Dive Brief:
- A majority of consumers — 58% — will leave a brand after two or fewer bad service experiences, according to research from Metrigy. The independent analyst firm surveyed 1,000 U.S. consumers for the Q3 edition of its quarterly CX index in partnership with contact center vendor NiCE.
- Bad service experiences primarily include interactions that waste customers’ time, such as waiting a long time in queue, having trouble reaching a live agent or repeating themselves when they finally reach a person. Not being understood by AI also triggers a bad experience.
- Consumer trust doesn’t break because of one dramatic failure. “Their patience is shrinking,” said Layne Haaksma, senior research analyst with Metrigy. “If we look at what they’ll tolerate before leaving, they’re down to 2.8 bad experiences before they leave. In the first quarter that was 3.2. So, tolerance is really becoming smaller.”
Dive Insight:
If consumer trust dies after a few cuts rather than a thousand, brands should prioritize developing and maintaining a consistent level of basic service.
Quick resolution of an issue is most likely to restore confidence in the company, Metrigy found. Compensation, if warranted, and honest communication were a close second and third, respectively.
“When they have complaints or problems, enable customers to get to resolution quickly,” Haaksma said. “And just be honest and try to make it right with follow up.”
Making the service experience as efficient as possible can involve AI. Metrigy’s research suggests that customers are getting more comfortable with AI as they experience it more when they call in. But, as Metrigy’s research and a recent Five9 survey found, brands should still make sure the customer can easily reach a person.
Metrigy found that 2 in 5 consumers said they prefer a mix of AI and human support that switches automatically based on how complex the issue is. Another nearly 2 in 5 prefer human-led support, supported by AI in the background.
Customers aren’t necessarily aware that a human agent is augmented by AI use. But they do experience its effects, Metrigy noted. AI-using agents have key information at their fingertips, which might mean they’re not repeating personal information or the reason for their call. Agents might also have account history or troubleshooting at hand, which can also lead to quicker call resolution.
Most respondents — 71% — said that the people they interact with matter more to a positive experience than the tools do, Metrigy found. Perhaps it is that human agent who solves the problem, or who listens patiently to the frustrated customer, and then moves forward in good faith, who builds, or at least maintains, the customer’s trust in the brand.
“A real trust killer is when companies just don't do what they say they're going to do, whether that's ‘I'm going to call you back,’ or ‘I'm going to get you the correct answer,’” said Jon Picoult, founder and principal of Watermark Consulting. “I think it is that simple. Do what you say you're going to do and honor your promises.”
