What makes IKEA one of the world’s top 10 most valuable retail brands? How does IKEA dominate global markets with furniture that customers willingly assemble themselves? From its iconic in-store experience to its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered design experience, IKEA’s success lies in its ability to build customer loyalty.
Companies are investing in technology to improve customer service and brand value. If you plan to pursue a graduate business degree, choosing a program that emphasizes the technology skills employers seek can elevate your marketability and earning potential.
For example, Lamar University’s online Dual Degree Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Master of Science (M.S.) in Management Information Systems (MIS) program equips graduates with the in-demand blend of business, technical and leadership skills to improve profitability through customer service technologies.
How Is Technology Enhancing Customer Service?
Customer service technology is becoming a critical differentiator for companies. Writing for Hubspot, Michael Redbord notes that customer service technology tools “improve workflow efficiency and make it easier for companies to provide effective solutions to their customers.”
Bots and AI, which Redbord calls a “game-changer,” are one example. Bots and AI have a number of benefits, as these tools:
- Enable real-time assistance and self-service, such as with conversational AI
- Automate customer issue-tracking and queries
- Analyze massive amounts of data to predict customer needs and ensure product availability at the right time
While employees will still handle complex customer needs, bots and AI free up more time for high-value activities, boosting employee engagement and adding further benefits in the form of improved retention.
Additional customer service technologies, to name a few, include:
- Video voicemail: Ever tried to solve a technical issue by clicking through product support pages, only to give up? What if your question was answered in a short video message instead? Video messaging tools like Loom are improving the customer experience, solving issues with a friendly face and quicker call wait times.
- Omnichannel support: Companies are increasingly adopting omnichannel initiatives to seamlessly connect customers across all channels, devices and platforms. Help desk software creates a single point of contact for the service team, no matter where or how the customer engages with the business.
- Social media customer service: Customer complaints on social media are not new, and companies might have previously opted to ignore them. But given that complaints on social media can cost a business 15% of its customers, companies need a customer service presence on social media.
- Sentiment analysis tools: Most of us know how easy it is to misread unintended emotions or tone in text messages. Sentiment analysis tools use AI to analyze text data from chat messages, emails, reviews, web forms and other sources to quickly detect customer emotions and attitudes and inform appropriate responses.
Assessing the Impact of Customer Service Technologies
Companies know they need to engage their customers where they live, and in today’s digital world, that means on social media channels. While technology can benefit nearly every aspect of a business, it has become a must for improving customer service and maintaining a competitive advantage.
Providing a positive customer experience increases sales and builds loyalty. Plus, delighted customers make excellent brand ambassadors. According to a PwC survey, customer priorities include convenience, speed and helpful, friendly service. Today’s customer service technologies have the potential to scale customer support while meeting or exceeding these expectations.
A Forbes article notes the following benefits of customer service technologies:
- Improved communication between a business and its end users
- Efficient coordination between departments and groups
- Amplification of successful processes
- Personalized customer experiences
- Automated analytics
- Greater visibility into what customers value
Based on the PwC survey, over half of U.S. consumers think most companies need to improve their customer service. Nearly 60% will stop doing business with a brand after just a few bad experiences, and 17% after one. In addition, over 50% of executives say they lack a clear understanding of how technology such as bots and AI can help.
This gap creates a sizable opportunity for business leaders with the skill set to implement technology-based customer service solutions effectively. With Lamar University’s Dual MBA and M.S. MIS online program, you can earn two in-demand degrees that will uniquely prepare you to lead organizations in leveraging technology to optimize the customer experience and boost business success.
Learn more about Lamar University’s online Dual MBA and M.S. in MIS program.
