A Management Consultant with over 35 years experience in the CRM, CX and MDM space. Working across multiple disciplines, domains and industries. Currently leveraging the advantages, and disadvantages of artificial intelligence (AI) in everyday life.
In a remarkable development that’s making waves across the customer experience management (CEM) world, today, several major companies announced the successful implementation of advanced AI-driven chatbots to revolutionize their customer support and engagement strategies.
So, what makes these AI chatbots so special, and why are they becoming an integral part of modern CEM? These intelligent virtual assistants are designed to understand natural language, learn from interactions, and provide instant, accurate responses to customer queries, all while offering personalized experiences. The result? Faster, more efficient support and dramatically improved customer satisfaction!
The benefits don’t stop there. By handling routine tasks and frequently asked questions, AI chatbots free up human agents to focus on more complex or emotionally sensitive issues, ensuring customers receive the right kind of support at the right time.
One striking example of AI chatbot success comes from a leading e-commerce platform that reported a 40% reduction in support ticket volume and a significant boost in customer satisfaction scores, all thanks to their new chatbot team members.
But it’s not just about customer support. AI chatbots are also transforming marketing and sales, helping businesses engage with prospects and customers in real-time, guiding them through the buyer’s journey with personalized recommendations and assistance.
As AI chatbot technology continues to evolve, the impact on CEM is likely to be profound. We can expect faster resolution times, more personalized experiences, and overall happier customers, all while reducing operational costs for businesses.
Join the conversation and share your thoughts on the future of AI chatbots in customer experience management. How do you see this technology reshaping the way businesses interact with their customers? Let’s explore the possibilities together! #AIChatbots #CEMTransformation
Today, the customer experience management landscape witnessed a seismic shift as Emotion AI, a cutting-edge technology, emerged as the new driving force behind exceptional customer experiences. In a move that has sent CX experts buzzing, several industry-leading brands announced their adoption of Emotion AI to revolutionize their customer interactions.
But what exactly is Emotion AI, and why is it creating such a stir? This groundbreaking technology leverages artificial intelligence to detect, interpret, and respond to human emotions through voice, facial expressions, and body language. By integrating Emotion AI into customer interactions, companies can now offer personalized, emotionally attuned experiences that foster loyalty and satisfaction like never before.
Imagine a world where customer service representatives can gauge your mood and adjust their responses accordingly, or where marketing campaigns can be tailored to evoke specific emotions, enhancing their impact. The possibilities are endless, and the potential benefits for both customers and businesses are immense.
This paradigm shift is already making waves across various industries. Retail giants are harnessing Emotion AI to provide empathetic in-store experiences, while airlines are exploring its potential to offer personalized in-flight entertainment based on passengers’ emotions.
The adoption of Emotion AI is not only an exciting development for customer experience management but also a testament to the power of innovation. By combining advanced AI capabilities with a deep understanding of human emotions, businesses can foster stronger connections with their customers, fueling growth and long-term success.
Join the conversation and share your thoughts on the potential of Emotion AI in revolutionizing customer experience management. How do you envision this technology shaping the future of customer interactions? Let’s explore the possibilities together! #EmotionAI #CXRevolution
Today, in a groundbreaking revelation, tech enthusiasts and data wizards around the world are rejoicing as a revolutionary new data storage technology has been unveiled! Say goodbye to traditional hard drives, and hello to the future of data storage: Quantum Crystal Storage (QCS)!
The team behind this phenomenal innovation, led by Dr. Evelyn Starling, has successfully demonstrated how QCS can store colossal amounts of data within a tiny crystal, no larger than a grain of sand. This extraordinary leap in technology has the potential to change the face of data storage as we know it.
So, what makes QCS so special? In a mind-blowing combination of quantum mechanics and nanotechnology, QCS harnesses the power of individual atoms within a crystalline structure to encode data. This allows for unparalleled storage capacity and astonishing retrieval speeds, all while consuming minimal energy.
Just imagine the possibilities: pocket-sized devices with the capacity to store entire libraries, lightning-fast data transfers that make current speeds seem like a crawl, and a massive reduction in energy consumption across data centers worldwide.
The unveiling of QCS has sent shockwaves through the tech world, with industry giants scrambling to incorporate this game-changing innovation into their products. The potential applications are endless, from revolutionizing cloud storage to transforming the way we interact with big data and artificial intelligence.
But it’s not just the tech industry that stands to benefit. The environment could see massive gains too. QCS’s minuscule energy requirements could significantly reduce the carbon footprint of data storage and help pave the way for a greener, more sustainable future.
Stay tuned as we dive deeper into the world of Quantum Crystal Storage, exploring its potential impact on our daily lives and the technology landscape. Don’t forget to share your thoughts and predictions for the future of data storage in the comments below! #QuantumCrystalStorage #DataRevolution
In this two-part series, I will cover the importance of understanding what, how, why and when centralized versus decentralized technology will impact how you interact with your audience / customers. The focus of messaging will be from a publish versus subscribe perspective.
As the debate over data ownership, privacy, monitoring and yes, even the freedom of speech intensifies, the dynamics and architecture of our technical platforms will become even more critical. Individuals and companies that are deciding how to develop, launch and support their products and services will need to think about their long-term vision and what type of control they (ex. Developers, Publishers, Influencers, Retailers) will require to ensure the items will be available when and where needed.
Differentiators
Centralized Technology: All users are connected to a central server that stores complete network data and user information.
Advantage: Standardization, Control, Administration and Monitoring – Usage Example: YouTube, Banking Systems
Disadvantage: Data Vulnerability (see Hackers), System Failure (Redundancy Required), Centralized (single point of attack)
In certain scenarios, the generic cloud computing model can be considered this type of technology, I’ll explain shortly. Typical Situation; Perhaps you have all of your technology (ex. applications, data, hardware) centrally located, at your home, or office. When you need to maintain, upgrade or retire the technology it is your responsibility to take care of it. You, in theory “own” the technology, infrastructure and any potential headaches / issues that may arrive with that responsibility. Yes, you may have a service agreement, or license that keeps you up to date and running, but the sole responsibility is in your hands.
Then in the mid-2000’s came the advent of the commercially available cloud platform, as I briefly mentioned and referenced above. Now you have the option to put the technology that you in theory “own” and all of the inherent issues (ex. updates, backups, scalability) into the hands of someone else, but obviously for a fee / subscription. This became a great option for those that wanted to ensure they had the latest software, hardware, availability and protection, especially from lost information, provided to them via an SLA (Service Level Agreement). All the usual players have stepped-up to offer these services, primarily since they already had the hardware (in most cases), resources and infrastructure available to be leveraged. The names you should be familiar with, Amazon AWS, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure own the largest market share of this technology as of early 2021.
This offering has become ideal to those that do not want to invest in quickly outdated hardware and software, plus if you are selling products and services any downtime, or lost data (vendors often have backup/restore options) can be critical to your business. When adopted, you now own the creativity, business model, growth and vision, plus your products and services are available “on-demand” to the public, while the technology infrastructure and administration of it (to some, the unfortunate part of doing business) is being administered and executed by a 3rd party.
However, now I want to remind you of what was mentioned in the opening paragraph, regarding the long-term vision for your products and services. Always keep in mind that you are at the mercy of the Terms and Conditions of the contract you signed with your service provider. It is not uncommon for these T&C’s to be updated, or modified numerous times per year. You may receive an email with a 45 page PDF file attached, that is full of legal jargon, and you just click the <AGREE> button and never think twice about it. While your business model, products and services being offered may have not changed, there might have been a wave of cultural, political and social changes that now put your ideas, products and services out-of-favor and no longer something that your service provider wants to “support” via their infrastructure. Overnight, that centralized offering that you adopted with open hands may now be unavailable to you, your organization and the audience / customers you count on. The vendor ultimately is in the right, because you are no longer adhering to the Terms and Conditions of doing business with them, which you early agreed to in that email that you gave little attention to. Now you may be in trouble and starting to scramble for any option, or alternative that will keep you and your business afloat. Being proactive, versus reactive is the key to surviving the just-in-time climate that we are forced to live with.
In a centralized model, always ask yourself the following in advance:
How much control do I “need / want” over what is being offered from me, or my organization to the public (ex. Are my products, services deemed edgy, controversial, opinionated, trendy, or focused towards a particular audience)
How much control do I “have” over what is being offered by me, or my organization (ex. Are channels, comments, endorsements, feedback and input allowed without moderation)
If my platform, or vendor suddenly became unavailable, how would I respond and reach my audience / customers – Always have a backup and/or disaster recovery plan and options ready in case the inevitable happens
Do I know my audience / customer and their expectations – Is your business meeting the needs of your audience, or is it being constrained by the terms and conditions of the service provider
Do I understand the value of data, privacy, reputation and protecting it – This is not just for you and your organization, but also your audience and customers
In my next Post, I will explore Decentralization and summarize the advantages / disadvantages of each model.
As a first time customer entering a B2B / B2C web site, or even a brick-and-mortar retailer there are typically some general expectations:
Will a customer have a friendly experience (product availability with descriptions and options, simple graphical user interface)
Are there sufficient options / configurations if required for the consumer
Will I be provided product reviews
Is there a straightforward transaction experience (no guessing on what is required to purchase, ship if necessary and return if provided)
lastly will the merchant be proactive on when the costumer can expect receipt of their product.
If you can meet / exceed these expectations while the costumer is interacting with your business, then there is a possibility that they will not need to be continually following-up on their order.
Missing Expectations
Far too often a retailer list their products and services, assumes the costumer will “understand” what is needed to procure the item(s) purchased and will be all too happy to accept the lack of follow-thru of said transaction. However, if this costumer has never done business with you before, you can also assume that there will be some anxiety (especially if the price is high) regarding the purchase and they will need to be comforted until their experience with your business has been successfully transacted. Simple status updates, especially if the item has been ordered can alleviate the anxiety. A simple follow-up after the transaction can create a better personalized experience with the customer and potentially retain loyalty for future purchases.
Sure, if I always purchase the same product from the retailer, perhaps a follow-up after each transaction is not necessary – But maybe an occasional touch-base to see if you are meeting their expectations can go a long way in their customer experience. The customer may even provide some helpful advice that other customers (or even lost customers) felt was not that important to you…since you failed ask.
By all means, don’t get lazy and send a generic satisfaction survey to your customers. This is only beneficial if you plan on responding back to their replies, asking what can be done better and what you should continue to do.
Customer Retention
If the customer believes they had to expend a great deal of effort to purchase, track and convince themselves they made the right purchase, you can ensure yourself that you may never see them as a repeat customer. It is much easier and a lot less expensive to foster an existing relationship with a customer than create a new one with a stranger.
Be proactive in addressing typical expectations, such as those mentioned above, but also be reactive (especially quickly) when a customer has an inquiry. It’s a lot easier for a customer to build anxiety, distrust and dissatisfaction when they believe you are not being responsive to their needs.
Remember a dissatisfied customer is more likely to share their negative experience with others, versus those that are satisfied. Addressing the issue before it becomes a public issue is a lot more beneficial to your existing and potential business.
It’s been a while since I had the opportunity to post an article and I now found myself compelled to get a posting published regarding some recent experiences. While I’ll never call out a business directly for poor customer service (aka, Customer Experience) I do hope that some day that these “businesses” realize the lost opportunities they had and that simple little activities could have made them a more profitable (potentially).
The Interaction
As you were told by your parents and most likely educators from a very young age, a persons first impression of you is the most important interaction you may ever have with the customer. Making me (the customer) feel as if I’m doing you (the merchant) a favor, is an immediate turn-off. The customer may have done some research to find you, in hopes that their needs will be met by the services you offer. They come to you with anxiety and trepidation (based on the unknown), you are unfamiliar to them…will they get their needs met with satisfaction? Will they need to follow-up to get status, or satisfaction after the transaction? Are you meeting their needs at a fair “price” and / or duration? At this point in the interaction, the merchant has a fairly simple role at this point…LISTEN to the customer. Analyze the interaction as it happens, is the customer knowledgable in the service being requested, do they appear to require additional attention than your typical customer, what are they specifically looking for…like price or speed in meeting their needs. Give your customer as much time as they need to mitigate their uncertainty. Remember, they came to you and not the reverse, the funds remain in their wallet until they choose to release them in your direction.
The Communication
At this point the merchant is, or has been listening to the customer, building the relationship, reducing anxiety and perhaps creating a bond that will continue beyond this first interaction. Perhaps they have remembered to introduce each other and received proper names, they begin to use proper names in their dialog. It is more possible that a person will have a sense of familiarity when using proper names than labels. However, the more difficult part of this exercise is to remember names and important takeaways that happened during this dialog…take NOTES. The next time that George walks into your shop and you remember that they are new to the neighborhood and are originally from a town in New York that you grew-up in, will create a bond more valuable than the five percent off you gave as a first time customer. Another benefit is that a relationship that is based on names and recognition also provides a barrier to negative feedback anonymously. It’s much easier for a stranger to provide negative input on social media about an interaction, when they believe they are anonymous. However, if the customer is on a first name basis with the merchant, typically forgiveness and having a conversation in order to rectify the issue will happen more readily.
Transaction and Follow-up
The transaction is simple, did the merchant accomplish the request which was asked for, without surprises and with explanation of what has been done. Did the merchant provide regular status updates if the process was lengthy (this means being proactive and not having to be asked by the customer). Were deadlines met if one was given, if there was a potential delay, was this provided early and with explanation on why and with a new deadline. During the transaction, the customer must never be left wondering what is happening – over communication is better than no communication, nine times out of ten.
One of the most important stages of the process is the follow-up with the customer and unfortunately this is often disregarded. A simple, call or note asking the customer if everything has met their expectations is often good enough. However, not doing this gives a perception to the customer that they are just a number and their business is not valuable, regardless of the financial investment. Avoid the blind survey, make it personable, understand what was done well and more importantly what could have been done better. This data is invaluable and will help the merchant understand what customers are expecting from their business.
The merchant should never get sloppy and bypass stages of a relationship with new or existing customers, just because they think it’s a burden. Even one missed stage in the process, or even a poorly executed one could send that customer to the competitor and they will be none-the-wiser as to why their business is struggling
We are starting to get to a point where localities, states and the federal government are making decisions on how we “act” outside of our house. Do we wear masks, assume a six foot distance from our neighbor, occupy with less than 10 people, submit to a temperature checks as we walk into the grocery store and only visit “essential” businesses. We are now entering the tipping point of where common sense individuals get pushed to a breaking-point. The models have been a disaster and have unfortunately led many to interpret the numbers per their political leaning. It’s very easy for those getting a paycheck because they can work from home and have a consumer willing to accept their services virtually.
But what about the “non-essential” worker…The person that needs to feed their family, pay their rent or mortgage, has expenses that all of us have? The rhetoric of, unemployment insurance, go-fund-me sites and local charities will keep an eye-out for you is outrageous. Ultimately, who has the audacity to proclaim that a person’s occupation is “non-essential“?
Of course, there are many that are willing to place this label on a vast majority of the workforce. As many of us have witnessed, many retailers have been shut down because of this title. If you worked at these retailers, society relegated you as non-essential and at a bare minimum, you need to remember this post crisis. No one should ever be labeled as non-essential!! One kink in the chain can cripple the rest of us and it will ultimately trip-up the whole.
So, the solution is ultimately making a decision, define the baseline and the proposed outcome and evaluate the results. Without a decision, everything becomes a guess and leaves many gaps for interpretation and hyperbole. When someone can defend their decision, there is opportunity for a dialog.
Every night I read the headlines going into tomorrow’s news cycle and I’m amazed by the lack of investigation by the mainstream media, they would rather adopt stating the obvious and taking a side. Telling me it’s going to rain outside, when it’s already raining, is just not valuable information. Also trying to entice page-views by saying, it’s raining out and it has rained hard two days in a row is just hyperbole and obvious to most. Then we have tonight’s financial “shocking” news that the manufacturing industry will see a pull back in growth, something akin to the levels we saw back in 1946. Housing starts are at historical lows, unemployment numbers have reached record highs, small business will experience a difficult 2020, restaurants and hotels have been devastated during the first few months of 2020. Not being snarky, but if you weren’t aware of these headlines in your own head, or just by looking out the window of the shelter-in-place domicile you have been living in, then that rock that you’ve been living under has created a great shelter for you.
While we all are living sequestered lives, at a bare minimum I would hope the folks that get paid to “inform” us of provocative news which is based on their intrepid research, will begin to do what is expected. We want, or I’ll say even to go as far as to demand the information that is typically reserved to media-credentialed individuals provided as “news”. Don’t tell us about something we already know, especially with your opinion wrapped around it. More importantly, tell us how the government, industry or other channels are working to right the ship. However, if this goes beyond the expectation of our media professionals, then we are left to re-write the obvious to meet a stance that makes the audience complacent and uninterested in “your” breaking news.
Bottomline, we should be asking and expecting more from our media professionals, I’ll get opinion and sound bites from Twitter.
By now most fact based readers have witnessed that the original estimates related to positive cases and unfortunate death from COVID-19 are starting to prove untrue. The worst case scenarios of millions of deaths are nowhere near these estimates. Yes, the infectious rates and general spread of the virus are not acceptable by most citizens and there is still trepidation of what can still happen versus, what has happened. However, throwing darts at a dartboard and hoping for the best is not acceptable to a vast population. If we go back to original estimates and revisit the “million / hundreds of thousands” of deaths forecasts, we would have done anything to stop this from happening. You know what, we did, by forcing non-essential businesses from opening, schools from instructing, sports from participating and the general population from congregating in groups of 10 plus. We instituted a social distancing policy of being six feet away from our neighbors. We started wearing PPE like masks and gloves. We ran out of anti-bacterial products like wipes, gels and sprays. We even witnessed neighbors calling the police on neighbors for going outside their own homes. Yes. this may have flattened the curve, but so may have seasonal changes. I’m not here to debate our reaction to neighborhood rhetoric, but I do want to talk about taking a righteous stance.
We Prepared for The Worst
I think mentally, we have all prepared for the worst of situations. We read, saw, discussed the possibility of millions of individuals dying from a virus we had no control over. We added that extra sebaceous layer to our psyche, hoping that we would not unravel at the possibility of assumptions coming to fruition. Then things started to level out, or what some have called flattening of the curve. The extraordinary death toll estimates started to come down down exponentially and the worst case scenarios began to see a softening. We started to allocate resources to locales that underestimated their assets. We started to see hotspots appear in low exposure areas, requiring a repositioning of resources and material to address the anomaly. Fortunately we proved that we can pivot and adapt as required, as long as the scenario was not beyond reasonable forecasts. Soon hotspots were squelched and a dialog of optimistic “light at the end of the tunnel” started to happen in conversations. Was this time to start preparing for hyperphagia in our virus journey? Ultimately we knew what was incorrect based on data and what was skewed based on emotion.
Accepting Error
At this point we realize that our readers comments, posts and dialog were being prefaced by preconceived thought and ratification of emotion. No matter how much data, intellect and knowledge is applied to the conversation, our emotional well-being is always the ruling party. For instance, if my colleague had lost a loved one during the current crisis, no matter how much I mention underlying symptoms, or a predisposition to the impact that the virus may have to them, will go unheard. If we can segment the hard numbers, from the soft, perhaps we will begin to witness acceptance in the scenarios that envelope us all. It will always be a matter of separating emotion from fact.
A few weeks back we received formal recommendation, guideline, pressure, suggestion…whatever you want to call it to stay home to help “flatten the curve” during this pandemic. Depending on what part of the world, or country you are in, people took the direction in their own way and either met heavy or no resistance to their decisions.
Some went about doing their daily routines without any modification (ex. wearing masks, gloves or other PPE to reduce exposure), while others went all-in and wore every piece of equipment they can find to protect themselves and / or others around them.
There are definitely people on each side of the debate that will (tell) you why they did, or are doing what you see. However, while taking a side and trying to justify a position could be a provocative post, I’m not going to go down that path at this moment. There is something less controversial at play.
Exploring on your own time
This is probably obvious to most, but there are multitudes of things that you can potentially experience for the first time while relegated to sheltering in place. Those that have existing hobbies are somewhat lucky, because they can now dive deeper, or wider into their respective activities. There are others that have always wanted to try something new…I have colleagues trying to learn new languages, playing musical instruments, experimenting with painting, gardening when the weather permits, exercising or really anything new just to get away from watching 24 hour news, jumping on social media, or worse sitting in front of their laptops and PCs beyond the eight plus hours of work they already did for the day. However, if you have kids that are on social media, perhaps this is a good time to explore what they are doing on these platforms, get more engaged and informed. (Link Regarding Social Media Apps Kids are Using)
The reason I said “on your own time” above is that this may be the only time we have, we have been asked to stay put, don’t travel, incorporate social distancing and while most of us have and eventually will complain again “I just don’t have the time” – we now do. As they say hindsight is 20/20 and to look back a few months from now and wish we would have used this time to “explore” would be a shame. You’ll undoubtedly get direction on what to wear and how to act when you go to the grocery store, but deciding what to do when back at home is in your hands.
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