We’re not anti-tech, we’re pro-human

Welcome to The Happy Client!

Written by our Director, Anna Lake, this monthly newsletter shares insights, ideas and inspiration to help you build stronger client relationships and create move value for your business. If you're not already subscribed, click here to never miss an issue!

These days, it’s almost impossible to have a conversation with anyone, anywhere, for any length of time without AI being mentioned in some way. Don’t get me wrong, I love tech and using it to make me work faster and smarter.  We are also looking at ways to utilise it better in Client Talk. But would I prioritise it over human connection? Absolutely not.

When it comes to qualitative client listening, of course I think a human-centred approach is best – I’d be quickly out of a job if I didn’t. I also think some firms are relying too heavily on tech when it comes to their work in this area.

It makes complete sense to use tech at certain points in the client listening process. Calendly is a wonderful tool for scheduling interviews, and the technology that exists to record conversations (with the interviewees explicit permission, of course) means we can fully focus on the person we’re speaking with rather than on the need to take notes. Video calls have also been a game changer, resulting in more cost-effective programmes for firms as these are more convenient for clients and enable us to interview people all over the world. 

However, when it comes to other parts of the process, we propose that AI should take a supporting rather than a star role. As things currently stand, we have yet to see an AI tool able to replicate a human’s ability to pick up on nuances within a conversation, or to deliver a genuinely empathetic response when faced with emotion. This is why our interviews are conducted, written up and analysed by a human.

Of course, technology is constantly evolving, and things may change in the future, but for now, we believe too many opportunities to strengthen relationships and develop further business opportunities are missed by a tech-led approach to client listening. How can a machine pick up on intonation, on body language, on what’s not being said? This is often where the real insights lie. Picking up cues, going beyond surface level answers and delving deeper into the issues which are important to clients can be uncovered by expert interviewers. The results can be fed into AI, but even then, the outputs can be mis-interpreted and need to be sensed checked. A rush to adopt a tech-first approach means the inputs are getting devalued. The old adage rubbish in-rubbish out, still holds firm here.

Feeding your quantitative client listening data into a system might provide you with some fantastic dashboards and metrics but relying solely on it to tell you what clients really mean, or what to do next is shortsighted.

Use tech to automate and make you more efficient (we do!), but don’t let it replace what is at the heart of the trusted adviser status (the ultimate goal for professional firms): human connection.