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One of the most significant impacts of generative AI is in customer service. Customer service use cases for AI are almost endless, and generative AI’s ability to deliver engaging conversational experiences in multiple languages 24/7 is revolutionising the customer experience.
Generative AI in customer service is not limited to chatbots; it's also being used for augmented messaging and other self-service resources and can be deployed as a powerful internal sales tool to assist human customer service agents with complex enquiries.
This article looks at the impact of generative AI on customer service, the benefits, and the use cases available for organisations of any size.
McKinsey believes that generative AI could add between $2.6 trillion and $4.4 trillion annually to the global economy. Around 75% of that value could come from four key areas: customer operations, marketing and sales, software engineering, and R&D.
The consultancy firm further says that the banking industry could see value equivalent to $200 billion to $340 billion and retail and consumer goods $400 billion to $660 billion in value annually.
Augmenting work roles could see AI automating 60 to 70% of employee time. This estimate by McKinsey was revised upwards from 50% of employee time by the arrival of generative AI and its ability to understand natural language.
So far, the most common applications of generative AI in customer service are chatbots, AI-powered CRMs, and content creation. We’ve compiled a more comprehensive list of use cases, but as familiar tools and platforms integrate AI to provide even more robust services, this list continually expands.
IBM says customer service is about to take a “massive leap forward,” Gartner predicts that 80% of customer service and support organisations will be applying generative AI technologies. Gartner’s Hype Cycle for Customer Service and Support Technologies, 2023 report suggests we’re maturing to a business reality where AI will enable the “Contact Center as a Service.”
Not only can generative AI take up some customer service functions, but it also becomes a “copilot” for human customer support teams empowered with powerful tools.
There is concern that AI could take the roles of human employees. However, one likely outcome is that workers will upskill to take on complex customer support roles that AI can’t handle, as well as gain responsibility for the oversight of AI-customer interactions to ensure far better customer service and mitigate AI risks.
AI chatbots can answer basic customer service enquiries almost instantly. Generative AI is replacing previous rule-based chatbots, which were limited in their responses, with conversational bots that better understand context and nuances. Beyond chatbots, AI can take up time-consuming, repetitive tasks, leaving more time for employees to focus on delivering quality.
AI tools can now perform in multiple languages, serving customers worldwide or in their first language to improve and speed up customer service. Generative-AI-improved chatbots and AI tools can be easily scaled to handle peak volumes, negating the need for costly demand scheduling strategies.
Generative AI can identify issues that need escalation to human customer service agents. AI-enabled internal tools can offer live assistance to human agents, accelerating their work and improving customer resolution outcomes. As AI picks up volume, employees have more time for complexities.
Hubspot, sharing 24 statistics that prove why personalisation is important, says 90% of consumers find personalisation appealing, and 92% of marketers reveal customers and prospects expect a personalised experience. Powerful CRMs can log every customer interaction and identify preferences to ensure agents understand customers and can easily demonstrate this understanding as they interact with them.
Although many workers fear AI will replace them and up to 44% of companies may make layoffs because of AI in 2024, there is also a wealth of opportunity for employees who embrace AI. Customer service employees benefit from upskilling to use AI and to work efficiently in partnership with AI tools. They will also benefit from the training and experience in delivering the complex facets of customer service and providing human oversight to mitigate the risks of generative AI. Forrester predicts that enterprise AI initiatives will boost productivity and creative problem-solving in the workforce by 50%.
Improved customer service means customers stay with a company, product, or service and become repeat purchasers. Generative AI chatbots, tools, and insights can help identify leads and upselling opportunities that drive new revenue creation.
We’ve only begun to touch on the benefits of generative AI in customer service and its ability to transform the automation that’s been impacting business operations for some time. The actual benefits vary from one business to another, but generative AI is already significantly disrupting the customer experience and delivering a bottom-line advantage for many companies.
Next, learn why RevOps and AI are the Perfect Combination or What AI Can Really Do for GTM Teams.
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