfort with regards to self-service choices. Nonetheless, additionally they count on a top quality expertise that’s usually missing with conventional chatbots. The 2023 Buyer Expertise (CX) Benchmark Report outcomes point out that clients are not prepared to compromise on high quality for the sake of comfort.

Now greater than ever, clients demand accuracy, velocity, and experience of their interactions with automated self-service programs. They need these programs to have the ability to perceive their wants and supply them with related info shortly and precisely. That is the place conversational AI, generative AI, and enormous language fashions (LLMs) come into play.

Because of developments in expertise, IVAs (Clever Digital Assistants) powered by these cutting-edge applied sciences can now meet the evolving wants of consumers. These clever assistants are designed to supply not simply effectivity and comfort but in addition a excessive stage of accuracy, velocity, and experience.

It is time to take your buyer expertise technique to the subsequent stage.

Feed Your Curiosity!

Your journey into Buyer Expertise insights does not finish right here. Take a deeper dive into the information and insights inside our Buyer Expertise Benchmark Report 2023.