The ‘experience economy’ is upon us. Today, customers expect personalized and connected experiences across touchpoints. Businesses are increasingly expected to deliver on-demand, real-time and hyper-personalized services. With changing customer expectations, we are witnessing the emergence of new customer service trends that are reshaping the way leaders adapt to the changing demands.
As you create your roadmap for 2024, here are some customer service trends to keep on your radar to stay ahead of competition and give your customers extraordinary customer service experiences-
Customer Service Trends 2024
GenAI Chatbots at Your Service
LLM-based ChatGPT has taken the internet by storm. Every industry is now exploring the potential use cases of Generative AI for their business. According to a 2022 BCG survey of global customer service leaders, 95% expect their customers to be served by an AI bot at some point in their customer service interactions within the next three years. The hub of customer services operations, also called contact centers, has evolved considerably in the past decade. Technological advancements such as interactive voice response, RPA, and generative AI chatbots have now made its way into key operations in contact centers. As a result, agents can focus on high-complexity and high value interactions, while chatbots resolve less complex issues for customers.Messaging Platforms are the New Customer Favorites
Customers want an instant and convenient channel to reach out to brands. The rise of messaging platforms over the last couple of years substantiates this, and it is poised to be one of the customer service trends that will thrive in the near future as well. For brand, facilitating instant communication through messaging platforms and real-time resolution of issues will translate to customer satisfaction and a superior customer experience.Automation will be a Gamechanger
Automation has been tried and tested in improving customer experiences for businesses. But its benefit extends to increased agent productivity by freeing them from repetitive tasks. While streamlining routine tasks, automation also enables faster response times and speed of service for customers. In the long run, automation will be one of the key customer service trends that will give an edge for businesses looking to dominate the market and garner increased customer loyalty.Transparency and Trust will Take the Centre Stage
While AI and other tech trends sound exciting, customers might seldom be privy of all the risk and privacy issues involved, especially while using their data. Companies that prioritize establishing trust and ensuring transparency of operation will be favored by customers. Forward thinking companies are expected to adopt programs that prevent LLMs from retaining customer data. Organizations will aim to create custom models for their specific needs, ensuring secure AI cloud access while keeping data stored on their own infrastructure. This approach enhances both flexibility and security.Being Proactive will be the New Norm
Being proactive rather than reactive is often associated with good customer service. A study by Salesforce indicates that 59% of customers expect companies to anticipate their needs and make relevant suggestions before they even contact them. Customer service trends are evolving rapidly and the possibilities that advanced technologies will bring are truly exciting. But along with embracing seamless transactional experiences, customer-centric businesses must also find ways to delight customers with a proactive approach to identifying expectations and delivering accordingly.Automation for Customer Feedback
Businesses are increasingly looking to deploy customer service technology to collect, analyze, and respond to customer feedback. Responses and resolution times can be reduced considerably while also enabling executives to have more time to focus on other complex activities. Automation as a customer service strategy will lower costs, improve efficiency and drive personalization at scale. Technologies such as email automation, predictive analytics, and Voice and IVR systems will play a crucial role in enabling this trend.Increased Focus on Centralized Data
When data exists in silos, gaining a 360° view of customers becomes even more challenging. Bringing all the customer data together into a centralized system will simplify the process of creating an end-to-end customer journey view easy for businesses to enhance their customer service. Most companies have already realized the importance of having a centralized database. In 2024, businesses can aim to achieve this by firstly identifying customer data silos, investing in the right data integration tools to bring all this data into one place, establishing a data governance program, and training internal teams to monitor and use data effectively.Take Customer Service to the Next Level with Service Cloud
Salesforce Service Cloud enhances customer service by offering a unified platform for managing interactions across channels, providing agents with a holistic view of each customer’s history and preferences. By leveraging automation and AI, it streamlines processes, allowing agents to focus on more complex issues while delivering faster resolutions. Through self-service options like knowledge bases and community forums, customers can find answers independently, reducing agent workload. With omni-channel support, businesses ensure consistent service delivery regardless of the communication channel used. Additionally, robust analytics and reporting tools provide valuable insights into customer satisfaction and agent performance, enabling organizations to make data-driven decisions and continually improve the customer experience.Learn more about how you can leverage Service Cloud for your business
