Salesforce's State of Service report reveals that a significant percentage (80%) of service professionals anticipate customer service contributing more revenue this year.
Gavin Barfield, the chief technology officer and vice president of Solutions at Salesforce ASEAN, underscores the transformative role of artificial intelligence in customer service. He states, "Service teams must seize every opportunity in the customer journey to foster stronger relationships and loyalty. Generative AI empowers agents to deliver a more personalized and seamless customer service experience, allowing them to concentrate on relationship building. Simultaneously, data and AI are equipping service teams to showcase their capacity to drive revenue growth through increased efficiency and upsell activities."
Customer service
The report revealed that service professionals expect more budget (77%) and headcount (71%), underscoring that service teams are investing in scaling up.
A significant 90% of service professionals are either using or evaluating AI, indicating the widespread recognition of its potential. They plan to increase AI investments this year (90%). They use AI for automated summaries and reports, customer-facing intelligent assistants, and service responses.
Furthermore, 97% of service professionals with AI say it saves them time, relieving them of repetitive and mundane tasks and allowing them to focus on more strategic and value-added activities.
Reducing administrative tasks
"AI is helping customer service agents be more efficient by reducing administrative tasks, which frees up time for them to focus on delivering personalised customer experiences and revenue generation. This will fundamentally shift the role of service teams within businesses from cost centers to profit centers," added Barfield.
