in a timely manner. On the other hand, when call center agents are equipped with data from the entire customer journey, they have real-time insight into the customer’s last touchpoint with the brand, what problem they were looking to solve and the status of their case. This is only possible through data sharing across the organization.

The other benefit of getting a handle on your data is that it enables you to be smarter and more prescriptive, allowing you to shift from providing customer service to anticipating a customer’s needs and providing better customer care. The top brands recognize that service is not a mechanical interaction, but rather an opportunity to make an emotional, human connection to their customers.

Revolutionizing CX through predictive actions and AI

Mastering technology and business process change open the door to solving a customer’s problem before they even realize they have one.

By embedding artificial intelligence across the customer journey, brands get smarter. AI and intelligent automation equip call center agents with the necessary information to help their customers. AI can predict the intent of the customers based on their past interactions with the brand and provide the agent with the next best response to solve this individual problem. This allows agents to solve problems quickly and on the first touchpoint with the customer. It can also help a brand instantly determine if customers should be transferred to a live agent. Brands must realize that there is a time and place for chatbots and that not all problems can be solved by them.

For example, brands can see where their experience caused customers to leave their website, exit the mobile app, or drop off a call. With the right intelligence and automation, brands can proactively flag problems in real time, reach out to that customer and give a special promo code for purchasing that item. This personalized interaction will go a long way toward increasing the lifetime value of that customer.

High-tech, high-touch care in practice

Many leading brands are upgrading CX to meet the demand of today’s customers. For example, Instacart has implemented new technology that creates a seamless and convenient online grocery shopping experience in a highly competitive industry.

For Instacart, CX is the differentiator that helped it grow to service over 4,000 cities across all 50 states. When somebody places a grocery order, an Instacart Shopper (a part-time, contract worker) can accept and communicate with the customer solely through a mobile app. To enable real-time, on-time orders, Instacart supplies its Shoppers with a mobile-focused, reliable, and streamlined customer support experience in two main ways.

First, Instacart integrates support directly into its mobile app and connects the app to its customer relationship management (CRM) platform. By leveraging customer data in-app, it allows Shoppers to have all background information on a customer before answering a support request. Customer data reports can also be sorted by urgency to get the highest priority issues solved in the shortest amount of time.

It also enables voice calls and chat through the mobile app. Instacart customer service agents are able to reduce repeat customer contact by 5.6 percent for in-app voice and by 4.6 percent for in-app chat. Total in-app resolution times are 30 percent shorter than Instacart’s previous support solution. Instacart illustrates that connecting with customers where they are most comfortable increases positive service outcomes.

As a result, Instacart is one of the largest grocery delivery companies in the world. Its mobile-first approach and CRM data-sharing capability help its service agents know more about the customer before interacting.

Legacy technology and processes can ruin the customer experience by making relationships feel more tactical and focused on cost savings. Customer-first brands that take a different approach—combining modern technology with modern thinking and investing in the organizational changes needed to put the customer above all else—are the ones that will wildly succeed in the future.