AI has tremendously changed the face of customer service – raised the bar on customer experience, improved process efficiency, and lowered the overall operational expenses.

Companies all across the world are battling for customer experience and they are finding new ways to get it. As such they are turning to technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Advanced Analytics to stay connected and engaged with customers.

AI can be more useful to provide intelligent, convenient, and informed customer experience across the journey in the form of personalized emails, chatbots, and other hyper personalized experiences.

The adoption of AI-driven automation has increased to a considerable number, providing businesses with the opportunities to go beyond operational efficiency and reduced costs. Now, data-driven intelligence is improving the quality and speed of decision-making. And, above all, AI is redefining the customer experience, which is a key brand differentiator over price and products.

As many industries are tapping into the potential of AI to respond to the changing customer needs, it is certain that AI and new intelligent technologies will continue to play a phenomenal role in shaping this new brand identity.

Through this infographic, we’ll see how AI is a game changer in CX and take a look under the hood at the macro trends to scale personalized experiences and explore the use cases where AI can be applied.

Customer Experience is the New Brand Identity

The customer lifecycle begins with the first interaction, such as a popup window or email notification, ultimhttately making a product purchase or using a service. It goes to the next level with the use of the product or in some instances getting customer support. The better the customer experience with a brand, the more delighted the customers will be. Today, 86% of buyers are willing to pay premium prices to receive extraordinary experiences from brands. They make impulsive purchases after having personalized interaction with the brand. In fact, it has been found that 72% of customers with positive service experience are likely to share their experience journey with 6 or more people.

On the flip side, 92% of customers walk aMacro Trends: Business Adoption of AIway from the brand or switch the brand due to an unpleasant customer experience. These customers are also particular about the website features, navigation, and functionality. A research says that 57% of customers won’t suggest a brand to other customers if it has a poorly designed website on mobile. This clearly indicates that customer experience is the key brand differentiator as customers no longer base their loyalty on products and services.

Related: Why a Customer Experience Strategy Is Needed

How AI can Enhance the Customer Experience

According to a research conducted by Adobe, 77% of consumers are already interacting with AI. And nearly half of Americans have been using AI-voice assistants to make their life easier. On the company front, companies with a customer-centric mindset are driving 8% higher revenue than other counterparts in industry. Moreover, companies outpacing in the CX journey are performing 80% better than the companies with the least focus on CX.

Positive customer experience can help brands strengthen the long-lasting relationships with their customers. It turns a one-time buyer into repeat buyers for that brand. Companies are increasingly experimenting with AI, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, NLP, and Advanced Analytics to achieve enhanced customer experience.

Macro Trends: Business Adoption of AI

It’s no surprise that businesses across industries are turning to virtual assistants and AI based chatbots to provide excellent support and customer service. Chatbots on websites have become an integral part to handle customer interactions efficiently. A Salesforce research on customer service forecast a massive 136% increase in the adoption of AI-enabled chatbots. Other than customer support, 80% of retail and consumer products companies are leveraging AI automation to not only improve efficiency and operational agility but to empower decision-making and uplifting customer experience. In healthcare, the success rate of chatbots is going to increase by 70% in the coming year. 70% of marketing agencies are harnessing the power of AI to build customer-centric marketing & sales strategy.

Ways AI is being Implemented

In the current times, leading enterprises have broken the hype around AI and are investing heavily in the new technology to augment customer experience efforts.

AI enhanced customer experience is being implemented to a broad range of business functions, such as Chatbots, Virtual Assistants, Personalized Recommendations, Intelligent Predictions & Customizations.

AI powered chatbots are immensely helpful in solving a lot of ongoing customer experience problems by providing real-time assistance. According to a Microsoft study, AI will power 95% of customer interactions using live telephone and chatbots. One such example is Opun Limited, where the company is using a chatbot service to handle customer home decoration queries. Talking about the business impact, some studies reveal that AI chatbot services can save up to $8 billion on yearly basis.

The next big implementation is Virtual AI Assistant, which is not different from what you use in your smartphone. Such type of AI uses neural networks to collect user information and perform tasks like appointment scheduling, customized reminders, or opening an account. For example, Swedish Bank SEB uses a virtual AI assistant to assist users on how to open an account and how to make payments. Implementing virtual assistants can help 70% of agents in automating routine tasks that would allow them to focus on more complex work.

Another important business function is Personalized Suggestions & Dynamic Marketing, which is about presenting customers with related product suggestions that did not even know they required. Today, 71% of B2B marketers use AI for personalization to drive revenue. For instance, the customer experience team at Spotify uses algorithms based on users listening data to understand musical preferences, which then allows the app to offer personalized suggestions. These personalized recommendations & options help businesses see a huge 50% increase in hot leads & conversions.

The fourth important business focus of AI is Intelligent Predictions & Customizations that help brands in driving huge profit margins. Today, 84% of businesses say AI will enable them to gain a competitive advantage. For instance, Hopper, a travel app, offers flight recommendations to travelers based on highly accurate pricing predictions using a predictive algorithm. It also unlocks exclusive deals relevant for travelers. Another important example is Amdocs Academy that uses ML based personalization engine to recommend suitable learning courses to employees. With AI in personalization, companies earn more than 30% of their revenues from fully digital products.

How to Put Artificial Intelligence in Action

Organizations are embracing Artificial Intelligence to augment customer experience efforts along with reducing costs and boosting revenue. To achieve significant benefits of AI, companies must identify the use cases and the data sources needed to implement those use cases.

Support Change Management to Increase AI Adoption

• Develop trust in predictive analysis with progressive adoption of ‘data culture’

• Upskill manpower for seamless AI implementation

• Migrate from legacy systems that doesn’t support AI

• Encourage AI/ML with onboarding executives or agency that are expert in latest technologies

• Align business strategy with AI for growth and efficiency

Identify Business Use Cases that reflect Value Proposition

• Improving customer service with process automation

• Conducting sales & marketing impact analysis

• Predicting demand to plan logistics in the supply chain management

• Reducing operational costs with data-backed resource management

• Streamlining product enhancements based on customer feedback/recommendations

In the end, AI is an inevitable tool that companies can, will, and must use to enhance customer experience. Explore new ideas with data-driven analytics and take AI packed action to keep pace with the ever-changing needs of your customers.