Using Artificial Intelligence to Improve Customer Experience

Using artificial intelligence (AI) to improve customer experience is gaining popularity with businesses. Why? Well, it’s no secret that keeping your customers happy and satisfied is a key factor in the success of your business. AI capabilities can accelerate the delivery of consistent, smooth, and engaging experiences that customers love. This is especially welcome in this era where products can go viral in a week and consumers suddenly start craving something new. AI enables you to respond with the agility needed to provide almost flawless experiences and services that keep up with demand.

Artificial intelligence addresses many of today’s customer service challenges, from providing more accurate responses to reducing wait times. And it can also help your company create the kind of products and services that customers actually want. They might even end up as TikTok sensations, turning your brand into a household name. (It’s good to have dreams.)

So, how exactly can AI help you dazzle customers so they keep coming back and even advocate for your brand or company?

5 Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence to Improve Customer Service and Experience

With ChatGPT and other generative AI tools now readily available, artificial intelligence is top of mind for many companies. Some are eager to use AI to improve customer service, but others are concerned that customers might object to it. But will they? Here are some interesting stats that show how people feel about the use of AI in customer service and experience, courtesy of SurveyMonkey and Redpoint:

• 52% of consumers are interested in AI that helps them through a product, website, or feature experience.
• 47% of customers are interested in getting personalized deals.
• 42% of customers appreciate AI-driven product recommendations.
• 48% of all consumers say they would interact with AI more frequently if it makes their experience with a brand more seamless, consistent and convenient.

The facts don’t lie. Customers and consumers are open to the use of AI in their interactions with your company and believe it can make engagement easier. So, here are 5 ways you can use AI to improve your customer service:

1. Personalized product recommendations.
2. Streamline customer service.
3. Predict customer needs.
4. Empower proactive engagement.
5. Improve product development

Let’s look at each of these in more detail.

1. Personalize product recommendations with AI

One of the most significant and best-known benefits of AI is its ability to model, aggregate, and analyze vast amounts of data quickly and efficiently.

The power of recommendation engines

AI-powered recommendation engines use machine learning algorithms to analyze customer behavior and preferences–including purchase history and browsing–along with demographic information. They use the output of these engines to provide product suggestions tailored to the needs and preferences of each individual customer.

The personalization effect

The level of personalization delivered by recommendation engines delights customers. In fact, according to a study by Aberdeen and IBM, 33% of customers say that the personalized product recommendations provided by AI increase their satisfaction. These recommendations are also an effective cross-selling and upselling method, which drives additional revenue.

2. Streamline customer service with AI-powered chatbots

AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can help you streamline customer service so that people aren’t passed to multiple agents or asked to input the same information each time they talk with an agent.

The power of chatbots

Chatbots and virtual assistants powered by AI can handle routine inquiries and direct more complex issues to human agents. Chatbots provide 24/7 support. They typically have faster response times than human agents, reducing customer wait times. Meanwhile, your agents are free to focus on more complex issues. Using chatbots for the first line of support also decreases traffic to other support channels.

The benefits of streamlined customer support

From the perspective of your customers, AI-driven customer service means they don’t have to fill out a form to put in a request for simple information. The AI in chatbots and virtual assistants can engage with them conversationally, querying knowledge bases and other sources for answers to their questions rather than passing them to another support level.

3. Predict customer needs with AI and machine learning models

Predictive modeling and analytics powered by artificial intelligence can help your business anticipate customer needs.

The power of AI and predictive analytics

Machine learning models can be used to analyze volumes of historical data to understand patterns and trends and predict what your customer might need. This can be invaluable. In healthcare, for example, artificial intelligence and machine learning can model patient data to predict health conditions, streamline diagnosis, and suggest personalized treatment plans. In retail, AI can discern patterns and trends that help retailers anticipate demand and personalize marketing strategies, resulting in enhanced customer experiences and increased sales.

Understanding your customer to enhance experience

In addition, artificial intelligence can analyze customer feedback, reviews, and social media posts to gauge customer sentiment. By understanding how customers feel about your products or services, you can identify pain points and areas for improvement. You can then make the changes necessary to enhance the overall experience of acquiring and using your products or services.

4. Empower proactive engagement with natural language processing

One of the most exciting opportunities for using AI to improve customer service, satisfaction, and experience is the ability to engage with customers proactively.

The power of monitoring customer sentiment with AI

Just like some AI-powered solutions can analyze customer sentiment data from social media and reviews, others can monitor those same channels to identify customers who may be experiencing issues. Or they can discover customers who may have questions but haven't yet reached out to you. Then, AI-driven chatbots and virtual assistants that have been programmed to respond to inquiries and messages can converse with these customers in real-time.

Relevant responses delivered by natural language processing

Responsive chatbots use natural language processing (NLP) to understand the context and intent of the messages and provide relevant responses without human intervention. By engaging with these customers proactively, your company nips potential issues in the bud and provides a more seamless customer experience.

5. Improve product development with AI and ML

AI can also help improve the overall customer experience by enabling more data-driven product development.

The power of insights delivered by AI

By using AI models to analyze customer feedback, usage data, and market trends together, you can identify areas for improving products or get ideas for new ones. These models can also prioritize product features that will have the most significant impact on customer satisfaction. AI analysis provides valuable insights into customer preferences, pain points, and demands, guiding product development teams in creating solutions that resonate with the target audience.

How accelerated time-to-market can increase customer satisfaction

AI-powered tools can also facilitate rapid prototyping and simulation of product design with capabilities such as digital twins. As a result, your engineers and product designers can test various iterations virtually, reducing the time and costs associated with physical prototyping. Your new and improved products then get into the hands of customers faster, which is a critical step in improving customer experience. Rapid simulation and AI-powered digital twins can help drive innovation and improve the overall customer experience over time.

Take Customer Service Experience to the Next Level with Low-Code

Your customers have high expectations. Smooth and effortless experiences are important to them. Artificial intelligence can play a crucial role in this equation. To make sure that all your needs are met, you should consider building applications that include the AI capabilities needed to transform your customer experience. There are tools that can help.

Using artificial intelligence and machine learning, the OutSystems high-performance low-code platform provides accelerated development, enhanced user experience, and advanced analytics. It also offers connectors and features that enable you to add AI into your web, mobile, and contact center application.

Learn more about how OutSystems can help you build applications with AI capabilities by visiting the AI-for-applications page or reading this blog about the new ChatGPT connector available in the OutSystems Forge.