Is the human touch a premium service? AI is reshaping customer interaction in a two-tiered direction
The AI revolution is reshaping customer service roles, creating a stark divide between human and automated touchpoints in post-sales interactions. SaaStr founder Jason Lemkin projects that by 2025, AI will handle virtually all support and customer success functions except those directly tied to revenue generation. This shift reflects a fundamental business prioritization where human attention is increasingly reserved exclusively for revenue-generating opportunities while routine customer interactions are automated.
The big picture: Companies are rapidly deploying AI to handle the majority of customer support inquiries, with many businesses already seeing 40% or more of tickets resolved without human intervention.
- Major platforms like Intercom, Zendesk, Gorgias, Dialpad, and Talkdesk are leading this transition, with some companies pushing for even higher automation rates.
- This automation trend cuts across both traditional customer support (resolving problems) and customer success (ensuring positive outcomes) departments.
Where humans remain: Human representatives are increasingly being reserved exclusively for sales-oriented customer interactions.
- In e-commerce, this bifurcation is already evident with AI handling returns while humans manage product questions that could lead to purchases.
- Customer success roles are evolving to focus primarily on upselling opportunities, with routine engagement activities being automated or eliminated.
The emerging model: Post-sales customer engagement is evolving into a two-tier system based on revenue potential.
- If a customer interaction presents upselling opportunities, it receives human attention.
- If the interaction involves only problem-solving with no revenue potential, it’s directed to AI systems regardless of customer preference.
The competitive edge: Despite this industry-wide trend, exceptional human support remains a potential differentiator for startups.
- The article references Salesforce‘s historical approach with Groupon, where they installed a direct support line on-site that provided 24/7/365 human assistance.
- This level of high-touch service could still serve as a competitive advantage for companies willing to buck the automation trend.
Why this matters: As companies simultaneously reduce support staff while expanding sales teams, the customer experience is fundamentally transforming across industries, potentially creating opportunities for differentiation through superior human service.
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