From Buzzwords to Benefits: Level Up Your AI-Powered Customer Experience

Medallia’s industry experts share examples of how successful brands are upgrading their customer experiences by thoughtfully implementing artificial intelligence.

Customer experience (CX) is all about connecting with people, solving their problems, and building the kind of loyalty that helps brands grow. But as customer needs and expectations change over time, businesses must keep up with trends — which often means adopting new strategies and smarter tools.

From delivering more personalized experiences to streamlining everyday customer-facing processes, artificial intelligence (AI) is helping deliver faster, more efficient, and tailored service to the consumer. Customers expect rapid and thoughtful interactions when they deal with a company — and organizations that leverage AI to meet these expectations may be able to provide better service more quickly.

Medallia’s industry experts recently sat down to discuss all the ways AI is shaping CX. Here, they weigh in with examples of how artificial intelligence is working across verticals.

The evolution of traditional CX to AI-driven strategies

CX has come a long way. Long gone are the days of relying on gut instincts and hindsight. Traditional CX approaches often struggled to keep up with real-time needs or forecast what customers might want next. 

Now, companies can use AI and predictive analytics to stay ahead of the curve and wow potential buyers before any money changes hands. This shift from reactive to proactive means better service overall, from quicker solutions to more personalization.

Today’s consumers expect fast support, sometimes even available 24/7, and interactions that feel custom-made for them. AI is making it easier for businesses to meet these expectations, bridging the gap between what customers want and what companies can deliver.

How AI is transforming CX across industries

From healthcare to finance, companies are adopting AI tools in every industry imaginable. In some cases, these technologies have been on the backend for years now, and customers likely had no idea. In other scenarios, AI tools are now front-and-center as part of a reimagined experience for the consumer. Here are some industry-specific examples of how AI can be put to great use, regardless of the vertical.

Healthcare: Smarter care and happier patients

Providing a great CX in healthcare can be a challenge. Patients rely on their providers for something incredibly personal: their well-being, which makes the patient-provider relationship both unique and deeply meaningful — and very delicate to maintain.

In many use cases, AI tools have helped medical organizations provide better support and more personalization to their patients. 

As Amber Maraccini, Vice President and Industry Executive Advisor for Healthcare at Medallia, explains, “AI can enhance efficiency, accuracy, and personalized care. AI can improve patient-provider communication, streamline workflows, and automate data analysis for better patient outcomes.” 

For instance, Seattle Children’s Hospital uses AI-powered translation tools to support their non-English-speaking patients. By making healthcare more accessible, the hospital increases trust and builds stronger patient-provider relationships. These tools also improve accuracy and comprehension on both sides of the exam table, leading to improved outcomes.

Similarly, Ochsner Health launched an ambient transcription technology to capture conversations between patients and doctors, reducing the administrative burden on clinicians. With more time to focus on patients, providers can easily elevate the overall quality of their care.

Hospitality: Taking loyalty to the next level

Hospitality brands are also increasingly leveraging AI to improve the guest experience. For instance, Intercontinental Hotels uses multilingual AI chatbots that can answer customer questions instantly. This frees up staff to handle more complex tasks and improves guest satisfaction.

The Dorchester Collection produces AI-driven analysis of guest feedback to deliver more personalized services. The tool summarizes insights from surveys and social media and uses that data to refine travelers’ experiences.

Along the same lines, Airbnb also uses AI to analyze user data and recommend accommodations that match each guest’s unique preferences. This more personalized approach makes booking easier and helps customers have a better overall travel experience.

“When experiences feel personal, loyalty becomes authentic and long-lasting,” says Geoffrey Ryskamp, Vice President and Executive Advisor for Hospitality at Medallia. Ryskamp explains that other travel industry businesses have jumped aboard the AI train, too. Lufthansa has developed Swiftly, a chatbot travel agent that handles everything from booking to planning, while Royal Caribbean uses AI-powered facial recognition to speed up the boarding process. Alaska Airlines is also deploying AI to update flight schedules by factoring in weather, aircraft availability, and passenger demand. 

Telecommunications: Staying one step ahead

AI is helping telecom companies anticipate and solve problems before they arise, which boosts customer satisfaction in a big way. This vertical harnesses tools like predictive analytics to identify customer churn or other patterns that could hurt business. From there, businesses can attempt proactive retention efforts through targeted outreach.

In addition, telecom organizations use AI to monitor network performance in real time, detecting and addressing congestion issues before they affect users. With smoother service and less downtime, customers tend to stick around for the long haul.

Financial Services: Customized for every client

In finance, personalization is a critical aspect of customer retention, more so now than ever. Many institutions are finding AI tools to be transformative in how they engage with clients. 

“When financial providers align their offerings with clients’ lives, they strengthen connections,” explains Judy Bloch, Vice President and Industry Executive Advisor for Financial Services at Medallia. AI enables firms to do just that, meeting client needs with precision.

For JP Morgan, this personalization comes in the form of robo-advisors that offer personalized investment advice, making financial planning accessible to everyone from beginners to seasoned investors.

Trending wins, strategies, challenges, and considerations for AI integration

As businesses adopt AI to transform their CX, they should proceed with caution and be aware of the trends. Getting things set up properly across departments before implementing an AI plan will mean better results in the long run. Here are some areas where businesses have succeeded and struggled so far.

Hyper-personalization

AI can help companies get to know their customers on a deeper level, and this is the way many organizations have leveraged AI so far. These tools can create highly personalized experiences by analyzing customer behaviors and preferences to help businesses foster emotional connections and brand loyalty. 

Data infrastructure challenges

AI’s effectiveness hinges on the quality of the data systems that feed it. Many companies struggle with outdated or disorganized data infrastructures, particularly in sectors like banking. Addressing these challenges requires investments in robust data management systems, which can be extremely expensive. As with many things, when it comes to AI, quality in definitely equals quality out (and vice versa). 

Collaboration across teams

Successful AI implementation typically requires close collaboration between CX, IT, and dev teams. Misalignment between these groups causes inefficiencies and missed opportunities, or even bad data and unhappy customers. Clear communication and shared goals are extremely important at the enterprise level to make AI work for your organization.

Experience orchestration

AI is most impactful when it integrates seamlessly across customer touchpoints for a more unified experience. If organizations can align data, tools, and teams, they can expect both improved CX and a better data feed for future initiatives.   

The future of CX: AI as a competitive advantage

Thanks to AI, the sky’s the limit when it comes to improving CX — and companies that don’t jump on board the AI train are likely to get left behind. 

Kim Palenik, Vice President and Industry Executive Advisor for Telecom and Media at Medallia, highlights the stakes: “As Medallia’s State of Brand Loyalty study reveals — 84% of customers see personalized experiences as essential as the product itself.” 

AI makes this level of personalization possible, enabling businesses to anticipate needs and solve problems before they occur, helping to foster lasting brand loyalty. Across industries, it’s no longer a nice-to-have — AI is likely a requirement for future CX success. 

For even more insights on AI and CX trends, read our guide: 5 Real Ways AI is Transforming Customer Experiences, which explores five practical use cases for using AI and genAI to revolutionize customer experiences and drive real results for businesses like yours.