ServiceNow has identified that 75% of UK consumers press no buttons during automated chatbot-enabled telephone calls to be redirected to a human as quickly as possible. The finding is one of the key points from the ServiceNow Consumer Voice Report 2024 (email registration required). The report is based on a survey of 15,000 consumers from the UK, ROI, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, UAE, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
Avoiding the chatbots
Consumers are also actively trying to identify how to reach a human agent as quickly as possible. ServiceNow identified that 77% are looking up tips and “hacks” to avoid automated customer service conversations and talk direct to a human. About 73% turn to friends and family to seek advice on avoiding chatbots. Furthermore, one in two UK consumers have even posted tips online that they have gathered about avoiding chatbots.
Simon Morris, VP of Solution Consulting at ServiceNow, said, “This research and the very existence of these ‘hacks’ reveal that businesses have yet to figure out how to get their customer experience right. Automation is here to enhance customer service and help increase both customers and agents’ satisfaction. For this to happen though, companies must get the right mixture of ‘high-tech’ and ‘high-touch’, one where AI and workforce work hand in hand rather than compete.”
Writing in the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Huang, Markovitch, and Stough identified that “consumers prefer human service over chatbots in some contexts.” They indicate that customer outcomes following chatbot service are influenced by dispositional trust in service technologies, generalised learned trust in chatbots, and particularised situational trust in one’s chatbot service-giver.
Organisations may have powerful incentives for replacing human agents, such as lower cost at scale, 24/7 on-demand availability, and scalability. However, they must also consider how to build trust in these new services. Rather than assume that humans will use them. Trust is a key factor in the consumer–business relationship and a key factor in loyalty.
Consumer Choice is good
Consumer choice is not just about product and service offerings. It is also about how organisations engage with consumers. The variety of social media channels, voice, text, email and chatbots available means that organisations need to think carefully about what they do and don’t offer. The ServiceNow report highlighted that 85% demand a range of options from chatbots to phone calls and emails. Notably, 40% now want to deal purely with AI-enabled solutions, in part, according to ServiceNow, to avoid jobs being replaced.
What is unclear here, and there does not seem to have been any qualitative element to the survey, is why they are saying that. Over 4% of the UK’s population is employed in a UK call centre (Source Cactus Search, 2021).
ServiceNow does identify some of the areas where consumers are happier to engage with chatbots.
21% of consumers are happy to use a chatbot when seeking general information. However, 39% would prefer to deal with a customer service agent when it comes to solving a problem. Consumers have other expectations, which means the investment in chatbots is a sensible approach despite the lack of enthusiasm.
39% of consumers expect organisations to shift to 24×7 customer support over the next 12 months. The overwhelming majority expect it to occur during this decade. It means that investment in AI-powered customer service technologies is a must for organisations to meet customer expectations.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean
This is a snapshot of some of the findings of the report, which ServiceNow did not share. It demonstrates that consumers do not mind dealing with chatbots, but only on their terms. Organisations will need to carefully consider the timing of any investment. And should consider how sophisticated the AI behind any customer service chatbot is.
Solutions are emerging that are becoming increasingly intelligent and human-like in their response. However, organisations must also be wary of the “uncanny valley” that leaves people nervous about dealing with chatbots that are too human-like.
