Service Manager at ABSA Bank Ghana Limited, Mrs. Comfort Riley-Poku has encouraged the use of technology such as Artificial Intelligence to improve customer experience rather than replacing human interaction.
She was speaking in an exclusive interview on Talking Business on Radio Univers on the topic, “Customer Experience and Relationship Management.” It was an episode that sought to highlight the importance of creating an organizational culture that values customer-centricity for a successful businesses.
With the fast paced technological advancement, Mrs. Riley-Poku elaborated on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in improving customer experience.
She however advised against using technology as a way to replace human interaction in businesses to ensure quality customer experience.
”Technology and AI can certainly play a good role in improving customer experience but it is not a panacea for all challenges. Business should use technology to enhance human interaction not to replace them entirely…It is important to remember that technology cannot resolve all the challenges relating to customer experience. Human empathy, understanding and effective communication remain essential component of positive customer experience.”
She spoke further on how some customers prefer to be served through human interaction instead of AI in some part of the business industry.
“Technology should be used to serve the customers, it should never be allowed to replace the human touch. So we have customers who would want to come in and would not want to have anything to do with technology. They want to come to the premises and have an interaction with human beings. They prefer to be spoken to.”
Mrs. Riley-Poku finally highlighted some procedures entrepreneurs and startups can follow to leverage good customer service for the success of their businesses.
According to her, thid can be achieved by creating a data base and being responsive and accessible to their customers.
“Entrepreneurs should create a loyal customer [database] by always having their contacts and the things they always come to buy. They should prioritize customer experience and make customer satisfaction a core objective and invest in the necessary resources to achieve that. They should also prioritize listening to customer feedback as this will drive continuous improvement in their products and services, responding quickly to customer queries and striving to exceed customer expectation. Entrepreneurs can also leverage on technology to provide better customer experience such as social media to engage them and respond to their enquiries.”
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Story by | John Collins Kaledzie | univers.ug.edu.gh
