Dive Brief:
- Consumers are most concerned about the loss of human touch with the deployment of AI in hospitality, according to a Reputation survey of more than 760 U.S. consumers released earlier this week.
- “When consumers express concern about losing the human touch in hospitality, they aren’t rejecting the technology; they’re rejecting cold service,” Liz Carter, Reputation’s CMO, said in an email. “This is the single most important instruction that finding gives to leaders.”
- Following consumers’ concern about the erosion of human interactions, 37% are concerned about privacy and data security; 30% are worried about mistakes in service; and 30% are concerned about difficulty in resolving issues.
Dive Insight:
While more and more consumers are using AI for researching hospitality venues, that doesn’t mean that they always trust businesses to use AI to their benefit.
One in five consumers now use generative AI apps like ChatGPT for online research about a bar, restaurant or similar venue, Reputation found. That share is fast approaching other common sources, such as third-party review sites like TripAdvisor and social media platforms like Tiktok, which one-quarter of consumers use.
More than half of consumers — 55% — trust AI-generated review summaries. But familiarity with AI doesn’t mean that they trust all use cases of the technology, especially when it may replace human touch.
Guests embrace automation for the things that cause friction, according to Carter. That includes information on accurate wait times, order status updates, seamless payments or even basic sentiment triage. But people can’t be an afterthought.
"You must keep humans central to the moments that carry genuine emotion — service recovery, special occasions, complex complaints,” Carter said. “To protect that integrity, set strict brand-voice guardrails on AI replies and ensure there is an easy, immediate path for a customer to reach a person.”
Generational differences also play a role. Among consumers aged 25 to 34, 61% have already used AI tools, compared to just 4% of consumers aged 65 and above. One-quarter of consumers overall are worried about the deployment of AI leading to job losses in the hospitality industry, but among the 65 and above age group, that rate jumps to more than half.
Experts urge businesses to disclose AI use to ease consumers’ concerns and build trust. Providing consumers clear opt-out options also gives guests a sense of control, Reputation said.
