Why AI projects that don't start with a study of customer behaviour are destined to disappoint

This game changing technology will be of limited use if you don't understand what irks people about dealing your business.

Will this new financial year see your organisation attempting to unlock efficiencies and elevate customer experience via the roll-out of AI-enabled solutions and processes? 

Research suggests these are fast becoming universal goals for Australian businesses. Forty-two per cent of small and medium sized enterprises are already using AI and a further 14 per cent are planning to, according to NAB's AI in Australia report released in May.

These figures are likely to rise in FY2027, given AI is 'widely seen as a General Purpose Technology with transformative potential, on par with past innovations like electricity or computing', NAB's Report notes.

Shining a light on AI failures and successes

Alas, deriving value, and a genuine return on that collective investment in AI, isn't as simple as flicking a switch, as many early adopters have learnt, to their cost.

Up to 80 per cent of AI projects to date haven't delivered the anticipated outcomes, according to University of Queensland research.

Only six per cent of businesses achieve a return on their AI investments in the first year while a further 27 per cent have found it takes one to two years, according to McKinsey

For the majority, the wait is even longer: two to three years for 37 per cent of businesses, while another 25 per cent are waiting up to four years for value.

In many instances, it's because they've deployed AI willy nilly, or to replace existing flawed processes, instead of focusing on opportunities to eliminate friction and deliver speedier, more responsive service.

Never mind the talk, look at the actions

How are those improvement opportunities best found? 'A well done is better than a well said', as legendary US president Benjamin Franklin once put it. It's an observation that's been endorsed by subsequent thought leaders of all stripes, who've adjured us to judge people not by their words but by their actions.

It's supremely sound advice for businesses looking to get a handle on how they're engaging with customers. 

That's because, surveys, feedback forms and sentiment analysis studies notwithstanding, most customers won't come out and tell you if something is bothering them or broken. 

They'll suck it up and suffer in silence if it's a small enough thing, or they'll take their custom elsewhere if it becomes too tiresome to tolerate.

Taking a deep dive into the contact centre data 

Make a study of your customers' behaviour via your online and virtual channels and you'll get a realistic and detailed picture of how well, or badly, you're enabling them to achieve their desired ends.

Minimal wait times, high first contact resolution rates and an under occupied customer complaints team indicate there's lots you're doing right. 

Repeated contacts, abandoned transactions, channel switching, protracted handling times and a continual stream of escalated complaints, not so much.

Analyse these interactions closely and you'll discover the friction points that are fuelling frustration, fracturing customer journeys and cruelling your customer experience. 

Focus your efforts on eliminating them, using AI to add speed and efficiency to the process, and you'll be well on your way to achieving measurable benefits. 

How expert advice can drive positive AI outcomes 

Taking a big picture approach – one that unites stakeholders from across the enterprise in shared pursuit of efficiencies and an improved customer experience – is your best chance of deriving stand-out value from your investment in AI. 

Unfortunately, that can be easier said than done, particularly for organisations where duties and responsibilities are rigidly demarcated. 

Enlisting expert assistance, from seasoned customer experience consultants who can provide an objective perspective, can help transform disparate interests and activities into a cogent AI strategy. Ideally, you'll choose to partner with a firm that's helped businesses with similar challenges to your own identify and eliminate customer pain points.

With their support, your business will stand its best chance of deploying AI solutions that drive measurable, positive outcomes.

Harnessing the power of AI to strengthen your enterprise in FY2027

Deploying AI technology for its own sake is a reliable way to achieve negligible business benefits. Using your customers' behaviour to identify deficiencies in your systems and processes will help your business determine where AI investment is best directed. If a genuine return is your object, it's an approach that will help you achieve it quickly.