A.I. and The Client Experience
- The AHA Group
- Jan 28
- 2 min read
A.I. can enhance client experiences. But it also has the potential to destroy them.
I spend a lot of time building customer experiences that are digital pure plays, those that connect digital to physical, and everything on that spectrum. As much as I draw on my hospitality experience, I also draw on my twenty years implementing technology transformations at scale.
One of the biggest A.I. areas of focus right now is enhancing the retail shopping experience. I see a lot of retailers rushing to implement A.I. strategies - somehow A.I. is going to solve every efficiency and personalization challenge they ever had. With a lot of new technology, I see companies rush to jump on the implementation wagon. And like many human behaviors - we think more of something is better.
My view (and advice) is more measured. I believe that any implementation of A.I. needs to consider human psychology and the wants, desires, and innate drivers of human satisfaction and happiness.
Sure, A.I. has the potential to personalize your entire experience to an extreme - mining data to give you the most customized experience of your life. Products that immediately delight you, the ability to show you things that are perfectly suited to your personality, solve your problems before you know you have them. Wow, right?
But what happens, when you remove the innate human need for the thrill of the “hunt” and discovering a new product, you remove a sales associate who knows you, and takes the time to show you some products that produce conversation - social interaction – and them makes an investment in time and energy in getting to know you? This speaks to our basic human needs to feel seen, acknowledged, cared for, prioritized and more. Over time, A.I. may be good enough to manufacture these emotional moments, but that time is not now.
While A.I. has a clear and powerful place in experiences, as with all technology, the companies that take a 360 view and really integrate human needs into their strategies will ultimately stand out and above those that rush to “A.I. everything”.
The smart companies are implementing a blend of A.I. and other technologies that enhance efficiencies, service, accuracy, and speed - while blending core human psychology into the strategy. Unfortunately, today, too many CX strategies fail to consider emotions, desires, and complex human needs when designing technology use cases.