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Investment in AI and advanced analytics to manage the customer experience will increase by 25% in the next two years

MIT Sloan Management Review has published a report in collaboration with SAS, a leader in Analytics, entitled ‘Experiences to Create Business and Build Loyalty’, which uncovers best practices in customer experience (CX).

Report reveals these professionals get better returns on their CX technology investments than competitors thanks to cross-functional teams, clearly defined workflows, and extensive use of advanced analytics and AI.

There are three sectors that the research highlights as leaders in customer experience. Most of the leaders in CX are IT/telecommunications companies, a sector considered to be the most aggressive in terms of the use of CX technology tools. According to the MIT study, companies in the financial field are the ones that are developing the most powerful plans in terms of investment in CX technology, so in the coming years they will establish themselves as one of the leading industries in the application of this technology . Lastly, the retailers provide immersive experiences through the use of smart assistants on phones and tablets, live chat, personalization technology, or the use of AI chatbots. A) Yes, more than 40% of the companies operating in these sectors plans to increase investments in customer experience technology by as much as 25% in the next two yearsand a 35% expect to increase them by up to 50% from their current levels.

“The research results offer a warning against ‘random acts of technology’ because value is created only when technology helps meet customer expectations. In today’s world, this means adding ‘martech’ that allows companies to capture the digital activity of each customer and dynamically manage identities. In other words, making the most of your own data by using it in each interaction of the customer journey and incorporating analysis and AI into decisions in real time” comments Borja Luengo, Innovation Lab & Customer Intelligence Pre-Sales Manager at SAS.

AI emerges as an essential tool for customer experience

The report also reveals that it is the teams focused on customer experience that, within companies, make the most sophisticated use of advanced analytics and Artificial Intelligence. Total, over 80% make significant use of advanced analytics throughout the entire processfrom research to adoption and ongoing engagement.

Additionally, these experts are ahead of the game when it comes to adopting customer experience tools. For the next two years, these will be the tools that CX experts consider essential:

  • Personalization technologies, according to 86% of respondents.
  • Adoption of data collection in real time (84%).
  • Adopting chatbot with AI (81%).
  • Adoption of connected omnichannel experiences (72%).

The study reveals that these experts are much more likely to use “smart” approaches to improve the customer experience, including smart assistants embedded in goods and services. They also hope to outperform the competition in the use of edge computing, leveraging its ability to power real-time analytics.

Perhaps the most surprising finding of this study is that, compared to companies with a higher rated customer experience, they are organizations with a poorer customer experience the more likely to use cutting-edge virtual reality technology.

Digital strategy and collaboration are key

According to the research, linking the customer experience strategy with the digital strategy of the entire organization is key to achieving optimal results; it cannot depend on a single area or leader. This transversality allows the definition of CX objectives and other KPIs. In this sense, almost 75% of the experts consider that their customer experience strategy and technologies are part of the digital transformation of their organizations.

By elevating customer experience strategy to the level of corporate and digital strategy, experts can create highly trained multifunctional or decentralized teams. 70% of experts have documented their CX process workflows, with the majority coordinating customer experience activity across collaboration software and platforms that allow all participants to work from a single point. According to the report, more than 60% of professionals are currently focused on giving more responsibility to these teams and, in addition, 93% will support on them in two years.

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