LONDON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–New research into the customer service industry released today reveals that UK consumers are increasingly calling on brands to find ways to improve declining customer satisfaction, especially as customers become increasingly tolerant of poor service.
The survey, commissioned by CommBox, a leading conversational AI-powered digital customer engagement platform, and conducted among over 1,000 consumers and 250 managers from customer-facing organisations, revealed a significant disconnect between brands and UK shoppers: while over 90% of businesses believe their service meets customer expectations, less than half (43%) said they were 'satisfied' with the service they received online in the past year.
Mind the Gap: Disappointed Customers Mean Lost Business
At the root of UK consumer frustration are long wait times (43%), not being able to speak directly to a human agent (37%) and having to use chatbots that are unable to resolve their queries (36%). As automation and AI chatbots become increasingly popular in the customer service toolkit, UK shoppers are also reporting ongoing frustration with the technology, with the majority of consumers wanting AI to be used to resolve their complaints.
But failing to acknowledge poor customer satisfaction can have costly consequences: after a negative experience, 87% of consumers say they will take some kind of action, with 51% saying they will avoid spending money with that brand and a further 30% saying they will look for a competitor. Conversely, after a positive experience, the same number of consumers (87%) will take action and willingly return to the brand they had a positive experience with, and one in four say they are willing to spend more money with that brand.
Bridging the gap: Consumers want AI, but only if it's applied right
When asked what “good” customer service looks like, consumers ultimately want brands to strike a balance in two core areas: speed and responsiveness. The top requirement consumers have for quality customer service is speaking with a knowledgeable person (56%), followed by quick resolution (48%) and the brand being available 24/7 (34%).
The survey highlighted consumer frustrations around the use of technology and AI, particularly with chatbot technology, but also revealed that it is a key area for consumers and brands to seek solutions.
While many Brits are sceptical about how AI will be used and what impact it will have on their employment, the majority (80%) would like to see it introduced into customer service channels to help in areas such as speed of resolution (39%) and ensuring agents have the right knowledge (37%).
The good news is that brands seem to be taking notice, with 45% of companies saying they are just starting to deploy AI across their service functions, and only 1 in 10 have no plans to do so at all. For those planning to do so, areas such as improved automation capabilities (37%) and improved access to knowledge (37%) are top priorities.
Brands seem to be taking notice, expecting to use AI primarily for sentiment analysis of customer inquiries, personalization, automation capabilities, and improved access to knowledge.
Commenting on the survey findings, Dvir Hoffman, CEO of CommBox, said: “The increased adoption of AI creates a unique opportunity to meet customer expectations and bridge the gap between businesses and consumers. Artificial intelligence puts the right knowledge at the fingertips of chatbots and human agents. Now is the time for businesses to safely adopt AI to deliver personalized, on-time experiences that improve satisfaction and efficiency, reduce costs, and drive growth.”
CommBox will be publishing further data from the survey soon. To learn more, please visit www.commbox.io/state-of-cx-2024-report-consumer-trends.
methodology:
CommBox surveyed 1,001 UK-representative consumers and over 251 managers in customer-facing roles within B2C businesses. The survey was conducted in accordance with the ESOMAR principles, which are followed by the Market Research Society.
About CommBox
CommBox is revolutionizing how brands connect with their customers by eliminating the outdated paradigm of live agent intervention at every customer engagement and replacing it with superior automated CX.
CommBox is the world's first and only AI-driven autonomous customer communications platform, enabling hundreds of the world's top brands to deliver complete, smart and personalized experiences across their digital channel suite, automating human interactions and high-volume repetitive inquiries with powerful AI and advanced automation, resulting in increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, improved agent productivity and conversion rates, and unique opportunities for unprecedented business growth.
Headquartered in Israel with a global reach, CommBox was founded in 2013 and is proud to be driving innovation while delivering over 50 million experiences every day, setting new standards for customer communications in the new digital age. CommBox is backed by American equity fund PSG.
For more information, visit https://www.commbox.io/.
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