The All-England Lawn Tennis Club’s decision to replace Wimbledon’s human line judges with AI fundamentally changes the customer experience. For some people, this will be a welcome change. Judges will no longer have to argue with volatile players over close calls. For others — particularly people at the event — this will significantly change the traditional pomp and circumstance of introducing players and judges at the opening ceremony
While this technology promises to improve accuracy and efficiency, it also raises questions about the impact on people’s interactions with a brand.
This is just one example of AI’s growing role in customer experience, which is happening amidst an increase in customer expectations of that experience. Eighty-six percent say they will pay more for a great customer experience. Some research suggests people are willing to pay a premium of up to 13% (and as high as 18%) for luxury and indulgence services.
Marketers are now at the mercy of algorithms that shape everything from visible customer-facing interactions to behind-the-scenes operations. This means the marketer’s role is to ensure the right balance between technological advancements and human connection.
“You have to have an entrance and an exit ramp for your customers,” said Lynn Hunsaker, a consultant in customer-focused management and a certified customer experience professional. So marketers must understand the entire customer journey – from the first engagement to the last to see how AI can improve it.
The dual nature of AI in customer experience
AI can be categorized into two primary types: visible and invisible. Visible AI directly interacts with customers, such as chatbots and virtual assistants. These tools can provide instant support, answer queries and even engage in casual conversation. Invisible AI operates behind the scenes, analyzing data, optimizing processes and personalizing experiences.
The best customer experiences combine these in a seamless journey. Look at the simple process of purchasing a dress for a wedding, for example. The transaction goes beyond ordinary problem resolution, so it will need to be handled by multiple parties.
The visible AI chatbot may handle initial queries, but unseen AI assesses the customer’s mood and urgency. AI can escalate the issue to a human agent, providing them with data on the customer’s history, sentiment and potential solutions. This can resolve issues faster and with more empathy.
Marketers and customer experience leaders must be vigilant about how AI transitions between visible and invisible interactions. These handoffs must avoid frustrating customers with things like forcing them to repeat their name, account number, or issue at each step.
Dig deeper: Customer experience management in the age of agentic AI
AI-powered sentiment analysis can identify if a customer is satisfied or frustrated, and this data should be passed to the relevant teams to respond. Similarly, in customer support, AI should ensure that when a bot hands off to a human agent, the agent has access to all the necessary information, including the customer’s sentiment.
Where can you improve your customer experience?
Here’s an exercise to document your customers’ experience and identify places within the process that could be improved:
1. Identify a customer journey that may need refinement. Look for processes that are well understood within the company, but may cause customers problems.
2. Convene a cross-organizational team that represents every step of the journey. Involve the people who know the most about the journey being investigated. For example, an upgrade program for software needs to involve the product and support managers.
3. Have each team member document what happens with one customer from start to finish. Team members should concentrate on what they see the customer (not the process) doing and how the customer is reacting.
4. Compare notes and highlight the differences.
5. Reassign parts of the journey to the departments responsible for that part. For example, billing matters go to accounts receivable, product inquiries to product marketing. Have each department document improvements for their part of the customer’s interaction.
6. Reconvene the team and lay out the customer journey with corrected experiences, giving the most attention to handoffs in the process. Remember, the objective is to document the best customer experience possible.
While AI is improving personalization, efficiency and customer support, it also presents challenges. AI systems can sometimes lack empathy, misinterpret context, or raise concerns about data privacy. Overreliance on technology can lead to impersonal interactions or reinforce biases.
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