AI in CX: Why Support Resolution Still Matters Most

Key Findings from Zoom+Morning Consult's new report, "AI Alone Won't Save CX. Resolution Will":

• 82% of consumers would abandon a brand because of unresolved support issues
• 43% of consumers say their biggest frustration with AI virtual agents is that they don't resolve support issues
• There's a difference of 34 to 46 percentage points between customer expectations of virtual agents and reality 

Findings from a new Zoom-commissioned Morning Consult report serve as a much-needed reminder that companies should be structuring their AI adoption strategies around their customer experience strategy, not the other way around. 

The study highlights an essential CX factor driving customer loyalty–one that’s at risk of being overlooked as companies (understandably) obsess about AI: resolution.

According to the report, 82% of consumers would abandon a brand due to unresolved support issues.

Translation?

Your customers don’t care about your brand’s shiny new “AI-powered CX transformation” if it doesn’t help them get their questions answered and their basic support needs met. In fact, 60% of them would switch to a competitor after only one or two negative support experience.

AI Agents: More Harm Than Good For Customer Support Resolution?

While AI-powered virtual agents certainly speed up the customer support process, a faster response does not guarantee a resolution–and that resolution is what your customers really care about.

Case in point: 43% of consumers say their top frustration when using chatbots and voicebots is their failure to resolve customer support issues. There’s also, according to the study, a significant gap (up to 46 percentage points) between customer expectations of AI-driven self-service and the reality of their experiences with these virtual agents.

That’s why customers prefer to contact support via more “traditional” channels like live phone support, in-person service, or email. Even though these channels are perceived as “slower,” customers feel they’re more likely to lead to a resolution.

Businesses needing even more of an incentive to prioritize support resolution should be convinced by another one of the study’s findings: 1 in 3 customers say they’d stay loyal to a brand that provided superior CX for 10 years or more.

Leverage AI To Improve Support Resolution and Overall CX

The good news for businesses still working out their AI adoption kinks?

Improving the support resolution process doesn’t leave AI out of the conversation: it just requires better collaboration between humans and AI.

It’s not that your customers don’t want to use virtual agents: it’s that they prioritize resolution over specific channels or self-service options. If virtual agents provided the best support resolution experience, your customers would choose them every time.

It’s not enough simply to offer virtual agents: businesses must equip them (and their human counterparts) with AI tools that actually drive faster and more effective support resolutions.

AI-powered features like smart omnichannel routing, real-time Agent Assist, and live sentiment/intent monitoring help increase First Contact Resolution rates. AI agent coaching tools continually improve agent performance and keep handle times low, while outbound proactive support can resolve problems before your customers bring them to you.

Future-proofing your customer experience strategy means using AI to help your customers completely resolve their support issues as quickly and conveniently as possible.