The future of contact centres: integrating people & technology

The use of AI is now commonplace in most contact centres, allowing businesses to automate call routing, provide self-service chatbots to handle simple queries, and even offer real-time guidance to agents during calls. AI’s success is so widespread, that in 5 years, it’s predicted that half of all enquiries in contact centres could be handled by AI.

Clearly, AI presents a wealth of opportunities for efficiencies and cost reduction, but it also needs to be approached with caution. Rely on it too much, and customer frustration could follow – leading to a lack of trust and even a damaged reputation.

I believe a hybrid approach, balancing AI with the human touch, is the key to providing the best possible customer experience. Why? Read on…

How do customers feel about AI in CX?

We recently conducted research into customer sentiment towards AI in customer service, to get a true picture of the current mood across the industry. Our report, Customer Service in the age of AI, showed a demand for simpler customer service, particularly 24/7 availability and speedier response times. And overall, many customers expressed an appreciation for how AI tools can make their experience with a business feel more efficient.

However, 53% of our research respondents preferred human interactions in customer service, sharing that the emotional intelligence, contextual understanding and personalised reassurance offered by people made all the difference to their experience.

The main issues customers flagged surrounding the use of AI in customer service were irrelevant or inaccurate responses, the inability to escalate to a human or not trusting AI’s ability to handle more complex requirements.

The ideal role of AI in customer service

So, based on the above, what is the ideal role of this tool in delivering the best possible customer service? Tool is the key word here, and it’s essential businesses remember that AI is not a replacement for traditional human support – but an assistant.

Key tasks for AI in CX

• First-line 24/7 customer support: Straightforward or more transactional queries through self-service chatbots can be handled quickly and efficiently by AI.
• Repetitive, low-value tasks: Call listening, speech analytics and call summaries are important tasks, but they take time. Handing them off to AI frees up your agents to focus on more emotionally sensitive areas.
• Agent support and training: AI can deliver real-time knowledge and response assistance, helping agents to handle queries live, rather than needing to follow up on calls at a later date. And when it comes to ongoing training, AI can analyse conversations to identify areas for improvement, from product knowledge to communication skills.

Above all, it’s important to know your customer base and the nature of your products and/or services when identifying tasks suitable for AI. For example, I believe AI is a no-go for emotionally sensitive or difficult situations, as this requires the delicate approach only a human can offer.

The power of human agents in customer service

As I’ve already explored, sometimes, you can’t substitute the power of human empathy and experience in handling customer service queries. Here’s how people are put to best use in CX:

• Bringing empathy and experience to complex, multi-layered cases: Humans bring lived experience and emotional intelligence to situations where frustrations and stress run high. Having a person deal with these queries can help to de-escalate a situation and increases the likelihood of the customer leaving the interaction with a positive experience.
• Building trust and reassurance for customers: Trust is at the heart of customer loyalty, and our research shows that people trust people a lot more than they trust AI.
• Making decisions in grey areas where context matters: Not every customer service issue is straightforward. While AI systems are trained on patterns, they don’t have the emotional intelligence to weigh up more nuanced situations or look at the bigger picture.
• Acting as a safety net for AI-driven systems: AI is still learning, and errors can still creep in. That’s why it’s important to maintain the safety net offered by people in CX – so they can step in when AI falls short.

Hybrid is best: balancing human and technology with Sigma Connected

87% of our survey respondents believe customers should always have the right to talk to a human, so clearly AI cannot replace the need for human agents at this stage. It should be used to help your people do a better job.

That’s why a hybrid CX model is the most efficient, effective approach – with AI being used for simple repetitive queries, leaving human agents free to deal with complex queries that require deeper contextual and emotional understanding.

If AI is embraced in the right way, the whole customer journey can be enhanced – and so can your brand’s reputation. Are you ready to find your ideal approach to AI, while keeping your customers at the heart of every decision you make? Get in touch with our team today, and we’ll help you strike the right balance between technological advancement and the human touch.