Keeping your business "human" with technology
In an era of rampant automation, convenience, and AI, you may be tempted to put more weight on tech tools. Just make sure you don't lose your brand's humanity in the process.
People may love the convenience and efficiency of automation, but they're not willing to trade technology for old-fashioned human contact. The human-to-human connection is still a powerful force, especially in business. By offering customers the chance to engage with your brand's team — and not just the AI-based tools or systems you use — you can more easily gain trust and loyalty for your brand.
A recent survey from Cogito showed just how important it is to customers to be able to reach a human representative, even in a digital age. When asked about their customer support preferences, 53% of survey participants said they'd rather talk with a human than a bot. Thirty-two percent agreed that having their concerns resolved by a human would lead to better future interactions with the company.
Is it easier to hide behind tech gadgets and processes? Perhaps. Yet when you do, you deny your organization a key differentiator: The ability to communicate on a human level. Too many companies make it challenging for consumers to engage with humans. This lack of human communication causes friction and encourages those consumers to seek alternatives. Alternatively, if you're offering a more balanced mix of automation and human interaction, you could look very appealing to someone who's tired of automated technology.
This isn't to say that you need to do away with high-tech options. Keep them. But know that they're never going to be a replacement for human intervention. For example, chatbots can be helpful for relatively simple and straightforward issues, but they can be frustrating when problems become more complex. Standalone shopping kiosks can be similarly annoying, which is one of the reasons some brick-and-mortar stores are saying goodbye to self-checkouts.
To help you humanize your business, try incorporating these strategies into your operational workflows. They'll help you stand out positively and deliver more well-rounded value to your customer base.
1. Strive for an equalized human-to-tech ratio.
As a starting point, consider all the processes that you rely upon to interact with your customers. Then, divide them into those that are tech and those that have a human angle. Ideally, there should be an even split between the two. If you're leaning too heavily into tech territory, consider ways to seamlessly bring team members back into the picture.
Never underestimate the importance of offering consumers a line of connection to honest-to-goodness humans. It matters more than you might think. While on The Big Story podcast in late 2023, Vox business reporter Emily Stewart noted that although many major companies, including Facebook and Frontier Airlines, have ditched human agents, the trend is causing customer stress. "I found someone who could not get in touch with Uber," said Stewart, "And when I asked Uber what she should have done, they kind of said she should use our app. There was no phone number for her to call."
2. Position tech in a "supporting player" role.
Companies have been making technology the star of the show. However, putting all your tech into a supportive role may be wiser. That way, the tech can help you enhance your team's abilities rather than replace them.
For instance, you might want to invest in an AI product that makes it possible for your sales or service representatives to do their jobs faster. A solution that can "listen" to calls and rapidly fetch key information or prompt humans with insider tips could be useful.
The secret to making this work is moving ahead with intentionality. Kelly Knight, president and integrator at EOS, has seen the benefits and reports of intentionally creating people-centric processes. "Relationships always come first. We want to put the human touch in everything we do," she explains. "We realize that people just want human interaction when it matters most. I think that's just going to be the way we continue forever. People are just going to value human relationships more and more."
3. Build your team's interpersonal skills and empathy.
Once you've begun to prioritize your human connections, you may discover that some of your people need coaching in topics like emotional intelligence (EI). Consequently, be prepared to invest in training across your workforce so everyone's interpersonal skills are as refined as possible.
Even if you have seasoned workers on your team, you may be surprised at their lack of EI aptitude. According to Adecco research, 54% of managers admitted that finding team members with solid interpersonal abilities was difficult. About the same number identified listening skills as another "soft" gap in employee toolkits.
By growing your team's empathy, you'll grow your company's humanity. In the process, you should begin to see a nice side advantage: Your people will be able to interact with each other more effectively internally.
It's exciting to explore all the technologies that are emerging today. However, think twice before putting them between you and your customers. The last thing you want is to make it harder for people to love your brand.
