Human Customer Service and Technology: Striking the Right Balance

You’ve probably encountered a chatbot or automated phone system when asking a basic business question, such as operating hours or how to schedule a product demo. While this may have resolved your inquiry quickly, you likely felt frustrated over automated customer service (CS) when dealing with complex concerns. As a result, you look for ways to talk to a human CS agent. After all, human customer service provides more personalized and emphatic support to solve your problem. 

The first experience shows how technology can help streamline and improve customer service. The second shows why the human touch is still necessary, even as automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and other customer service technologies are introduced.

Today, delivering a positive customer experience requires balancing technology that saves time and removes friction with human customer service that provides empathy and solves complex issues.

Why Human Customer Service Is Here to Stay

While bots may be able to handle basic transactions, human customer service will be around for a while. Customers are still drawn toward human connections in customer service to gain tailored, clear answers with a touch of empathy and accountability. Let’s dive deeper into why human customer service will always matter.

1. Added technology calls for more person-to-person interactions.

First, the introduction of new technology, like AI-based knowledge management software, to support the customer experience can sometimes lead to the need for more human support. When new systems are installed, customers often require guidance that should come from human interaction instead of automated customer support. This is to cater to the emotional side of the experience.

2. Customer service agents provide better clarity.

Technology can automate and facilitate routine tasks, but customers still want to speak to a human when they are faced with ambiguity or are looking for a creative solution to a problem. 

For example, a shopper might order a new robot vacuum but find it doesn’t behave as expected when they first turn it on. They might start by reviewing the product guide, browsing a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the manufacturer’s site, or watching a troubleshooting video. 

Still, if they don’t find information about the problem, their next step will likely be contacting a customer service agent. A CS agent can break down the situation described in the customer’s own words, consider the issue’s context, and develop an appropriate solution.

3. Customers require empathy and emotional intelligence.

Human customer service agents can empathize with and be sensitive to customers’ emotions. This is especially important when customers seek help resolving an emotionally fraught issue. 

For instance, if someone is getting ready to buy their first home, is anxious about taking out a home loan, and has many unanswered questions about the process, an automated voice or chatbot script doesn’t necessarily ease their concerns. On the other hand, a human agent could pick up on nervousness in their voice and respond empathetically, helping identify and address the source of their concerns.

While self-serve customer service options can be powerful tools, it’s still important to give customers access to empowered human customer service agents to address those more emotional or complex issues.

4. Customers trust more if there is someone accountable.

Customers typically build trust when dealing with complicated issues, whether via mail, chat, or phone, when they know a human agent is accountable for resolving them. They feel more confident and less stressed when they deal with a person on the other line rather than a program, like chatbots and AI assistants, who can take ownership of solving the problem.

Sentiments on Human Connection and Customer Service Technologies

As technology becomes more sophisticated, the question of whether the human aspect of the job will be phased out always arises. For instance, people often wonder, “Will AI replace customer service agents?” The short answer, of course, is no. Despite the advances in AI technology, it still falls short when it comes to building rapport with customers and showing empathy. 

A survey from Redpoint Global backs up this claim, mentioning that 77% of consumers value a human element in customer experiences. In comparison, 58% want companies to be upfront about when they use AI. This shows how customers want to feel heard and understood by a human CS agent. Customers also want to know if they’re interacting with AI so they can set realistic expectations.

Additionally, 75% of respondents in a consumer survey by Five9 still prefer interacting with a human representative for assistance. This underscores the importance of companies investing in robust online support channels that effectively address customer needs, particularly during high-volume periods such as open enrollment and holidays.

6 Ways to Balance Human Customer Service and Technology

It’s clear that human customer agents will not be edged out by the evolving technology in customer support if you consider the necessary emotional connection. However, it is a significant loss not to bolster customer service technology to empower your CS reps. 

Technology supports customer service agents in customer-centric organizations, enabling them to do their best work and deliver great customer experiences. Agents are also trained on this technology and capacitated to use it to work more autonomously. 

Here are five best practices that leading organizations use to uplevel their customer service:

1. Provide training on soft skills that can’t be automated.

Listening with empathy, advocating for the customer, and using critical thinking to solve complex issues are all customer service skills that can’t be automated. As technology becomes more advanced and able to handle transactions beyond simple transactions, it’s important to focus on training customer service agents on the skills they need to deliver exceptional and complex–not just routine–customer experiences.

2. Identify limitations of customer service technology.

Drawing the line between what technology should cater to when it comes to customer support and which ones are best assigned to human agents is the most practical way to balance these two facets of customer service. 

In your resources (e.g., playbook, script, templates), identify issues that can be solved by chatbots, virtual assistants, and those that require human interaction. Create a workflow that signals escalations.

3. Make human customer service available across all channels.

As you introduce channels for digital transactions, ensure you’re not stranding customers without an option to talk to a customer service representative. For example, if you use a chatbot on your website, you should provide an option for customers to chat with an agent if their question or issue can’t be easily resolved through the standard chatbot solutions.

4. Increase your customer service agents’ digital dexterity.

Digital dexterity requires employees to have the knowledge and hard skills necessary to use technology in their work, as well as to be agile and have an open mindset about learning new ways of working. 

If you’re a customer service manager, you can start by ensuring your team members receive ongoing and on-demand training on the technology they use in their workflows. You can also communicate the value of building new technical skills and reward team members for successfully developing these skills.

5. Empower customer service agents to make decisions.

As you empower customer service agents to use technology effectively, you should also empower them to work autonomously whenever possible. The Ritz-Carlton is one brand that provides an excellent example of this. 

Knowing how valuable it is to provide a great customer experience and drive loyalty, they empower their employees to spend up to $2,000 per customer incident without seeking approval. Allowing customer service employees to solve problems independently–with reasonable guidelines in place–leads to a better work experience for the employee and a better customer experience for the person they are assisting.

6. Give agents on-demand access to your organization’s collective knowledge.

Another essential step in leveraging technology while maintaining a human connection is ensuring employees can access the knowledge needed to assist customers. 

Your agents shouldn’t feel like they have to hunt down a subject matter expert or go on a maze of shared folders whenever they need to answer a customer’s question. Instead, they should have access to a centralized, searchable knowledge management platform that serves as the single source of truth for your organization’s collective intelligence. 

Deploying a KM system gives employees confidence that they are accessing the most relevant, up-to-date information. It also reduces the time it takes to answer customers’ questions, leading to a better overall customer experience.

Combining Technology and Human Customer Service

If implemented thoughtfully, customer service technology can improve employee and customer experience but doesn’t eliminate the need for a human touch. As customer service departments and contact centers evolve, it’s important not to lose sight of human customer service’s value.

This post was updated and expanded most recently in November 2024 to reflect new information and best practices.

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