Let’s talk about the customer experience elephant in the room:

Your customers expect way more from your company, but they’re spending less.

You’re making tons of investments in CX, but customer loyalty is harder than ever to maintain.

The Feedback Paradox: Praise Outside, Churn Inside

Customers give you great feedback (when they give you feedback at all) but even long-term clients are switching to competitors.

You want to meet customer expectations, but sometimes you feel like they’re not realistic–let alone feasible.

You’re trying to anticipate the next consumer spending trend, but economic uncertainty and the 12-year customer confidence low just keep you guessing.

You’re stressed out, you can’t figure out what you’re doing wrong, and you feel like you’re falling behind.

You’re Not Imagining It

And you’re far from the only one feeling it.

My advice?

CX leaders and executives have to stop thinking of their customers as “the other.” Yes, your customer base has unique needs, motivations, and demographics.

No, your customers are not homogenous.

But they’re still people.

Don’t get so lost in the AI arms race that you forget about the CX basics: customers want you to respect their time, their money, and their individuality.

If your latest CX strategy and new AI power tools don’t help you do those three things, then your customer loyalty will continue to decline.

This doesn’t mean AI shouldn’t play a role in customer experience--far from it.

What does it mean?

The AI Trap: Tools Before People

Your current CX strategy is focused on what AI can do for your company instead of what AI can do for your customers.

The right way to leverage AI for CX?

Respect your customers’ time by identifying which types of interactions virtual agents resolve faster, and which interactions human agents resolve faster. Don’t force customers to talk to a bot for 10 minutes when a live rep could have answered their question in 30 seconds.
Respect your customers’ money by rewarding them for their loyalty. In exchange for their business, give them unforgettable customer service, discounts that reflect their lifelong investment in your brand, and a thriving brand community they feel personally invested in.
Respect your customers’ individuality by recognizing that each customer interaction exists in the context of all their previous interactions with your business. Hyper-personalize their experience to show customers you understand and respect the things they care about.

Yes, CX is evolving at warp speed. Yes, you still have to be agile to compete. Yes, having an AI-powered customer experience that’s truly “transformative” means you’ll end up spending more money than you would have liked at the start.

But the ROI of investing in your solutions that make the customer experience better has been proven time and time again.

Don’t Confuse Innovation With Reinvention

AI doesn’t mean you have to reinvent the CX wheel.

It just means you have to think about how AI can help that CX wheel roll better than it ever has before.

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The CX Elephant In The Room