Consumers May Have a Soft Spot for Bots According to Genesys Survey

Genesys, a leader in communication solutions responsible for powering more than 25 billion customer experiences each year, recently published a new study into customer experience and chatbots. The UK-based poll spoke to 1,000 adults over the age of 18 and discovered that most customers don’t consider bots to be a major source of their service frustrations.
When asked what they considered the most irritating customer service issue to be, only 12.5% of customers said that bots were a problem, while twice as many respondents said that not being able to speak to a live agent on-demand was a frustration. The Genesys study revealed 3 major pain points for customers, which included:
Being put on hold (50%)
Getting incorrect information (35%)
Being passed to multiple advisors (36%)
Customers Want a Combination of Human and Digital Support
The most interesting finding of the Genesys study is that 71.4% of respondents believed that the best way to get excellent service, was to connect with a company that offered both human and digital support solutions.
According to the Executive Vice President of Genesys, Mark Turner, brands have an increasing level of flexibility when it comes to connecting with consumers in new and exciting ways. The recent survey suggests that consumers want the freedom to make their own choices about service. They want to be able to decide in the moment if they want human support, AI, or self-service.
This means that the best way for businesses to build on their support solutions today is to combine their AI innovations with human interaction opportunities. Companies need to start thinking about how they can find the ideal blend of automation, human involvement, and digital or artificial intelligence channels. Genesys doesn’t believe that AI will replace the need for live support, but they do think it will be a catalyst for changing the way that people work.

Delivering Smart, Fast Customer Service
Not only did the respondents in the Genesys study say that they wanted a range of options for support, but they also demonstrated that a timely response to issues (55%) and knowledgeable agents (58%) are critical to success. 93% of respondents also say it’s essential for companies to route queries through to customer service agents who have background information and understand the needs of customers.
Today’s companies can’t afford to underestimate the importance of great customer service when it comes to delighting and retaining their customers. 83% of UK respondents say that they buy things from businesses solely based on that company’s reputation for customer service. Another 93% of respondents also revealed that they’ve taken action as a result of poor customer service – either switching providers (50%), telling a friend (72%), spreading the word via social media (16%), or avoiding the business in the future (42%).
The Genesys study reveals that customer service is more complicated than most people think. For instance, 84.2% of customers still feel that phone engagement is crucial – even as businesses look to alternative digital channels to supplement their contact centre. What’s more, only 4% of UK consumers connect with companies via social media. It’s time for businesses everywhere to re-think the way they serve their customers.

in Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) News by Industry News | November 12, 2018