Commentary

AI's Increasing Role In Customer Relations

In December, Levi Strauss & Co. offered a surprise. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Katia Walsh, Levi’s chief strategy and AI officer, said the company keeps a massive data repository of information customers share with the company along with external data, derived from public and private sources, that track consumer buying patterns, weather and climate forecasts and more.

Such data persuaded the company to keep offering a T-shirt in China that it had considered discontinuing. The shirt remained on the market, and sales were still strong.

The fact that Levi Strauss  uses AI in its marketing shouldn’t be a surprise. An eMarketer report recently found that some 49% of U.S. marketers polled in September 2021 had increased CX-related AI investments in the past year.

Spotify and TripAdvisor are two companies cited in the report. Both are currently trying out AI applications for CX, including predictive recommendations. Spotify uses AI for its personal recommendations and for a customer support chatbot. TripAdvisor used AI to maintain engagement on Alexa and Google Assistant during the pandemic.

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But those are far from the only companies using AI. A 2021 survey by Talkdesk found 64% of CX professionals expected their companies’ contact centers to prioritize deeper investments in AI tech.

The current goal of AI in CX is to remove friction from consumer interactions. As AI progresses, expect it to improve interactions with customers even more. Over time, AI is also likely to replace roles in your company -- possibly your own as well.

 

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