Is Self-Service Technology Destroying Customer Service?

At the turn of the century, companies started forcing customers to perform their own administration duties: banks implemented charges when clients didn't process their own transfers, telephone helplines suddenly had robotic voices providing audio guidance, even self-service checkouts started making appearances in supermarkets. Perhaps it's because we've been forced to use our own initiative, but self-service solutions are now the favored option when we encounter problems. While a visit from a computer technician or a call from a telephone representative was once the norm, most of us only rely on "human" fixes as a last resort. In fact, many of us no longer even trust them...

According to a survey conducted by the Fast Company, 36 percent of modern customers expect a response to an email query within four hours; this figure rises to 55 percent for Facebook and Twitter users. Gone are the days when 24 hours was the standardized, acceptable time frame. With the advancement of modern technology streamlining our lives, customers not only expect, but demand a fast, efficient and friendly service. But companies, especially small to medium-sized businesses, simply don't have the infrastructure to meet this newfound advent of pressure. That's why self-service is the only forward solution: it's cheaper for vendors, accessible for customers, and takes the pressure off staff.

Even large, international corporations with the budget and infrastructure to implement self-service technologies will be placing themselves at risk if they fail to use them. Take Sky, for example. Throughout 2016 the British telecommunications company started branching out into the mobile sector by providing television, mobile, broadband and home phone packages, in what they call "quad play" deals. This seamless integration of communication services will undoubtedly place greater strain on their customer services departments. They will not only have a whole new medium to deal with (mobile), but will be left with support staff that will need additional training. According to reports from Sky Telephone Number, the media giant currently invests 20 million GBP (approximately 26 million USD) annually into improving their customer service; and it works. Between 2009 and 2014 their approval rating had a 15 percent rise, climbing from 66 percent to 81 percent. Sky prove that human customer service teams are valuable, but they also prove that they are expensive to maintain. Without some kind of self-service solution, a far greater investment than 20 million pounds will likely be required. Coupled with their expansion into foreign territories, and the launch of their new streaming service, self-service will naturally be the only viable solution to meet the demand.

But it's not just the retail and communications sector that self-service technology is affecting. Take healthcare, for example. Waiting in a doctor's or dentist's waiting room for hours on end is -- at least in some surgeries -- a thing of the past. Nowadays patients can wait in line virtually, using their smart phone to see how many people are ahead of them in the queue, and approximately how long it will take until they can be seen. And then there's the delivery industry. No more of this "Your package will arrive between 8am and 6pm" nonsense. With a few clicks of a button it's now possible to bypass customer services altogether and find out exactly where and when a delivery will arrive. These systems are already proving far more popular with the general public.

So... is self-service technology destroying customer service? Definitely not! In fact, it's the complete opposite. Whether we've realized it or not, self-service is already standardized. By 2020 customers will manage 85 percent of their "relationship" with vendors themselves: it's a win-win for everybody. Self-service saves time for the user, empowers the customer, and reduces running costs. While there still has to be a human element involved -- there always will be -- it's influence will inevitably diminish.

Fundamentally, with the advent of all of this new automated technology, customer service "satisfaction ratings" will no longer be a question of "was your representative pleasant and helpful?" but rather "how easy was it to find a solution yourself?"