However, world-leading analysts Gartner recently shared their insights with CX Today, stating that companies that rely too heavily on AI will be opening the door to serious risks. According to Emily Potosky, the Senior Director of Research for Gartner’s Customer Service and Support Practice, even the most advanced AI algorithms still have limitations. They shouldn’t be seen to replace humans but instead as a solution to augment and empower existing teams. 

The Impact of AI on Customer Service Jobs 

Fears that AI will replace human beings are increasingly common, now that AI is more advanced than ever, concerns are growing with the rise of deep learning models, generative AI, and neural networks. 

Up to 3 in 4 Americans now believe AI will reduce the number of jobs available to workers, and customer service agents feel more pressure than most. Countless contact centre solutions are enabling companies to reduce their reliance on human skill sets with generative AI bots and automated workflows.  

According to one HFS Research report, customer service and sales were two of the top departments most likely to be impacted by AI’s transformation. 

However, while AI solutions can accomplish a lot in the contact centre, analysts like Potosky believe some level of human assistance will always be crucial. She’s not alone in this opinion. In a recent Gartner survey, around 61% of business executives believe AI won’t reduce their human headcount in the contact centre by more than 5%.  

The Limitations of AI in Customer Service 

We’ve discussed previously how AI tools can augment human professionals, helping them streamline and optimise repetitive tasks.  

For instance, McKinsey suggests up to 64% of data collection activities can be automated, but that doesn’t eliminate the need for a data scientist for bot training, data analysis, and creativity.  

Similarly, in the customer service landscape, AI tools can creatively respond to common questions, help customers troubleshoot problems, and even complete tasks like processing transactions. 

However, they can’t understand emotions and context to the same degree as humans, which leads to the potential for misinterpretations. They also can’t show empathy, creatively develop new ways to solve problems based on their experiences or reassure a concerned customer. Not to mention, there are various other, more technical challenges to consider. Replacing humans with bots entirely in the contact centre would require a great deal of technical knowledge, development expertise, and constant monitoring. 

Augmentation 

At DDC OS, we believe in giving people the tools and resources they need to be as effective as possible. Like Gartner and many others, we see AI as a way to enhance human performance, not replace it.  

As Potosky noted to CX Today, AI tools can provide employees with the context, support, and guidance they need to excel in their roles. AI might reduce business leaders’ dependence on skills and expertise, widening the talent pool to engage in customer-facing work. This may mean that business leaders don’t need to hire as many additional staff members to handle spikes in call volume. However, it won’t eliminate the need for humans. Instead, it will help companies manage rising costs and challenges by: 
 

• Improving productivity: Rather than just replacing human agents with automated workloads, AI can be a helping hand that reduces stress and strain during busy seasons. It can help teams hit the ground running with the correct information when queries are escalated and accelerate the path to problem resolution. 
• Increasing retention: In an environment with rapid turnover, like the contact centre, AI can help reduce turnover risk. Companies could use AI to route “simpler” queries to new hires while they’re learning how to excel in their role.  
• Enhancing development: As customer expectations evolve, companies can use AI to deliver employees more personalised and effective training & development programs. Generative AI can be used to create training initiatives, deliver real-time coaching sessions, and identify opportunities for additional training. 

The Future of AI in the Contact Centre

Many organisations have already cut down their human teams, rushing to adopt AI simply because they want to keep up with the competition, without understanding the potential risks they’ll face.  

However, Gartner believes the increasing prominence of AI in the contact centre will lead to significant changes in the years ahead, influencing how companies adopt the technology. In the coming years it is likely the EU will update its consumer protection laws to give every customer the right to speak to a human. It’s certainly something that may occur if, AI at some stage leads to harm to a customer.  

Taking the Right Approach to AI Adoption

Ultimately, relying exclusively on AI to manage customer service processes can be a big risk. It risks the well-being of your customers and impacts your brand’s reputation and ability to retain consumers long-term. AI has limitations, from the common hallucinations of generative AI tools to the lack of empathy and sometimes biased behaviours that bots demonstrate. Despite this, Gartner believes that by 2028, a third of customer service interactions will involve autonomous agents. 

We believe there’s nothing wrong with embracing AI’s potential, particularly if it augments and supports your agents, increases employee engagement, and streamlines customer service interactions.  

To find out how we can help you, get in touch or follow us on LinkedIn. 

As customer contact volumes have expanded, queries have grown more complex, and companies have continued to search for ways to boost productivity and efficiency while lowering costs, demand for AI solutions in CX has grown. As a result, we’ve started to see the introduction of various new innovations in the landscape intended to make automated interactions more conversational, intuitive, and human. 

ChatGPT is the most recent innovation generating hype among CX leaders. Produced by OpenAI, the state-of-the-art, open-source model promises to change the way we think about AI-driven customer service forever. But what can ChatGPT really do for customer support? 

What is ChatGPT? An Introduction 

ChatGPT is an open-source chatbot solution built on the GPT-3 (Generative Pretrained Transformer) model produced by OpenAI. It’s one of a series of tools produced using the same technology, which allows bots to understand and respond dynamically to human language.  

The GPT-3 technology behind ChatGPT is trained on 175 billion parameters, meaning it can effectively produce various kinds of content based on input prompts using natural human language. The language processing technology can write poems, scripts, and product descriptions in seconds.  

It can also respond adaptively to human questions when implemented into customer service chatbot technology. Already, companies like Microsoft have begun investing in ChatGPT to improve the NLU capabilities within Microsoft Power Agents. Thanks to its exceptional training, the bot model can generate responses to questions in over 40 languages and integrate with a range of other tools to provide more personalised, relevant experiences.  

Perhaps the most impressive thing about ChatGPT, and GPT-3, is the model doesn’t require additional training to handle common topics and human conversations. Anyone can use the tool and start leveraging it to deliver conversational experiences in minutes.  

Where ChatGPT Thrives and Fails 

ChatGPT is an impressive tool, sure to make a difference in the way companies create chatbot and self-service experiences for their customers. However, it’s not without its limitations. On the one hand, ChatGPT can effectively generate human-like responses to questions with phenomenal accuracy and adapt to new information in real time as it’s presented in chat.  

The system can understand and respond to a wide range of topics, making it applicable to a huge number of industries. Plus, it can process various text-based tasks, from translation to summarisation. However, like most technologies, it isn’t foolproof.  

ChatGPT struggles to deal with “recent concepts” about topics which it hasn’t had time to discover through manual human input. It has a somewhat limited knowledge of the world after 2021. Equally, it can occasionally generate incorrect information, just like any bot. If you try to add too many factors to a prompt, the system can end up getting overwhelmed and ignoring information entirely. 

Why Humans are Still Necessary in the Age of ChatGPT 

So, in a world where a bot can effectively deliver “human” responses to customers, why would companies consider paying for human interaction at all? The simple answer is that bots and AI systems still can’t replace human beings entirely. For the most part, AI solutions are intended to supplement and support human agents, not replace them.  

A human team is still necessary to: 

Input and understand the context 

GPT-3 leverages a massive 175 billion parameters to help its model respond to information as correctly as possible. However, humans are still better at understanding context than any chatbot or AI model. ChatGPT uses a concept called few-shot learning to understand specific tasks, but it can’t process too many different nuances in a single prompt at once.  

Even the CEO of OpenAI said that GPT-3 still has serious weaknesses and can often make silly mistakes. Users won’t always get the right answers first time around. This means that when customers want quick answers to a complex problem, they’re often better off speaking to a human agent. Additionally, in order to make a chatbot as efficient and effective as possible, companies still need to rely on input from human beings to help the system understand the further context.  

Ensure empathy and reduce bias 

AI systems might be impressive in the CX landscape, but they’re also often biased. The information used to train a model will automatically determine how it responds to any given prompt. This bias could lead bots to respond to queries in a way that would potentially damage a company’s reputation and cause confusion among customers.  

While ChatGPT might be effective at replicating human-style responses, it’s still not capable of intelligently assessing a situation and responding to a query with emotion and empathy. There are cases where compassion in a customer service strategy is more important than anything else. In fact, one study found 96% of customers say empathy from customer service teams is a crucial factor in a successful interaction.  

Ensure accuracy 

Bots and AI systems are often considered to be more knowledgeable and error-resistant than human employees, but they’re still prone to mistakes. As mentioned above, how ChatGPT can respond to a query will depend heavily on the prompts delivered. If a customer doesn’t ask the “right” question or use easily recognisable language, a bot could still be left stumped.  

ChatGPT is limited in the information it can give and how much data it has to work with. Alternatively, human agents can instantly access the latest information about a product or company from a knowledgebase and fact-check their responses. To deliver a consistently reliable and knowledgeable experience to customers, companies still need human beings. 

ChatGPT: It Can’t Replace Humans 

While ChatGPT may be able to eliminate some repetitive tasks in the business landscape, like responding to common FAQ questions and generating insights for customers, it’s not likely to replace the human agent entirely – at least not yet.  

Ultimately, a generative model like ChatGPT is an excellent tool for companies already investing in chatbot technology to make automated conversations feel more human and personalised. However, it’s still just one part of a comprehensive customer service strategy.  

Humans are still necessary to understand context, deliver empathy, and ensure accuracy in conversations with clients. ChatGPT may support and augment the customer service team, but it won’t replace the need for effective employees any time soon.  

Get in touch with DDC OS today to discuss combining the human touch with a relevant and cost-effective tech stack.  

DDC OS was shortlisted for three awards: Best Multilingual Customer Service with Boohoo, Best BPO Partnership – Large with Photobox and Best Pan European Contact Centre.  

In what was a very glamorous evening, with appearances including Fiona Bruce and Linford Christie. Guests were entertained with performances of Moulin Rouge and Lion King, amongst an array of acrobatic acts.  

As ever, the competition was fierce, with the best in our industry shortlisted. Along with the anticipation of categories we were shortlisted for, Joe Beal (CCO) presented the award for Small Contact Centre of the Year to Estee Lauder. Huge congratulations in order for all of the team there.  

First up Best BPO Partnership – Large. Big cheers followed to mark a fantastic first year in partnership with Photobox as another silver award was presented to the team. 

Up next for the DDC OS team was the Best Multilingual Customer Service category, and we were delighted to take home the Silver in partnership with Boohoo. 

In the penultimate award of the evening, Best Pan European Contact Centre, whilst not taking home silverware, we did receive a High Commendation – the only shortlisted business to receive it in the category.  

All in all, a wonderful evening for DDC OS and the teams from the UK to Bosnia & Herzegovina and beyond. Thank you to all involved, from our internal teams to our clients who made this a possibility.  

To discuss your outsourcing project with us (so we can enter many awards together!), then please get in touch.  

Until next year, when we hope to be even more successful, all the best…  

Team DDC   

Countless “traditional” brick-and-mortar stores transitioned to hybrid and omnichannel selling in 2021 and 2022, introducing new ways for customers to shop online, leverage delivery services, and even take advantage of click-and-collect opportunities.  

While softening restrictions in 2022 have allowed some companies to re-open their physical locations, retailers’ challenges are far from over. Not only do these companies need to adhere to new customer expectations for contactless, personalised service, but they’re also now dealing with a different set of threats imposed by impending recessions and energy crises.  

So, what will these changes mean to the future of retail? 

The Impact of Rising Energy Costs on Retail 

At present, the biggest threat facing stores strong enough to survive the pandemic comes in the form of rapidly rising energy costs. Throughout the United Kingdom, energy prices have soared to record-breaking levels, leaving many unable to pay their monthly bills. These huge energy costs aren’t just a major concern for consumers; they present a significant problem for business leaders too, who are already struggling with depleted post-pandemic budgets.  

According to one report from the Federation of Small Businesses, around 15% of SMBs believe they may have to either downsize or close completely due to spiralling energy expenses. With the energy pricing cap set to continue rising into 2023, the issue could soon become a lot worse.  

It’s not just niche businesses feeling the pinch either. The Association of Convenience Stores, which represents around 48,000 stores in the UK said energy bills had soared to an average of around £45,000 for some smaller members. Collectively, the ACS says its members are facing energy bills worth approximately £2.5 billion.  

If government bodies don’t step in to reduce the expenses these companies face, the average UK consumer could find themselves with a lot fewer options in where to shop going forward.  

The Trends Likely to Emerge Going Forward 

While it’s difficult to know for certain what the new energy crisis challenges will mean to the future of retail and commerce, there are some trends which are likely to be important for today’s companies. First and foremost, the transition away from in-person retail into omnichannel and digital commerce is likely to continue as fewer businesses can afford to run their own physical location. 

During the pandemic, many businesses already began creating e-commerce versions of their stores to give consumers a way to continue purchasing essentials when brick-and-mortar locations were closed. The use of e-commerce opportunities may continue to accelerate as businesses look for ways to reduce the overheads associated with running a physical store.  

Outside of the transition to more digital commerce options, we’re also likely to see an increasing focus on customer experience to help “recession-proof” struggling businesses and maintain customer loyalty as retailers are forced to raise their prices. If bills continue to accelerate for retail stores, there’s a good chance the cost of common products will also rise to ensure these businesses can stay open. Unfortunately, many consumers will quickly abandon a store with rising prices.  

Fortunately, better customer service could be the answer. According to one study by Ipsos, around 70% of women and 75% of men say they’re more likely to continue buying products from brands even after they raise their prices, if they feel “valued” by the company.  

Ipsos isn’t the only group to establish the benefits of maintaining high levels of customer experience in an economic downturn either. Leading analysts like McKinsey and Forrester have found customer experience leaders have 3 times higher total returns than their counterparts during difficult periods.  

What Does the Future Hold for Retail? 

With economic uncertainty on the rise, along with business energy bills, retail companies have a number of challenges to deal with in the pipeline. However, there may still be ways for these companies to protect themselves. Embracing new forms of digital commerce and doubling down on excellent customer service will give more organisations hope for the future.  

The Rise of Digital Window Shopping 

A quarter of consumers return between 5 and 15 per cent of all the items they purchase online, which is one of the more conservative estimates. There’s a variety of reasons for this trend, not least the fact that it’s hard to judge the quality and fit of certain products when online shopping. Notably, this statistic sharply rises when customers are effectively ‘window shopping’ from the comfort of their own homes.  

For example, when it comes to fashion, a consumer may buy three different sizes of the same item or three outfits for one event, intending to try them all and choose a favourite. The return rate shoots up for such purchases; it’s a whole new level of stock management and returns processing. 

Some retailers are choosing to walk into the ‘£7bn storm’ –consider the Amazon Prime Wardrobe service. It allows customers to select eight items, receive them, try them before returning any they don’t like, before finally being charged for the items they keep. We must ask, would we have imagined a service like this ten years ago? Or would it have been considered too high risk? Which is the higher risk move now, to ignore the demand for these services or embrace them?  

Alongside this trend, the demand for swift deliveries and return options naturally grew. Of course, specific retail sectors were impacted more by this shift than others; according to the IMRG Quarterly Benchmark Q4 2020, women’s clothing has the highest average returns rate at 23 per cent, with footwear closely following, coming in at 20 per cent. Therefore, we must also consider what retailers can do to ensure deliveries and returns are as simple as ever for customers.  

Customers Demand a Smooth Returns Experience 

Returns remain a difficult and inconvenient part of the online shopping journey for many – with research InPost conducted finding that 83% of people who shop online say retailers should do more to make the returns process as easy and fuss-free as possible. Meanwhile, 86% say that a poor returns experience will put them off shopping with a retailer again*, highlighting the critical importance of retailers getting returns right.  

• Parcel Lockers 

With returns now a crucial part of the customer experience, innovations such as lockers can play a central role in driving customer lifetime value and giving retailers a competitive advantage. Available 24/7 and positioned at convenient locations such as supermarkets, train stations and petrol forecourts, lockers offer people a genuinely convenient and easily accessible way to return online purchases as part of their daily routine — be it during their daily commute or while meeting a friend for coffee.  

InPost’s Instant Returns solution is the first of its kind where there is no need for the customer to print out a label at all — not at home nor at the drop-off point — customers can simply scan and drop. With labels being replaced by QR codes, it means it is completely self-service, giving online shoppers ultimate control and convenience, with the whole process taking as little as 10 seconds to complete.  

• In-Store Returns  

There is a straightforward solution if your business has brick and mortar stores and an online presence. Allowing customers to return items in-store when they have purchased items online could be a significant advantage. This is because 62 per cent of shoppers are more likely to buy things online when they know this is an option. Moreover, it can lead to increased footfall instore and, therefore, increased sales.   

• Postal Returns 

Perhaps the best-known method here (and cause of queues at the local post office!) is postal returns. Most retailers now allow customers to print off their return labels at home and take them to a local post office/selected convenience store or have the label printed in-store.  

Steps are being taken by some retailers, such as Next, to make postal returns even more convenient by utilising the delivery vans that stop at our houses or a neighbours’ houses almost daily. It allows the customer to return items from their doorstep. Delivery services are now being used as tools for returns, a clear example of a UX focus.  

All of the above is great, but we must also consider the customer experience element. Here are some thoughts on what should supplement the above.  

• Excellent self-serve tools.  

Customers are happy to do things for you; in fact, 40% of customers now prefer self-serve over human contact. They are often happy to arrange their returns, collect items, and check status updates on their order. They’ll even chat to a bot. So, it’s important for CX that retailers recognise this and then deliver the tools that allow the customer to do exactly what they need to.  

• A knowledgeable customer service team.  

As we all know, irrespective of how innovative your organisation may be and how easy your delivery and returns processes are, there are always situations whereby your customers will want to talk to you. Therefore, the customer service team must know your processes so they can firstly relate and understand the customer and then solve the issue. This can be a difficult task given the options available. Still, through extensive training and support and knowledge bases, your customer service team should be able to provide the final touches to your delivery and returns processes.  

* All figures, unless otherwise indicated, are based on a survey of just over 2,000 UK adults conducted by Opinium on behalf of InPost from 25 February-1 March 2021. 

Get in touch 

DDC OS in Retail 

Flexibility in Delivery and Returns  

Perhaps one of the most significant changes in e-commerce is the customer’s decision-making process. For example, when a customer buys a piece of clothing online, they are unlikely to be sure of the fit and size; even the style can be hard to judge through a screen. In a physical store, much of this is negated. We have seen an increase in people purchasing more items online with the intention of returning much of the order – 1 in 3 fashion purchases are now returned. This change in purchasing behaviour has led to the need to modify and simplify returns processes. Ensuring that customers can return items quickly and efficiently isn’t an easy task, nor is it cheap, with an estimated £7bn cost associated with returns.  

As online orders increase dramatically, so have delivery and return demands, ‘with parcel deliveries rising 50 per cent to 4.2bn in the financial year ending last March, according to industry regulator Ofcom’. As a result, services such as, parcel lockers – like those provided by InPost – have become all the more necessary and popular. So much so that ‘the number of potential customers within 5 minutes of a locker has risen from 2 million to almost 7 million in the last year‘. Such infrastructures have been vital in easing the strain on even the biggest delivery giants whilst still living up to consumer expectations of a stress-free process. 

For those of us with an eye on innovation much further in the distance, enhanced touch screens are being discussed as an option to help customers feel objects. That would surely help reduce some of the return’s volumes. Watch this space, with some early versions of this expected in the next five years!  

Options for Payment  

The way that customers pay for online purchases is constantly changing. Before now, most retailers offered a single payment option. A consumer would input their card details and the money would leave their account accordingly. However, there has been a movement here to provide customers with more options. Using credit-based systems, such as Klarna, means that customers can buy products now and settle the balance at a time that suits them. Alternatively, a customer might choose to pay with PayPal, Apple Pay, Google, etc.  

Giving customers options is key – the easier their journey, the more likely they are to make a purchase. A word of caution, though; as the saying goes, more money (or, in this case, payment options), more problems. Therefore, your customer service team must be armed with the knowledge of the different options available to customers so they can effectively support incoming queries on payments. An informed customer service team is an effective one.  

Customised E-Commerce Experiences  

The major difference between in-store shopping experiences and the world of e-commerce is the presence of human interaction. So much of the online experience is automated; customers simply click a button and the products they’ve ordered get delivered to their door. This means retailers have limited opportunity to upsell products or encourage a purchase, as is possible in-store. Digital tools have come a long way in terms of the support they can offer customers online, but what can we do to make that situation more interactive and brand immersive?  

We are seeing more ‘customised’ shopping experiences appearing in the market. Take the fashion world with Stitch Fix and Thread – where the experience replicates having a personal shopper. These services show that creating more interactive offerings doesn’t necessarily mean increasing your headcount and therefore costs. We can certainly expect to see more of this as time goes on.  

Keeping up with Demand  

But, what of situations where a higher headcount might be required? Creating more interactive and immersive digital experiences will depend on your resources. As you add more strings to your bow, you aren’t replacing the old ones. Your customers will still want to call to see why that parcel is a day late, or to ask why they haven’t received a refund yet, or to complain that their order has not met expectations. This realistically leaves two options: 

Firstly, you can grow your own team – utilising that loyal, experienced instore team that has sadly seen its store close, giving them the chance to reallocate those skills. This has already been successfully implemented throughout lockdown; for organisations such as jewellers. Clearly, it is still possible to deliver high-quality customer service in such ways. 

Alternatively, you could choose to work with an outsourcing partner. They can deliver your standard customer service expectations and, importantly, go way beyond this by providing the kind of personalised services aforementioned. Outsourcers are flexible enough to grow with you, taking on the pains of recruitment during peak times. They can also offer you multiple locations for cost-saving purposes and, in most cases, provide access to multilingual, skilled staff – at least that’s the case here at DDC OS. More importantly, an outsourcing partner should be strategic, supporting your aims as an innovative, ever-evolving retailer.  

Indeed, lots to think about; in fact, next time, we will dive even deeper into the topic of delivery and returns.  

 ~

Get in touch 

DDC OS in Retail 

While you doubtless have many things to take care of, one thing you shouldn’t overlook is your customer services. Of course, 2020 has been like no other year. The outbreak of Covid-19 has hit the economic world hard. It’s never been more important to meet your customers’ needs and ensure that they keep coming back for more. Let’s take a look at why you need to offer excellent customer service this season.

It’s the busiest time of year

Whether you run a commercial business or offer services, the holiday period is likely to be the busiest time of year. It’s not just the season to be jolly. It’s also the season to spend a whole load of money. Yes, Brits spend an average of £512.85 on gifts alone each year. Unsurprisingly, this year has seen a huge surge in online shopping. Back in April, experts reported that it was up by 129% week-on-week here in the UK due to the pandemic.

The increase in spending is fortuitous for online businesses, big and small. However, it also means that there’s more pressure on the customer service department than ever before. More sales mean more people wanting to speak to your business team. That means there will be extra pressure on your advisors, should they be an in-house team.

Customer stress levels run high

While the holiday season is supposed to be a joyous time, your customers’ stress levels can surge. One survey by YouGov found that more than two in five Brits feel stressed during the festive period. To make matters worse, one in four suffer from either depression or anxiety at this time too. That statistic is likely to increase this year, now that we are in a second national lockdown. For that reason, supporting your customer base is vital.

When tensions are high, your customer services game needs to be top-notch. Should a customer have a problem with a purchase, a return, or even a question, the sooner you can answer them, the better. Customers will expect to log on or pick up the phone at a moment’s notice and get an immediate response from you. With that in mind, ensuring that you have a great team available to help them is a sure-fire way to win their loyalty.

Keep new customers coming back

Chances are, you have a loyal base of customers that use your services all year round. However, when the holiday season begins, many businesses see an increase in their customers. It is a time when you will likely have newcomers trying out your company, whether that means buying a product from you or subscribing to a package. Believe it or not, this change offers you the opportunity to expand your clients in the long-term.

Ensuring that your business offers noteworthy customer services is a savvy place to start. First impressions count for a lot! Since this is the first experience many customers will be having with your company, you have the chance to wow them. From the moment they contact your team, their experience should be smooth and pleasant. By making sure that is the case, you can turn curious one-time customers into loyal ones that will stick around.

The takeaway

Customer relations is always a crucial aspect of your business. However, this holiday season, your business needs to put greater emphasis than ever on this area. Outsourcing this part of your business could be the answer to helping you manage the sudden influx. It means you can quickly scale up your team of advisors to cope with the busy period. This cost-effective and low-hassle approach is an intelligent way to offer excellent service.

Thinking of outsourcing your customer services this holiday season? Contact us now and find out how we can help your business