Proactive AI customer experience transforms service with predictive analytics, personalization, and real-time solutions.

Picture this: it’s dinnertime, so you stop by your favorite fast-food restaurant for a burger and fries. As you order from the kiosk, a pop-up screen lets you know it will be a 10-minute wait and offers you a $2 off coupon for dessert to thank you for your patience. When you say yes, the next screen asks if you’d like the hot fudge brownie—which, of course, you do, since you’ve ordered it the last three times you visited this restaurant.

Chalk up another win-win for artificial intelligence (AI) and predictive analytics. Rather than waiting to react to “hangry” customers, the restaurant used AI and data to anticipate customer needs, provide a personalized experience, and enhance overall satisfaction.

More Choices for Automated, AI-Driven Tools

As one of my colleagues wrote, “Your customers don’t care if you’re using AI to fix problems,” they just want the issue resolved.

These days, companies employ various technologies to speed up, improve, and personalize customer interactions. Nearly 90% of customers have chatted with a bot. Companies routinely analyze available data (including purchase history, time of day, order volume, etc.) and apply predictive analytics to improve customer service.

One of the most exciting developments is the integration of virtual AI agents, which are trained to complete specific tasks, make decisions, and take action. “While predictive analytics provides insights, AI agents act on them.” For example, automotive dealerships could email a tailored service plan to customers based on their repair history. Luxury hotels could track the weather and automatically deliver umbrellas to guests when it’s raining. Some customers may prefer to interact with a voice agent, which provides a traditional, voice-based experience without needing a human customer service agent.

Fostering Stronger Customer Relationships

“Businesses that offer AI-powered customer service grow in revenue 4-8 [times] faster.” Improving your bottom line is just one of the benefits of deploying proactive, AI-based technology for customer service—and eliminating the reactive tools that can frustrate even your most loyal customers.

Automated tasks: AI is perfect for helping customers reset passwords or handle other common requests.

Shorter wait times: AI is available 24/7 and can handle thousands of requests simultaneously and instantly, eliminating long queues.

More valuable human interaction: By freeing human agents from time-consuming tasks and creating “super agents” supported by AI, the technology helps customer service reps “be more responsive and focused with their customers” during one-on-one interactions.

IT and Data: The Foundation for Proactive Customer Service

How do you reap all of these benefits? Start by aiming for complete visibility into your entire IT landscape, including your digital touchpoints. Your customer-facing kiosks, scanners, and other devices should be reliable, responsive, and optimized to deliver the best possible experience, even under heavy loads. Customers expect a seamless experience, which you can provide when you proactively monitor your devices, applications, and systems.

Read More: Can’t Spell Proactive Without AI