Although evolving technologies like generative AI promise to elevate their experiences, customers are wary of the risks involved, according to the sixth edition of Salesforce’s State of the Connected Customer report — a survey of 11,000 consumers and 3,300 business buyers worldwide.
In the latest research from Salesforce, rising costs and shifting priorities have customers rethinking their relationships with brands. Meanwhile, companies are feeling pressure to increase efficiency. Here is the executive summary of the State of Connected Customer 2023 report:
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Here are 12 important statistics and key trends from the report:
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A deeper look into the widening trust gap as AI goes mainstream reveals that customers remain cautious. As companies focus on efficiency, generative AI promises time and resource savings by scaling content creation. Six in 10 desk workers use or plan to use generative AI.
The report revealed the importance of trust as a key driver for adoption of generative AI. While there is room for companies to improve trust across the board, one impactful area is ethical AI. Just over half of customers trust companies to use AI ethically.68% of customers say advances in AI make it more important for companies to be trustworthy.
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Customers also stressed the importance of human touch in the AI era. A mere 37% of customers trust AI’s outputs to be as accurate as those of an employee. Accordingly, 81% want a human to be in the loop, reviewing and validating those outputs.
In a recent survey of IT leaders, concerns around generative AI included security risks (79%), bias (73%), and its carbon footprint (71%). AI and automation underpin efficiency and innovation. Process automation is on the rise as businesses tighten their belts and seek efficiency boosts, while advances in AI prompt IT to determine how — not if — to responsibly propel their organizations forward. Eighty-six percent of IT leaders believe generative AI will have a prominent role in their organizations in the near future.
So how can companies prepare for the use of generative AI?
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The report included AI trust and ethical use of software expert advice:
“It’s always been important to collect quality data and ensure transparency and consent in the collection process. But it’s not just about taking data in. It’s also about what happens to that data once we have it. We protect the people whose information enables our AI models by ensuring their data is never left in a repository that can be easily breached or misused. Companies may need data as much as ever, but the best thing they can do to protect customers is to build methodologies that prioritize keeping that data — and their customers’ trust — safe.”
— Paula Goldman, chief ethical and humane use officer, Salesforce
AI business adoption will be driven by trust and ethics. The State of Connected Customer report concludes by advising businesses to develop their AI strategies by focusing on customer priorities – trust, ethics, and responsible use of technology. “Transparency is the foundation of what customers want,” the report notes. “Over half of customers say greater visibility into how AI is applied would boost their trust. Human validation of AI’s outputs follows closely, just ahead of increased control of where and how AI is applied in their engagement — such as opportunities to opt-out.”
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Consumers’ #1 frustration with organizations is disconnected experiences. Poorly integrated technology and processes leave 55% of customers feeling like they generally engage with separate departments rather than holistically with one unified company. New technologies like generative trusted data and AI foundational models can help improve the connected customer experience. What matters most is delivering value at the speed of trust. To learn more about the research you can visit here.
Artificial Intelligence
Source : https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-trusted-generative-ai-can-improve-the-connected-customer-experience/#ftag=RSSbaffb68