Benefits of Artificial Intelligence in Customer Service

Artificial intelligence is now being used virtually everywhere around us. Maybe it's still far from the sci-fi scenario where robots are as smart as us humans, but still, its capabilities are already tremendous. 77% of the devices we already own use AI in one form or another.

Businesses from various fields and industries have also successfully incorporated artificial intelligence-powered technologies into their own organizations. That might be in the form of live chat, automatic monitoring and maintenance of factory equipment, or voice recognition technology, for example.

One industry in particular that can benefit from AI-powered tools is customer service. With the help of a virtual assistant or voice recognition technology, companies can provide a better, more personalized service to each and every client.  And they can do this while also taking some of the mundane work off their employees' shoulders, giving them more time for taking care of other tasks.

How exactly could your customer service department benefit from integrating artificial intelligence? Let's take a look at 10 of the most significant advantages.

Benefits of Artificial Intelligence in Customer Service

1. Handle Large Volumes of Data

The more customers you have and the more often you interact with them, the more data you have about them. But analyzing such large amounts of information manually is virtually impossible, no matter how talented your team might be. Humans simply can't process and compare endless amounts of data. 

For AI-powered tools though, analyzing tons of information in seconds isn't the slightest challenge. So by using them to analyze your previous and existing customer data, you can quickly learn more about them and make predictions about their future behavior. By doing so, you could create targeted marketing campaigns or pinpoint the most common issues and complaints that your clients have, among other things.

To take full advantage of AI data analysis powers though, you should use a CRM tool. The more data it has to work with, the better the results it can produce. But AI won't do well if it only has a few Excel spreadsheets as a source of information…

2. Pinpoint Customer Needs and Expectations Better

Finding new product or service users and growing their brands is what every company strives for. But in times when the level of customer support that is provided may actually be more important than the product, a weak or inefficient support strategy can make it much harder for companies to become successful. 

This is especially true now that consumers have become quite demanding. Even if they don't always know the causes of their problems, they do know that they want their issues resolved quickly and efficiently. That's why it's essential for you to know your users well and be able to pinpoint anything that might be troubling them.

With the help of AI solutions and the vast amount of data they can provide, this is getting easier than ever with every passing day. Just by taking a glance at the reports generated by AI, you'll be able to figure out exactly what your customers want, how to deliver it, and how you can change your services to suit them better.

As a result, your support agents will be able to deliver outstanding support much more quickly and easily. Plus, by providing exceptional customer support to your users, they are also far more likely to recommend your brand to others. This ultimately leads to more people buying your products or services.

3. Reduce Average Handling Times (AHT)

While we are on the topic of improving customer support, are you looking for a way to cut down the time your agents spend on each call? AI in the form of chatbots or passive voice biometrics can also be incredibly helpful here.

Since chatbots can answer basic inquiries and requests immediately, people don't have to wait for an agent to get their problems solved. Instead, they can simply ask the chatbot for help.

Using passive voice biometrics can also noticeably decrease the time spent by your agents on each interaction, as the caller can be identified within three seconds just by analyzing the way they speak. If your agents are regularly required to verify each caller's identity, using voice biometrics instead of traditional verification methods will reduce the time spent on each call while ensuring that all customer information remains fully confidential.

4. Offer Proactive Support

Customer satisfaction can be boosted by responding promptly to all requests and reducing the time it takes for an agent to solve callers’ problems. Nevertheless, if you want to offer a truly outstanding level of customer support, you also should anticipate and, if possible, resolve any issues before users even have to think about contacting you.

Again, the data-gathering powers of AI can be incredibly useful here. After it analyzes and sorts out the customer information in your database, AI can point your attention toward questions or issues that arise especially often. Then you can create an FAQ with solutions to those problems so that consumers who come across them won't have to search for the answers.

Chatbots and virtual assistants can be particularly useful for providing proactive support. Since they can continue working 24/7, they are a great way to offer your customers the chance to resolve their issues even when your agents are unavailable. By enabling users to get in touch with you anytime they need, you can give them a far better experience and also improve your brand's reputation.

5. Adapt to Changing Situations

The true strength of Ai-powered solutions comes from their ability to learn and adapt to new situations. In general, the more data the AI has about your business and industry, the easier time it will have matching its suggestions and recommendations to your company's goals.

What's more, this data can give you a significant advantage over your competitors. But it's not just about providing a better service than your rivals. 

With AI, you can easily keep track of current market trends and adapt your business to the changing landscape of your industry. This will make you more competitive when compared to other companies in your industry and, in turn, you will be able to make a better impression on current and new customers.

6. Easier Performance Tracking

If you are thinking seriously about boosting your customer support efforts, you must know what works and what doesn't in your business while keeping an eye on your employees' performance. AI-powered solutions make this a piece of cake.

Almost all modern platforms offer a wide variety of analytic and reporting tools with which you can analyze the performance of your team inside and out. From the number of calls that each of your support reps handles during the day to how long each call takes, you can have all the details right on your dashboard regardless of how many employees you have or where they work from.

A typical analytical dashboard is easily customizable as well, so you can track the metrics that matter the most for your company without being overwhelmed with dozens of other key performance indicators that you aren’t as interested in.

7. Predict Future Trends

Another benefit of AI for your brand is that it can also identify trends that you might otherwise miss. For example, how useful would it be for you to know when you receive the largest number of calls (and thus need more staff) or when your agents are usually idle? AI platforms can give you such knowledge, and far more. 

AI can identify the current trends for your brand, but it can also project future directions of the market. You can then use this information to determine how to improve your customer service efforts or how likely your new product or service is to be successful.

Of course, AI is not a crystal ball - it requires enough quality data input to make viable predictions for the future. That's why providing it with as much quality information as possible is so important. AI can then "see" as clearly as possible about your current operations and the state of the industry and thus make far more accurate predictions.

8. More Time to Focus on Complex Problems

AI can handle most smaller tasks on its own, leaving your employees with more time for higher priority jobs. Consequently, agents can focus on the more complex support issues they face and ensure all customers are taken care of.

After all, when you don't have to worry about dozens of small but time-consuming tasks and can access all the data you might need at your fingertips, you can focus entirely on the people who are reaching out to you for help. Of course, that doesn't mean you can leave the AI working on its own completely - from time to time, the platform might need some manual input to ensure that everything is going in the right direction.

9. Service and Product Personalization 

91% of consumers say they are more likely to shop with brands that provide tailored offers and relevant recommendations. What's more, 80% of those who classify themselves as frequent shoppers say they only shop with brands that personalize their experience.

With personalization, we can find products on Amazon we would like to buy or be recommended series to watch on Netflix based on previous behavior. However, it would be impossible for those and many other brands to match each user with the products or services they might like without the help of artificial intelligence.

The power of AI allows brands to build unique profiles of individual users and then keep modifying them based on those customers’ behavior. By using data such as location, browsing history, and purchasing decisions, AI can provide hyper-personalized products, services, and content for each user that is targeted specifically to their individual needs. That way, brands can offer tailored content and support to each user, meaning a fantastic customer experience.

10. Cut Costs

Artificial intelligence might sound like an expensive "toy" to have in your company, but the initial costs can be returned back to you in no time. Automating some simpler tasks, freeing up your employees' time, and allowing them to handle more customers are just some of the benefits of AI-powered customer service. As a result, you can gain far more for the time and money that your employees spend.

But what should pique your interest especially is that AI analytics can point out ineffective or money-draining places in your strategy and provide suggestions on how you can cut costs there. This will save you time and money that would otherwise be spent on such operations. 

In short, AI-based customer service will help you save money and earn more.

Conclusion

It's impossible to ignore the impact of artificial intelligence on customer service and all other industries. In fact, doing so could put your organization at risk, as your competitors might have already started using Artificial intelligence to boost both their support efforts and their revenue.

So make sure to explore what AI can offer you, as it is not just a passing trend that will disappear soon. On the contrary, we have many reasons to believe AI is here to stay, and it will only become more prevalent in many sectors of our lives. That's why you ought to make sure that you're on the right side of the AI fence right now.