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Customer perceptions of companies’ current use of AI is mixed. According to the State of Digital Customer Experience Report, 80% of consumers are more likely to be repeat customers with companies that provide exceptional customer experiences on digital channels, and 64% of business owners believe AI will improve customer relationships. However, another study found that 40% of customers feel unfavorable towards AI chatbots. Companies must navigate these advancements responsibly to maintain customer satisfaction or risk falling behind. 

Here are three trends to expect in 2025 for how AI will change the CX landscape.

1. Enhanced focus on emotional intelligence

2025 is going to be the year that emotional management becomes a new imperative for companies that integrate AI into their customer support. Over the past several years, companies have increased their reliance on automation and bots during customer interactions, creating a huge drop in satisfaction. Companies are now waking up to the realization that AI alone may be unable to address the emotional needs of customers. 

This year, a renewed emphasis on managing customers with empathy, understanding and emotional intelligence will become more mainstream. New applications of
AI can be used to conduct real-time analysis of customer satisfaction by analyzing tone of voice, communication patterns, and body language and provide customer care representatives with suggestions for ways to increase satisfaction. It can even train representatives to be more “human,” coaching them on how to meet individuals’ emotional and social needs. 

AI sentiment analysis and emotional management tools use data to enhance customer strategies. By integrating human expertise with AI-powered LLMs and LAM’s, companies can utilize natural language processing to interpret and classify emotions, helping companies to understand customer perspectives and sentiments while improving engagement and providing insights that drive personalized experiences. It’s crucial that when leveraging these technologies, human oversight and personal touch is maintained. Customers may still need access to a human agent for more complex emotional needs that even the most advanced AI systems cannot meet. 

2. More data-driven customer interactions

Data-driven decisions will create a marked shift in how companies will approach customer interactions in 2025. Predictive analytics that apply AI to anticipate customer behaviors and preferences will enable companies to utilize data to create more tailored customer interactions and better meet individual needs by enhancing personalization and improving engagement. By analyzing existing data, AI can support companies in segmenting customers into personas and suggest the most effective interaction methods and responses to provide them with a competitive edge.

AI can be applied to analyze large volumes of data quickly and accurately, identifying patterns and trends that human analysts might miss. For example, suppose customer service is contacted many times regarding a particular product or service. In that case, AI can flag this as an anomaly so that customer support representatives can step in and uncover the root cause of the problem. When data like this is acted upon, customer satisfaction scores can improve, and companies can decrease costs by uncovering and fixing the root cause of customer complaints. AI will play a crucial role in providing companies with new customer insights in 2025 by analyzing large datasets to uncover valuable trends and patterns that can be leveraged for strategic advantages. 

3. Improved accessibility and customer satisfaction

This year, voice assistants and conversational AI will continue to grow and enable faster, more efficient customer service, reducing friction across customer touchpoints and improving accessibility. Conversational AI uses automatic speech recognition (ASR) for voicebots, which convert spoken commands into text, while natural language processing (NLP) and text-to-speech (TTS) technology transform responses back into humanlike replies. Customers have had enough of being trapped in robotic phone menus and unhelpful loops, and a more seamless experience will be expected by customers in 2025. 

A Forrester study found that 30% of consumers reported that after a negative chatbot experience, they are likely to take their purchase to a different brand, abandon their purchase altogether, or tell their friends and family about their poor experience. Conversational AI can help protect against these negative experiences. 

With machine learning capabilities and continuous feedback, conversational AI is becoming more intelligent and delivering more relevant, accurate, and efficient responses, contributing to why the voicebots market is expected to reach an estimated $98.2 billion by 2027. Conversational AI can also improve accessibility by offering 24/7 support and multilingual capabilities, allowing users to receive assistance at any time and in their preferred language while enabling companies to serve a diverse global audience. As companies move towards these new technologies, they must balance AI with human oversight.  

Leveraging AI trends in 2025

As companies look to leverage AI technologies in 2025, the personal touch must not be lost. Through a greater focus on emotional management, data-driven decisions, and improved accessibility, companies can improve customer satisfaction and increase efficiency.

Staying ahead of the curve by balancing the integration of AI with human interactions in CX is essential this year. Embracing these trends with proper human oversight will be key to gaining a competitive edge and delivering exceptional customer experiences.

About the author 

Fabio Sattolo is the Chief People and Technology Officer at Covisian, with over a decade of consulting experience in information systems. Specializing in ICT projects and business applications, Fabio has led significant transformation initiatives in the BPO sector, particularly in customer management processes. He has been pivotal in mergers and acquisitions, integrating organizations, processes, and systems across various cultures and geographies. Known for his expertise in managing and developing organizations and tools, Fabio drives business transformation and growth at Covisian. He holds an Engineering degree from Politecnico di Torino, Italy.

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