As AI agents increasingly handle customer service interactions, it's natural to ask: How do users respond when a service failure is caused by an AI agent versus a human one? A study by Yibo Xie, Zelin Tong, and Zhuorong Wu explored just that. Through a series of experiments, where participants were asked to imagine that … Continue reading When things go wrong we forgive AI more easily than humans; but empathy saves the day
Tag: Service recovery
The problem with CrowdStrike’s $10 apology voucher
CrowdStrike is not having a good month. First, the darling of cybersecurity caused an IT outage that affected companies all over the world: something like 8.5 million computers. Then, CrowdStrike caused outrage when it offered a $10 UberEats voucher to staff that had supported customers during the crisis. Comments on social media complained that the … Continue reading The problem with CrowdStrike’s $10 apology voucher
If the (self-service) technology broke it, the (self-service) technology should fix it
I have recently come across an interesting paper examining under what conditions customers preferred to interact with a human vs a non-human agent, after a failure with self-service technology (SST). That is, if a customer is using technology to perform a task (say, ordering something online), and something goes wrong, would customers prefer to be … Continue reading If the (self-service) technology broke it, the (self-service) technology should fix it
In hot water – A tale of service failure and recovery
Last week, right when I was feeling very sorry for myself because of the booster vaccine’s side effects and needed a pick me up, our Nespresso coffee machine stopped working. It started by being a little bit annoying; but, 48 hours later, it was really frustrating, and I was seriously considering quitting coffee or, at … Continue reading In hot water – A tale of service failure and recovery
Offering rebates as a form of service recovery can actually backfire
It happened, again. You know the script: the internet is down; you try all the tricks in the book; they don’t work; you call the provider; they tell you that “we are experiencing some technical problems in the area”; they apologise; eventually, they offer you a rebate on your monthly fee which hardly makes up … Continue reading Offering rebates as a form of service recovery can actually backfire
The benefits of service recovery on Social Media
Many customers see social media as a quick way of solving problems that they experienced with their purchases. Yet, research in the airline industry shows that companies are reluctant to handle complaints on that channel. This is a very short-sighted reaction, because many of those customers that complained on social media, and didn’t get … Continue reading The benefits of service recovery on Social Media
How service failures impact on what matters for customers
I came across an interesting paper that explored how the drivers of customer satisfaction changed in the event of a service failure vs. normal service, and how different types of failure influenced what factors were most important in driving customer satisfaction. The paper is entitled “The Impact of Service Operations Failures on Customer Satisfaction: … Continue reading How service failures impact on what matters for customers
Good experiences vs. good memories
I recently came across ‘Random Assignment’, a fabulous blog looking at the application of social psychology in daily life (interesting topics and very accessible writing – consider following it). One of the posts had a link to this presentation by Professor of Psychology Paul Rozin: Professor Rozin applies insights from psychology to understanding what makes … Continue reading Good experiences vs. good memories
Ana Canhoto 