Why Customer Service Is Such A Bad User Experience…
…And How Chatbots Can Fix It.
“I don’t want to deal with customer service” is almost certainly a phrase that you have uttered, probably within the last month. That’s not a surprise. There are few things worse than the stress of the interaction with a customer service agent. I have personally delayed calling about mistakes on my bank statement, or returning an item- solely so that I did not have to go through The Process. You know The Process: pull out your phone, do a google search for the customer service phone line, get the automated system, none of the options are correct, dial “0” repeatedly and pray to get in touch with a human before your lunch break is over.
I don’t like to do this. Nobody likes to do this. I know this because I’m not alone. A report by IBM shows that 72% of millennials don’t believe that a phone call is the best way to resolve their customer service issue. That’s almost ¾ of the millennial population who do not, and possibly will not, pick up their phone to solve a problem by talking to a person on the other line.
Why? Who’s fault is this? And most importantly, how can we fix it?
People Are Bad At Interacting With Other People.
It’s a well known fact that most of us do not like to talk to strangers. People get nervous when they have to speak in public, introduce themselves to someone they don’t know, or even stand with four strangers in an elevator. So why do we throw this knowledge right out of the window when it comes to customer service? Because companies absolutely insist that you (a person who is most likely having a bad experience with their service/product) reach out to them, introduce yourself to a stranger, explain your problem, and hope that they’re nice enough to help you solve it.
This is bad. There are too many links in that chain that are vulnerable to breaking down. First- as we know, you probably don’t want to make that phone call. Second- you don’t want to talk to strangers, you just want your problem resolved. Third- you have likely had a negative experience with some customer service person in the past that will color this experience. (I have personally been reduced to tears on the phone by at least three different customer service representatives).
Customer Service People Are Stressed
Customer service can be rewarding, but it can also be an incredibly stressful job. Phone calls can be constant- especially after a new product/service/update is launched. Workers are often understaffed and overworked, dealing with angry or frustrated customers. Most importantly, customer service workers are human- and like most humans who have to come into work and deal with being yelled at for 8 hours a day- they might sometimes get…unprofessional.
Here’s the thing- from both the users side and the business end, customer service was created to be a bad user experience for everyone involved. And it’s costing business money, so they are beginning to take notice.
How Do We Fix This?
Chatbots. A chatbot is a program that simulates a conversation with someone- most often through messaging/texting. Although they have been around since the mid-60’s, chatbots have never really taken off until recently. Because they were clunky, user unfriendly, and confusing, people have seen them as an even worse alternative than cold calling a stranger.
But now chatbots are becoming more and more widespread. They are in industries ranging from fast food to fitness, fashion to finance. The travel and banking industries have been particularly keen to incorporate chatbots- encouraging users to book tickets or check their bank balance through a quick text.
Chatbots as an instrument are an incredible tool to free up employees to do actual empathy-driven problem solving that computers cannot do. Most people do not like doing boring, repetitive tasks- even if they are getting paid for it. In customer service, many of the questions that arise are exactly the same. This is a gross waste of human energy and intellect. These basic queries can be handled by chatbots.
And no, the chatbots are not “taking your jobs.” Humans will always be there. Good tech doesn’t replace human beings, it is an extension of human beings- our minds, our energy, and our abilities. Chatbots doing the repetitive, boring tasks frees the customer service person to work on something more pressing- answer harder questions, use their intellect and emotion, rather than saying, “Have you tried turning it on and off again?” for a good part of their day.
“AI, like most other technology tools, is most effective when it is used to extend the natural capabilities of humans instead of replacing them. That means that AI and humans are best when they work together and can trust each other.”
— Rob High, CTO IBM Watson
So, Does It Work?
Yes… On the human side it absolutely works. Facebook Messenger has already deployed over 34,000 chatbots to be used on all types of industries, and it’s almost certain that more industries will follow along. IBM estimates that 85% of customer interactions will be handled without a human person by the year 2020. That’s because chatbots are efficient and they solve the most underlying problem that makes customer service suck right from the start- the fact that we don’t want to call someone. People these days seem to prefer to message/text and we need to meet them where they are.
…and Maybe Not…
One of the biggest reasons chatbot technology didn’t take off early is because of the design of it. The first versions created for customer service interactions over the phone were terrible. Everyone has a horror story of being caught in a loop of a computer voice not understanding what you need. But now with chatbots on a platform that is screen based, UX and UI designers can really shine, and do what they do best- create amazing experiences. There is still a lot to learn, and a lot to improve on, but it is a fact that in order for this technology to succeed, people must want to use it. And not as a “better of two evils” choice, but as an active decision in how they interact with online spaces.
Thanks for reading, friends! If you liked this story, you’ll love my upcoming book: “Content Valley: Lessons, inspiration, and tactics to grow your UX career in content design.” Sign up to be the first to know when pre-orders are available for purchase.
