Summary
Driven by new technologies, the customer relations sector is evolving at a rapidly increasing rate. In 2023, the tidal wave that is AI really made an impact, with ChatGPT being a perfect example.
These new technologies are accompanied by changes in consumer behaviors, which we need to be able to anticipate in order to guarantee a high-quality customer experience in all circumstances. So, what are the customer relations trends set to thrive in 2024?
The top customer relations trends of 2024
| Rank | Customer relations trends |
|---|---|
| 1 | Conversational analysis |
| 2 | Artificial intelligence |
| 3 | Self-service |
| 4 | Omni-channel |
| 5 | Security |
Key figures for customer relations
- In 2024, there'll be more than 8.4 billion digital voice assistants!
- By 2025, 80% of customer service organizations will be using generative AI to improve agent productivity and the customer experience.
- 33% of consumers say that they prefer contacting a business' customer services via social media rather than over the phone.
- 83% of customers say that they're more loyal towards brands that respond to their issues and resolve them.
- 80% of consumers say that they're prepared to forgive a business' mistakes if they've had excellent customer service.
1. Customer voice analysis has turned a new corner
Businesses are taking more and more interest in customers' voices, both literally and figuratively. Conversations and all other types of communications (SMS, email, discussion, videocall, etc.) are full of key information which often slips under professionals' radar, due to lack of time or resources.
Thanks to conversational analysis, businesses can use these conversations and use the best bits for various purposes:
- Improving the client experience
- Detecting opportunities (up-selling, cross-selling, renewals)
- Trend identification
- Problem-solving
Analyzing the customer's voice is made possible through Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools. These tools can take care of:
- Data analysis and processing
- Data clean-up
- Data extraction
- Data tracking
- Report generation
It's within this context that, always at the cutting edge of innovation, Ringover launched Empower in the spring of 2023. Empower is Ringover's conversational analysis tool, designed to help customer relations professionals to make the most of every opportunity that arises for them.
Discover Empower's key features in this video
2. Artificial Intelligence continues to conquer the tech world
We mentioned it in our introduction: Artificial intelligence took a huge leap forward in 2023, which really was the year of AI. ChatGPT, Dall-e, and Midjourney mainly took the center-stage. This democratization of AI creates new uses and entails new behaviors, both for customers and for business' problem-solving.
So, it's only logical that generative AI is continuing to grow and expand in the business world in 2024. It'll be increasingly used by professionals for:
- Creating customized material for increasing sales
- More easily enriching CRMs after having identified patterns in customer behaviors.
- Creating customized coaching and training material, such as role play scenarios.
- Automating tasks such as finding key words or formatting data.
AI will further populate chatbots and other virtual assistants in order to boost the level of detail in user experience customization and the precision of data collected by these conversational agents.
3. Giving customers ever-increasing independence
The phone remains a must-have for outbound and inbound customer relations. Nevertheless, some customers are becoming increasingly negative about the idea of having to contact a call center for a simple request. In the event of any issues, in many cases, the phone appears to be the last resort if the response isn't found online via a chatbot, forum or FAQs.
This trend is set to continue and to be normalized over the coming years. So, it's important for businesses to create and provide their customers with self-service resources.
It's also another point where conversational analysis can be a huge help, as requests and queries often brought up over the phone or any other channel can be easily identified.
Dedicated content can then be easily created to facilitate the solving of the issue with total independence, freeing up phone lines.
4. Omni-channel is evolving
Omni-channel experiences are becoming normalized. Web application, phone, SMS, virtual assistant, email, website, social media… All of these channels should enable you to offer a seamless experience for your customers, providing them with the right service or product, wherever they are in their purchase journey.
That said, it's not always easy to maintain consistency and high-quality communications across all of these channels. In 2024, business' investments in services allowing them to offer and track omni-channel pathways through their CRM are set to increase.
5. Being security-centric
In 2024, “experience customization” inevitably comes with “digital transformation” and new challenges, particularly in terms of data security. Customers are increasingly concerned over how their personal data is used.
This is why transparency and security need to form an integral part of the experience offered to them. Building trust through this transparency is essential. We can't forget that AI is at the center of various debates and it can really divide opinions, to the extent where some customers may even be afraid of it.
Moreover, whilst 44% of customers are okay with AI-based recommendations, that same 44% are concerned by the business' reputation and its capacity to guarantee the integrity of their data.
In 2024, the focus will therefore be on transparency and strategies to reassure customers in relation to these new changes.
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