Turning AI into Your Customer Experience Ally讓人工智能成為客戶體驗伙伴

It’s one thing to know whether an individual customer is intrigued by a new mattress or considering a replacement for their sofa’s throw pillows; it’s another to know to how to move these people to go ahead and make a purchase. When deployed strategically， artificial intelligence （AI） can be a marketer’s trusted customer experience ally—transforming customer data into actionable insights and creating new opportunities for personalization at scale. On the other hand， when AI is viewed as merely a quick fix， its haphazard deployment at best can amount to a missed opportunity and at worse undermine trust with an organization’s customers.

了解某個客戶是對新床墊感興趣還是在考慮更換沙發抱枕，這是一回事；懂得如何讓這些人最終做出購買決定，那就是另外一回事了。若合理運用，人工智能（AI）可以成為營銷人員值得信賴的客戶體驗伙伴——將客戶數據轉化為可執行的洞見，且可為大規模個性化服務創造新的機遇。反之，若僅把AI視為一種權宜之計，那么隨意運用可能會導致錯失良機，更可能損害企業客戶的信任。

This phenomenon is not unique to AI. In today’s fast-moving digital economy， it’s not uncommon for performance and results to lag behind expectations. Despite the enormous potential of modern technology to drastically improve the customer experience， business innovation and transformation can remain elusive1.

這種現象并非AI獨有。在當下快節奏的數字經濟中，業績和成果達不到預期的情況并不少見。盡管現代技術具有巨大潛力可顯著改善客戶體驗，企業創新和轉型可能依然難以實現。

According to Gartner， 89% of companies now compete primarily on the experiences they deliver. As marketers and other teams turn to these systems to automate decision-making， personalize brand experiences， gain deeper insights about their customers， and boost results， there’s often a disconnect between the technology’s potential and what it delivers.

高德納咨詢公司的數據顯示，如今89%的企業主要圍繞客戶體驗展開競爭。當營銷人員和其他團隊借助AI系統來實現決策自動化、個性化品牌體驗、深入洞察客戶心理并以此提升業績時，技術預期與實際效果之間往往存在落差。

When it comes to AI， frequently， organizations fail to realize the full benefits of their AI investments， and this has real business repercussions2. So how do organization ensure that their investments deliver on their promise for fueling innovation， transformation， and even disruption？ To find success， it requires the right approach to operationalizing the technology， and investing in AI capabilities that can work together throughout the entire workflow to connect various thoughts and processes together.

就AI應用而言，企業往往未能充分實現其AI投資的應有效益，這就會對業務產生實際影響。那么，企業如何確保其投資能夠如愿推動創新、轉型乃至顛覆性變革呢？要想取得成功，就需要采用正確的技術落地方法，并投資開發在全部工作環節中能有效協同工作的AI功能，可將各種想法和流程串聯起來。

Getting real about AI. Realizing the value of AI starts with a recognition that vendor3 claims and remarkable features will only go so far. Without an overarching strategy， and a clear focus on how to operationalize the technology， even the best AI solutions wind up underperforming and disappointing.

務實看待AI。要實現AI的價值，首先要明白：供應商宣傳再動聽、功能再驚艷，其作用終究有限。若缺乏全局性戰略和明確的技術落地重點，再頂尖的AI解決方案也終將表現不佳，令人失望。

There’s no simple or seamless way to implement AI within an organization. Even with powerful customer modelling， scoring or segmentation tools， marketers can still wind up missing key opportunities. Without ways to act on the data， the dream of AI quickly fades. In other words， you may know that a certain customer likes hats， and another customer enjoys wearing scarfs but how do you move these people to an actual purchase， or deliver the right content for where they’re at in the buying lifecycle？

在企業內部應用AI并非易事，不可能一帆風順。即便擁有強大的客戶建模、評分或細分工具，營銷人員仍舊可能錯失關鍵機遇。若缺乏將數據轉化為行動的辦法，AI的愿景便會迅速破滅。換言之，你或許知道某位客戶喜歡帽子，另一位喜歡圍巾，但如何才能促使這些人真正下單，或在不同購買階段向他們提供恰到好處的內容？

The winning approach is to start small and focused when it comes to implementing AI technology. Be mindful about what types of data models you can build with AI， and how they can be used to deliver compelling customer experiences， and business outcomes. Collecting and analyzing actionable customer data is only a starting point. There’s also a need to develop content that matches personas and market segments and deliver this content in a personal and contextually relevant way. Lacking this holistic view and AI framework， organizations simply dial up speed—and inefficiency. In fact， AI may result in more noise and subpar4 experiences for customers， and unrealized results for an enterprise.

應用AI技術的制勝之道在于：小規模、有重點地開始。用AI能夠建立何種數據模型，如何借助這些模型提供卓越的客戶體驗和實現商業成果——對此要做到心中有數。收集和分析可操作客戶數據只是第一步。接下來還需要開發同具體客戶和市場細分相匹配的內容，并通過個性化和情境化的方式將其實現。如若缺乏這種全局視野和AI框架，企業所謂的提速往往并不見成效。事實上，AI可能會給客戶帶來更多的干擾及更差的體驗，使企業無法達成預期結果。

Moving from transaction to transformation. A successful AI framework transforms data and insights into business language and actions. It’s not enough for the marketing team to know what a customer likes， for example， it’s essential to understand how， when and where an individual engages with a business. Only then， can a brand construct and deliver a rich customer experience that matches the way their customers think about and approach a brand. This includes an optimal mix of digital and physical assets， and the ability to deliver dynamic web pages， emails， and other campaigns that customers find useful and appealing. When a marketer understands intent and how a person travels along the customer journey5， it becomes possible to deliver the most compelling customer experience.

從交易邁向轉型。一套成功的AI框架會將數據和洞見轉化為業務語言和實際操作。例如，營銷團隊光知道客戶偏好是不夠的，還必須了解客戶如何、何時、何地與企業進行互動。只有這樣，品牌才能構建并提供同客戶認知和接觸方式所匹配的豐富體驗。這包括實現數字資產與實體資產的最優組合，并有能力提供動態網頁、電子郵件及客戶認為實用且有吸引力的其他營銷活動。當營銷人員了解用戶意圖并追蹤到顧客旅程軌跡時，才有可能提供最令人動心的客戶體驗。

With this framework in place， marketers can read the right signals and ensure that content delivery is tuned to a person’s specific behavior and preferences. It’s possible to send emails， serve up ads and mail brochures that reach consumers when they are receptive and ready to engage. Whether the customer is into hats， scarves or electric guitars， the odds of successful marketing increase dramatically.

有了這個框架作為基礎，營銷人員就能準確解讀相關信號，確保推送內容與用戶具體行為和偏好精準契合。可能做到在消費者最易接受且準備互動的時候發送電子郵件、投放廣告和郵寄宣傳冊。無論他們喜歡帽子、圍巾抑或電吉他，營銷成功幾率都會大幅提高。

Putting AI to work. Only when an organization has mapped AI workflows and business processes—and understands how to reach their customers effectively—it’s possible to get the most out of AI solutions. These solutions can address the full spectrum of AI， including reading signals， and collecting， storing， and managing customer data; assembling and managing content libraries; and marketing to customers in highly personalized and contextualized ways.

讓AI發揮作用。只有當企業統籌規劃AI的工作流程和業務流程，并懂得如何有效觸達客戶時，才可能把AI解決方案的價值發揮到極致。這些解決方案能夠涵蓋AI的各個方面，包括解讀信號及收集、存儲和管理客戶數據，構建并管理內容庫，以及以高度個性化和情境化的方式向客戶進行營銷。

A good way to think of things is to imagine that a person hops6 in a car with the intent of driving across the United States. If the journey is from Los Angeles to New York， for example， it’s tempting to think the motorist will take the most direct route available. But what happens if the person loves nature and wants to visit the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone National Park along the way？ This requires a change in routing. Similarly， an organization must have the tools to understand how and where a person is traveling in the product lifecycle， what ticks the person’s boxes along the way， and what helps them arrive at a desired destination with a minimum of friction and frustration.

理解這些的最佳方式是想象一個人駕車準備穿越美國。打個比方，如果這段旅程是從洛杉磯到紐約，人們往往會認為駕駛者會選擇最直接的路線。但是，如果這個人熱愛大自然，想沿途游覽大峽谷或黃石國家公園呢？這就意味著要重新規劃路線。同樣，一個企業必須掌握相應的工具來了解客戶在產品生命周期中的行為軌跡與節奏，明確哪些因素能契合客戶需求，搞清如何以最小阻力和最低挫折感幫助客戶抵達期待的終點。

AI can do this—and it can serve up promotions and incentives that really work. Yet， to build the right customer experiences and the right journey， marketers must move beyond AI solutions that deliver a basic customer score or snapshot， and instead obtain a motion picture-like view of a customer’s thinking， behavior， and actions. To that end， building out one AI capability or buying one point technology to address a single aspect of customer experience isn’t enough. It’s about being able to connect a set of AI capabilities， which are orchestrated throughout the entire workflow to connect various thoughts and processes together.

AI確實能夠做到這一點，并且還能提供行之有效的促銷方案和激勵措施。然而，若要構建理想的客戶體驗與旅程，營銷人員必須突破僅給出基礎客戶評分或簡要概述的AI解決方案，而要獲得有關客戶思維、行為和行動的電影般的全景視圖。為此，僅構建單一AI功能或購買單點技術來解決客戶體驗的某個方面是遠遠不夠的。要能夠整合一系列的AI功能，使其在全部工作環節中合理協作，將各種想法和流程串聯起來。

Only then is it possible to deliver an optimal marketing experience.

唯有如此，才有可能提供最優的營銷體驗。

Delivering on the promise of AI. To be sure， with the right strategy， processes， and AI solutions， it’s possible to take marketing to a more successful level and deliver winning customer experience. When marketers truly understand what a customer desires and how they think about a product and their customer journey， it’s possible to tap into the full power of AI.

兌現AI的承諾。毫無疑問，只要具備正確的策略、流程及AI解決方案，營銷就能躍升至更高層次，并為客戶提供滿意的體驗。當營銷人員真正了解客戶的需求及其對產品和顧客旅程的看法時，就有可能充分發揮AI的全部潛能。

What’s more， this approach has repercussions that extend far beyond attracting and retaining new customers. When organizations get the formula right， marketers can engage with their best customers in a more holistic and natural way. In the end， everyone wins. The consumer is greeted with a compelling customer experience with relevant messages that display products and services they are interested in at every step of their journey and the business boosts brand value and loyalty.

更重要的是，這種嘗試所帶來的影響遠不止于吸引和留住新客戶。當企業掌握了方法，營銷人員就能夠以更全面、更自然的方式與核心客戶群體進行互動。最終，所有人都會受益：消費者在顧客旅程的每個階段都能體驗到直擊人心的客戶體驗，總能看到與他們感興趣的產品和服務相關的信息；企業則可以提升品牌價值和客戶忠誠度。

At that point， AI finally delivers on its promise.

到那一刻，AI才最終兌現了它的承諾。

（譯者單位：對外經濟貿易大學）

1 elusive難以理解的；難以捕獲的。" 2 repercussion反響，影響。" 3 vendor（出售某類商品的）銷售商，供應商。

4 subpar低于標準的；次佳的。" 5顧客旅程，又稱消費者旅程（consumer journey），指消費者在購買某種產品或服務時經歷的全部流程和各個環節，包括從意識到自身需求、通過信息搜集分析對比可選對象、完成決策和購買行為、使用產品服務、評級反饋分享的全部過程。

6 hop登上（飛機、火車等）。