Let’s cut right through the noise – everyone in the field of Customer Experience and Unified Communication ‘s obsessed with AI. You can’t throw a rock without hitting a “game-changing” AI solution promising to revolutionize your CX.
In this article I’d like to combine some learnings from CASA24’s AI and GTM tracks. Because they are so interestingly intertwined in today’s market.
It’s Finally About People Again
I held a keynote at CASA24 – a cut-the-crap talk about the role of AI in the context of Customer Experience. After the past few years of AI as ruler of our industry, I was happy to see that one of the key take-aways of my keynote was also the punchline of so many inspiring speakers this year: it’s not about technology. It’s about people. It was refreshing to meet so many knowledgeable people at CASA24 who share more or less the same perspective.
Pressured Into AI
After speaking to over 100 business and IT leaders in the past couple of years, I’ve realized that most do not believe that AI is actually a silver bullet. Nonetheless, Enterprise Connect 2023 kicked off a sense of FOMO among C-level execs and started a snowball effect in hijacking the CX conversation. It became clear that, in the words of Kevin Kieller, AI would become ‘the new battle ground’.’ Or as Forrester’s Max Ball put it: “Folks get pressured into the AI space for the sake of the AI space”.
To me it’s simple:
If you’re not sure what you’re buying and are even clueless about the use cases – which seems to be true for the majority of execs according to Forrester’s latest Pulse – AI is not (yet) for you. So far, the empirical evidence suggests that it will turn out to be an expensive gadget that leaves your customers frustrated. And that’s where my HUMAN framework kicks in. If you’re interested, I’ve expanded on the framework in this article on LinkedIn Pulse. And I’ll do a quick recap at the end of this article.
What Is The Core Problem You Solve?
According to Gartner, 80% of businesses are knee-deep in AI exploration to bridge the CX gap. And vendors are tripping over each other to talk about how cool their AI products are. I get their commercial opportunism. But it’s also dangerous.
The numbers in my HUMAN AI presentation are a wake-up call to the entire industry. Forrester, PwC, Gartner, McKinsey, Harvard Business Review, Deloitte… Even CMP’s consumer survey in 2023… They all show how poor many ‘AI-led’ experiences are. And it’s on us, as an industry, to fix that.
We’ve become so fixated on the “coolness” of AI that we’ve forgotten what truly matters: helping organizations create memorable experiences that feel real, authentic, and – dare I say it – HUMAN.
Luckily, tides are turning. Industry leaders like Sinch get that the value is not so much in the technology, but helping businesses do better – and then figure out the role of their technology. Sinch’s director of AI Joachim Jonkers (follow that man!) displayed how they partner with customers to build stuff based on validated use cases.
He amazed the audience with the ‘simple ’- and award-winning – example of their customer Moet ik Naar De Dokter (Dutch for Do I Need To See A Doctor). Solving actual social issues with the help of automations, voice recognition and AI. That is the kind of use case driven example we need more of!
Do You Differentiate?
I briefly touched on the increased importance of differentiation in a GTM panel discussion. It’s always been a pillar for any marketing strategy, and yet I’m saying so much of the same. But if everyone is doing the same stuff and talking the same talk, how can you differentiate? And if we’re driving fuzzy, unclear propositions, how will buyer committees know what and when to buy?
Enreach’s head of AI Anne Bakker painfully pointed out in another panel session, that most marketers don’t really understand AI and mix up definitions. Could that be a reason for the lack of differentiation? I truly believe so. Every revenue leader (marketing or sales) in the industry should have it on the top of their continuous task list. Because as a rule of thumb, most CX technology vendors can’t differentiate on features. Or the ‘AI-led’ claim. Not if every vendor has mostly the same stuff – which they do.
You say your products are now AI-led or AI-orchestrated? Great, but in most cases it simply doesn’t represent the actual status. But more importantly, buyers won’t choose you because you are ‘AI-led’. So what’s your real story? Why should customers pick you over all the other solutions?
Is your brand credible enough? Can you substantiate your claims with powerful and specific use cases? It takes serious brand and product marketing efforts to find a credible and favorable position. Not to mention the deep collaboration across teams. It is tough, but also very much worth it.
Buyers Don’t Buy AI Fluff Anymore
My previous point makes a smooth transition to this one. Wynter’s exhaustive message testing on B2B websites found that B2B buyers are getting fed up with AI as the focal point of messaging. AI-focused website messaging is turning off more and more people and even creates resistance. Partly because it’s becoming table stakes, partly because the products are not clear and value props are fluffy.
Most ‘AI-led’ stuff has the smell of the future without the taste. There is a major gap between the promise for tomorrow and what we set out in the market today. With a few exceptions of course. This raises questions, like: aren’t we overselling AI today? And what is the actual value that buyers (and their customers) get when they buy our products?
I encourage you to focus heavily on 2 or 3 of your most valuable use cases. It will tell buyers why they should care about your AI product. And how they, or their customers, will profit in the real world. Like Wynter is asking: isn’t it time for vendors to zag? I say: amen. And at CASA 24 it became clear here are some vendors who are leading the way with a value-first narrative. Speechmatics, Sinch, Enreach, Deepdesk, EnableX, I see you!
What About Your Business Model?
Lastly, we need to talk about business models. I led a session about the future of AI. And even though I don’t like the crystal ball (we’re always missing the mark) there was one subject that marveled me: we’re jumping into an era of new licensing models.
It’s needless to say that we’re heading into a future where AI will take over more and more mundane tasks from agents. No-one is denying that; not even me 😉 And in the end that will be a good thing for all involved. But it’s bringing another kind of headache; the kind that makes you wish for the old headache to return. Marketing leaders – together with Sales leaders, Finance and the whole C-suite – should consider the viability of their licensing models.
Typically CCaaS and CPaaS vendors contract deals on ‘per seat’ basis. The more agents, the more attractive the deal. When AI will eventually become so good that it will actually push out agents, how can you secure your bottom line results? On the panel, not everyone convinced me with their answers.
Business models are going to need innovation and renovation. Data consumption models, feature bundles, API call pricing, event-based billing; there is a jungle to explore. And I know from experience that these discussions can be brutal.
Like a wise woman (just making this up, it’s not clear whose quote this is) once said: the best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is now. Great advice for our business models as well!
The HUMAN Framework: Injecting Soul Back into CX
Let me close off with a quick summary of my HUMAN Framework. HUMAN stands for five principles that can take your customers’ AI strategy from ‘meh’ to marvelous. That is, if you start with the use cases.
Heartfelt, Unified, Measurable, Actionable, and Natural.
1. Heartfelt: it’s all about the context. Use AI to help deliver large-scale heartfelt dialogues AND processes. Understand the context of a conversation and then anticipate.
2. Unified: One Story, One Experience. AI isn’t the hero; it’s the glue that binds your touchpoints together. Make sure your AI communicates across channels and modalities. Get rid of disjointed handoffs or confusing interactions. You should have done that a long time ago.
3. Measurable: Forget the boring KPIs like average handle time. Seriously, who cares? The real question is: did your AI-driven interaction turn a frustrated customer into a happy one? Did it save a client from jumping ship? Those are the metrics that matter.
4. Actionable: The conversation doesn’t end when you hang up or log off. From boring classification tasks to sending confirmation emails, create a secret weapon that keeps things moving behind the scenes, freeing up your humans to handle the heavy lifting.
5. Natural: The worst thing AI can do is sound like… well, AI. Nobody wants to feel like they’re talking to a robot. Not even you. So, let the AI do the grunt work, with real-time suggestions, data lookups, and customer insights, while people bring the magic..
Bring The Soul Back To CX
I’m a musician. And my favorite type of music is anything that has a black origin. Jazz, Black Gospel, Funk… Why? Because it has soul, it’s vibrant, it feels alive, it’s always moving. I had that same vibe at CASA24. And now, onwards. Let’s bring that soul back to CX! Our customers, employees and even investors will thank us later.
Hans Kramer
Founder & CEO of So Remarkable, Hans Kramer is a B2B Brand & Demand Marketing leader. Hans is an experienced marketing, communications & business strategist with a proven track record in product marketing, brand building, content marketing and PR.
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