Artificial Intelligence is everywhere these days, and I’m constantly asked whether organizations should implement it in their customer service operations. While AI offers tremendous potential, not every application makes sense right now. Before jumping on the bandwagon, I believe there are two critical questions every organization must ask themselves.
The first question is straightforward but powerful: Does using AI here make the experience better for a customer today? Not tomorrow, not next year—today. This isn’t about long-term strategies or potential future benefits. This is about immediate impact on your customer experience.
Too many companies implement technology solutions with promises of “eventual” benefits. They ask customers to endure a learning curve or reduced service quality while the technology matures. This approach risks customer satisfaction and loyalty in the present for theoretical future gains.
Focus on Immediate Customer Benefits
If AI implementation immediately enhances the customer experience—perhaps by providing faster responses, 24/7 availability, or more accurate information—then it’s likely a good application. The key word is “immediately.” Your customers shouldn’t have to wait for the benefits or suffer through a “beta” experience.
However, if the answer to that first question is “no,” don’t dismiss AI entirely. Move to the second question: Does implementing AI free up someone on my team to make the customer experience better elsewhere?
This question acknowledges that sometimes technology’s greatest value is in how it redistributes human resources. If AI can handle routine inquiries or background processes, allowing your team members to focus on more complex customer needs, that’s still a win for customer experience.
The Resource Reallocation Test
For example, if an AI chatbot can handle basic questions about business hours, product availability, or shipping status, your customer service representatives can spend more time addressing complicated issues that require human empathy, judgment, and problem-solving skills.
When evaluating AI through this lens, consider:
What specific tasks will AI handle?
How much time will this free up for team members?
What higher-value activities will those team members perform instead?
How will these changes benefit the customer?
The key is ensuring there’s a clear plan for how the freed-up human resources will be redirected toward enhancing customer experience. Without this plan, you risk simply reducing headcount without improving service.
If the answer to both questions is “no,” then I strongly advise against implementing AI in that particular application. Technology should never be adopted simply because it’s new or trendy. Every implementation should have a clear, customer-focused purpose.
Making Customer-Centric Decisions
These two questions create a simple but effective framework for making technology decisions that keep customer experience at the center. They help cut through the hype and marketing promises to focus on what really matters: how the technology affects your customers and your ability to serve them.
I’ve seen organizations waste significant resources implementing AI solutions that customers didn’t want or that actually made the experience worse. The organizations that succeed with AI are those that start with the customer experience and work backward to the technology—not the other way around.
Remember that AI is a tool, not a strategy. The strategy should always be to create amazing customer experiences. If AI helps achieve that goal—either directly or by enabling your team to provide better service—then it’s worth pursuing. If not, it’s just a distraction.
By asking these two simple questions before every AI implementation, you’ll make better technology decisions and keep your organization focused on what truly matters: delivering exceptional experiences that keep customers coming back.