Amazing Business Radio

Using AI and Automation to Create an Amazing Customer Service Experience Shep Hyken interviews Boaz Hecht, co-founder and CEO of 8Flow.ai. He talks about the role of AI in streamlining processes and how it is changing the customer support landscape. Top Takeaways:   AI technology is transforming customer service by streamlining repetitive tasks, saving time, and enhancing efficiency. By learning customers’ and agents’ patterns of behavior, AI automates processes, enabling agents to focus on high-value tasks. As technology advances, companies should recognize the potential of integrating AI into their customer service platforms to improve the overall customer experience and optimize operational productivity. The successful implementation of AI simplifies operations and empowers agents to handle more complex tasks, ultimately leading to heightened productivity and elevated customer satisfaction. AI is driving the customer support industry towards a more efficient and higher-quality standard of service. Companies have the opportunity to upskill their agents, providing them with the tools and training to resolve complex issues effectively, further enhancing the customer experience. Employees trained at a higher level appreciate the company they're working for. They feel they're growing, and that's part of the fulfillment of working with the company, hence lower churn of employees, which saves the company. Plus, Shep and Boaz answer the question, "Will AI make us dumber?" Tune in! Quote:  "AI can help agents by reducing the amount of menial tasks so they can focus on the more complex work that they need to do." About:   Boaz Hecht is the co-founder and CEO of 8Flow.ai, a company that uses AI and machine learning to reduce costs by eliminating repetitive processes in customer support workflows. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Trends, Do's, and Don’ts of Customer Service and Experience (CX) for 2024 In this week's special episode, Shep Hyken, customer service and experience expert and host of Amazing Business Radio shares his predictions for 2024 in customer service and experience, plus 10 things to start doing and 10 things to stop doing, with practical tips and actionable insights. Top Takeaways:   Customers are smarter than ever before. They are judging your business based on the best experiences they've had from any industry, and it doesn't matter if it's B2B or B2C. This means they no longer compare you to your direct competitors but to their best experiences with their favorite companies. Employee experience is as important as customer experience. How employees feel in your company directly affects the experience they provide your customers. Companies that align themselves with social causes are more appealing to customers—especially the younger demographics, Gen Z and Millennials. Forty-three percent of customers believe a company that supports a social cause contributes to their customer experience. Customers today are less patient and expect quick responses and fast service. Shep refers to this as "Amazonation," which has set a high standard for companies in any industry, worldwide. Companies must focus on increasing their speed in all aspects of their business, from delivery times to response times to emails and calls. Plus, Shep shares ten tactics that you must start doing, and ten things you must stop doing if you want to create a customer experience that gets customers to say, “I’ll be back.” And finally, Shep introduces The Super Amazing Show! Each week in 2024, Shep and Brittany Hodak, his friend and fellow customer experience expert, create short videos that include tips and strategies for becoming a more customer-centric company. Tune in! Quote:  "What's happening inside an organization is felt on the outside by its customers." About:   Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Understanding Customer Behavior Shep Hyken interviews Akin Arikan, an evangelist at Contentsquare and the author of Customer Experience Analytics. He talks about the importance of using customer experience analytics to better understand and meet the needs of customers. Top Takeaways:   The customer's perception matters most. Never assume you know what your customer wants without looking at data. Even the most passionate organizations can misinterpret customer behavior, so always rely on data to make decisions. Embrace continuous improvement. Once you find success, it doesn't mean you should stop. Keep learning and looking for changes to enhance the customer experience. Continuous improvement is essential for businesses to stay ahead of the competition and adapt to changing customer needs and preferences. Experience what it is like to be a customer in your business to identify areas for improvement and ensure a seamless, engaging experience for your customers. Use data to understand customers' digital behavior. By analyzing data, organizations can learn valuable insights into what their customer needs and wants. This enables them to have the customer in mind when designing and improving digital experiences. Making small, thoughtful adjustments based on customer behavior data can lead to substantial improvements in customer engagement and conversions. These adjustments can make a big difference in how customers interact with your brand online. When customers interact with your digital channels, their behaviors can provide valuable feedback. Embrace this feedback and be willing to adjust and refine the digital experiences in response to customer preferences and interactions. Plus, Akin shares what changes brands like L'Occitane and GoPro made to increase sales based on customer behavior and preferences. Tune in! Quotes:  "Customers can behave differently from what we expect. Customer experience analytics can tell us what didn’t work, what didn’t resonate, and what we should change to really hit home with our customers." "Customer experience analytics are too important to be the job of just analysts. It is for everyone on the team that needs to make decisions to improve the customer experience." "It may feel risky to try something new for your customers. Use data to quickly understand what the customer thinks about it. Then, correct and refine, and you will be rewarded." About:   Akin Arikan has 20 years of experience in analytics. He is the author of two books, Multichannel Marketing: Metrics and Methods for On and Offline Success and Customer Experience Analytics. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Enabling, Recognizing, and Celebrating Great Customer Service Shep Hyken interviews David Diestel, chief executive officer of FirstService Residential. He talks about delivering exceptional service consistently, creating moments that matter, and empowering the team to provide amazing customer experiences. Top Takeaways:   A brand is not just about a name. It’s about being united and joining together under a common set of values. It starts with leadership defining who you are as an organization and what you stand for. Then, it is reinforced daily throughout the organization through empowerment and recognition. Creating an organization's positive and supportive culture is key to delivering extraordinary experiences. Daily meetings involving all team members, regardless of their position, help to unify the company's culture and values. This consistency in communication and empowerment fosters a workplace that is service-aware and dedicated to delivering outstanding customer experiences. In most organizations, there is a gap between CEOs' perceptions of being customer-centric and customers' actual experiences. This is why feedback is important. Using tools like Net Promoter Scores (NPS) to measure customer and employee experiences provides valuable insights. By understanding the depth of customer relationships, companies can align their culture and optimize their customer experience, ultimately leading to improved service, retention, and growth. Maintaining a customer-focused culture across multiple regions requires alignment and consistency. Celebrating customer service wins and establishing consistent communication helps maintain a customer-centric focus across various locations. Plus, Shep and David share examples of Moments of Magic® and "Moments that Matter." Tune in! Quote:  "Every interaction with the customer matters. It is important that everyone in the organization learns this and that it is constantly reinforced." About:   David Diestel is the Chief Executive Officer of FirstService Residential, one of North America's largest property management groups. They serve 9,000 communities and 18,000 employees. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How Small Improvements Create Lasting Change in Customer Experience Steven Van Belleghem, customer experience expert and author of A Diamond in the Rough: Over a 100 Specific Tips to Build a Strong Customer Culture. He talks about how embracing effective empathy, empowering employees to make meaningful decisions, and building emotional customer relationships can transform companies into customer-centric organizations. Top Takeaways:   The key to transforming companies into customer-centric organizations lies in adopting a customer experience mindset. When leaders prioritize the customer experience, it influences the entire company culture. Empowering employees to take positive actions that benefit customers can significantly impact team morale and reinforce the company's customer-centric goals. Leaders need to continuously communicate and appreciate the impact of customer-centric behaviors. True customer loyalty extends beyond transactional interactions and loyalty programs. Building authentic, emotional customer relationships can lead to loyalty and increased revenue. For example, offering knowledge and content for free or demonstrating appreciation for customers at all stages of their journey creates loyalty and long-term relationships. 95% of your customers will be friendly, regular people. But 5% of your customers can be complete nightmares, and nothing you do will be good enough for them. Companies often lean towards focusing on the negative 5% of customer interactions, which can result in the creation of rules and procedures based on outliers. Don't punish your good customers for the sins of the few bad ones. Embracing a philosophy of making small, incremental improvements can lead to significant overall change in the customer experience. When companies focus on constant improvement, even if it's just 1% at a time, it can create a wave of positive impact on customer satisfaction. Empowering employees to make small decisions and take immediate action to address customer needs can improve customer experience and loyalty. Training employees to effectively handle customer issues without having to always ask for permission enhances their ability to make decisions that benefit customers. Encouraging and reinforcing customer-centric behavior and sharing success stories during team meetings can motivate and guide employees toward delivering outstanding customer service. Plus, Shep and Steven discuss why some companies remain "diamonds in the rough" and never successfully cultivate a customer-centric culture. Tune in! Quote:  "It all starts with leadership. The biggest barrier for companies to succeed in their goal of becoming customer-centric is when teams don't believe their leaders." About:   Steven Van Belleghem is a customer experience thought leader and keynote speaker. He is the author of six bestselling books. His latest book, A Diamond in the Rough: Over 100 Specific Tips to Build a Strong Customer Culture, is available now! Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Create Customer Loyalty With a Personalized Experience Shep Hyken interviews Josh Liebman, a guest experience expert and the author of The Hospitality Mentality: Create Raving Fans Through Your Guest Experience. He talks about how organizations, whether in B2B or B2C, can adopt the hospitality mindset to create exceptional guest experiences and drive loyalty. Top Takeaways:   The hospitality mentality is a mindset that focuses on treating every customer as a valued guest, going beyond their expectations, and providing exceptional service. This mindset can be applied to every organization in any industry. A hyper-personalized experience is making the customer or guest feel like they are the only one that matters, even if it is only for a brief period of time. It's about delivering an experience that exceeds their expectations and is tailored to their unique preferences and needs. A “wow moment” is a surprise and delight moment. It goes beyond what an employee, a team member, or the organization typically needs to do, but it shouldn't negatively impact any other guest's experience. “Wow moments” don’t have to be complicated or costly. There are many ways to create memorable and personalized experiences for guests that have high value but little to no cost to your organization. It's about going the extra mile, finding moments to surprise and delight your guests, and creating a lasting impression that sets your business apart. Consistency and predictability are crucial in delivering amazing customer service. While “wow moments” are memorable and can create a lasting impact, the foundation of great service lies in consistently delivering positive experiences (that are expected). The word "always" followed by something positive is how every customer should describe your business. Customers value businesses that are always friendly, always helpful, and always reliable. Plus, Josh shares what it means to “get rid of your customers” and more nuggets from his latest book, The Hospitality Mentality: Create Raving Fans Through Your Guest Experience. Tune in! Quote:  "The idea behind having a hospitality mindset is to look beyond the dollar amount customers bring into the business. Provide an experience that extends beyond the transaction and allows you to build a framework for a service culture that treats everyone like a guest." About:   Josh Liebman specializes in guest experience within attractions, hospitality, and tourism. He is the co-host of the AttractionPros Podcast and the author of The Hospitality Mentality: Create Raving Fans Through Your Guest Experience. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Power of Google Comes to Your Website Shep Hyken interviews Chris Blaisure, senior director of innovation and engineering at Elastic. He talks about using a Google type of search engine on your company’s website to help deliver a better customer experience and help customer support agents get the best answers for their customers. Top Takeaways:   Businesses use advanced technology like search and generative AI to create better customer experiences. When customers visit a company's website and use the search bar to find information, the technology behind it can provide relevant and helpful results, making it easier to get the answers they need. Searching on the internet used to be about using keywords, but now it's smarter! It understands what you really want and gives you better answers. This shift allows customers to ask broader questions and receive accurate responses, improving the effectiveness of search platforms and thereby improving customer service. Customers can now use everyday language to get better results that accurately match what they are looking for. For example, instead of searching "discount iPhone," customers can ask, "I want the best family plan for an iPhone in California." The answer or response suits what the customer needs better. While digital self-service solutions continue to evolve and enhance the customer experience, phone support remains essential for customers to interact with companies. The goal is not to eliminate phone support but to augment agents with AI-driven tools. This allows support agents to focus on more personalized and complex issues. Generative AI and advanced search technologies can help build unique customer experiences. Creating meaningful and personalized customer interactions with the help of AI-powered technology can help brands set themselves apart from the competition. Plus, Chris shares how Elastic started and evolved from searching kitchen recipes to delivering AI-powered CX. Tune in! Quote:  "Self-service unblocks customer support… and enables a better customer experience.” About:   Chris Blaisure is the senior director of innovation and engineering at Elastic. He is a technology leader focused on customer satisfaction and driving exceptional user experiences in software and processes. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Benefits of Self-Directed Customer Experiences (CX) for Customers and Agents Shep Hyken interviews Nicole Kyle, Managing Director and co-founder of CMP Research. She discusses the evolution of self-service and digital customer service and the importance of personalization and customer control in self-service interactions. Top Takeaways:   Self-service is becoming more than just enabling customers to attempt to resolve their own issues. Customers want a self-directed experience where they have control over how they are served and can resolve their issues in the way they want. The pandemic has accelerated the normalization of digital experiences and digital tools. The lockdown has changed our customers' perspective on how they want to spend their time. Customers want to be more self-sufficient and spend less time interacting with customer support if they can get answers faster on their own. Generative AI, like ChatGPT, is expected to grow in customer contact organizations to support agents. AI will remove low-value, repeatable tasks and help with employee burnout. Generative AI will improve agent experience by making them more self-sufficient. For example, for whatever reason, they can't reach their manager or peers, they can interact with the AI-enabled knowledge base and get the answers they need. Organizations need to focus on personalization and customer control in self-service experiences. Customers want a personalized experience that makes them feel valued and have the ability to resolve their issues in a way that suits them. Plus, Nicole share stats from Self-Service CX: Executive Priorities & Technology Adoptions. Tune in! Quote:  "Generative AI might reduce frontline workers in the future, but the good news is it will create jobs internally for people to monitor those tools and extract and analyze data." About:   Nicole Kyle is the Managing Director and co-founder of CMP Research. Nicole joined CMP in November 2021 from Gartner, where she spent eight years leading research and advisory. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Using Generative AI to Provide a Personalized Customer Experience Shep Hyken interviews Richard Smullen, CEO of Pypestream, an AI-powered self-service automation platform. He talks about how automation and generative AI can enhance the customer experience and the potential for self-service interactions. Top Takeaways:   The future of customer service is being transformed by AI-powered technologies that can automate and enhance customer interactions. Technologies, such as ChatGPT and generative AI, are revolutionizing how businesses interact with their customers. AI is redefining customer support. While there will still be a need for human agents in certain high-touch situations, the majority of customer interactions will be handled by AI-powered systems. The future of customer service is heading toward self-service and personalized experiences. By providing intuitive and easy-to-use interfaces, businesses can guide customers toward the desired outcome without human intervention. Companies that embrace AI in their customer service operations are not necessarily reducing their workforce. Instead, they are using AI to augment human agents and improve customer service experiences. According to Martec's Law, technology changes exponentially, but organizations change logarithmically. The longer organizations delay their adoption and experimentation with technology, the greater the gap will be, and ultimately, they'll never catch up. Plus, Shep and Richard share their predictions on how generative AI will transform customer service and what happens to businesses that fail to adapt. Tune in! Quote:  "The customer is not going to believe that they are building a relationship with the AI. They are going to believe that they are building a relationship with the business that happens to be using AI. That level of connectivity and personalization that AI can help a business provide is what is going to drive loyalty." About:   Richard Smullen is the founder and CEO of Pypestream, an AI-powered automation platform. Pypestream connects businesses to customers through self-service automation and smart messaging. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How to Use Positive and Negative Feedback as Opportunities to Improve the Customer Experience Shep Hyken interviews Miika Mäkitalo, CEO of HappyOrNot, a simple, non-intrusive customer feedback platform. He talks about the value of customer feedback and how businesses can benefit from actionable insights. Top Takeaways:   Customer feedback is crucial for businesses of all industries. By actively seeking and analyzing feedback, businesses can identify areas of improvement, make informed decisions, and ultimately enhance their overall customer experience. Technology, such as feedback kiosks and tablets, provides a simple and non-intrusive way for customers to provide feedback. These devices allow businesses to gather real-time insights and track customer satisfaction on a regular basis. Customers appreciate the convenience of these devices, as it takes just a few seconds to indicate their level of satisfaction. This encourages more customers to participate, providing a representative sample of feedback. The value of customer feedback lies not just in data collection but in taking action. By identifying trends and patterns in feedback, businesses can make the necessary adjustments to enhance their operations, increase revenue, and improve customer loyalty. Feedback devices with open-ended feedback options can provide even more valuable information for businesses. By allowing customers to provide specific comments or suggestions, businesses gain deeper insights into the reasons behind their satisfaction or dissatisfaction, enabling them to address specific issues and make targeted improvements. Feedback devices can be especially beneficial for retail, healthcare, and industries where customer experience directly impacts revenue. Implementing customer feedback strategies can increase sales and profits as businesses make data-driven decisions to optimize operations and meet customer expectations. Real-time feedback enables businesses to address issues immediately, whether a dirty restroom in an airport or a staffing gap in a retail store. Monitoring feedback in real-time allows businesses to promptly rectify any problems, ensuring a positive customer experience. Businesses can benefit from comparing feedback across different locations or time periods. By identifying differences in customer satisfaction levels, businesses can assess the impact of various factors, such as staffing or operational changes, and make effective adjustments accordingly. Plus, Mikka shares how much revenue a business can gain from investing in easy-to-use, real-time feedback devices. Tune in! Quote:  "In today's world, the customer is king, and retaining them is so important. It is vital for every organization, whether it is a business or a nonprofit, to measure their customer experience and think about what they could do better." About:   Miika Mäkitalo is the CEO of HappyOrNot. He is an entrepreneurial business strategist who has a deep understanding of data analytics and its application in various industries, especially customer service and CX. Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices