73% of consumers say human-only service drives loyalty
While many artificial intelligence (AI) experts suggest brands will soon automate most of their service interactions, 57 per cent of consumers say this would erode their trust, according to research produced by AnswerConnect.
The Portland, Ore.-based provider of 24/7 live answering services commissioned OnePoll to survey more than 6,000 consumers to produce its report, titled The Case for Keeping It Human.
AnswerConnect found the proportion of people who prefer to speak to a human being rose from 83 per cent last year to 85 per cent. This was even higher for law firms and health-care organizations.
In contrast, 79 per cent said they are more likely to choose a business where a receptionist answers their call. Having a person in place makes consumers feel valued, according to 58 per cent of those surveyed.
The top frustrations with AI-enabled service included generic or unhelpful answers, which was cited by 45 per cent. There was an even 41 per cent split among those who said AI tools misunderstood them or forced them to repeat themselves.
“Speed and efficiency matter, but it’s empathy and real communication that define great service. And when that’s missing, trust drops, frustration rises, and customers leave,” the report’s authors wrote. “Even in a digital-first world, human connection isn’t a nice to have – it’s essential.”
360 Magazine Insight
AnswerConnect obviously has a vested interest in highlighting the kind of human-centered service it offers, but brands ignore some of these stats at their peril. If nothing else, they could suppose a case for waiting on AI platforms and tools until they become more advanced and effective.
What this research fails to capture, of course, is the many service interactions that don’t involve a phone call. There is no mention of website chatbots, or consumers who reach out via e-mail or text. These are “faceless” channels were some degree of automation, whether AI-powered or not, could help reduce the workload of those who continue to pick up in the contact center.
This ungated 15-page report is light on analysis, with no real direction or guidance that would benefit those running human-powered customer service teams in other companies. The industry breakdowns are also geared more towards smaller organizations such as those AnswerConnect likely serves.
Still, if there are brands or customer experience (CX) leaders tired of hearing their C-suite extol the virtues of AI and are shoving automation mandates down their throats, this data could be of some comfort, and possibly even used to argue for keeping humans central to service interactions.
