This week I’d like to share a story about my argument with a robot.
It wasn’t a fracas of the fun kind. Nor the cute or funny kind.
It was the kind of brawl that makes your shoulders rise and your patience shrink.
It started innocently enough.
I needed a simple answer. A small change on our joint account.
Nothing dramatic. Nothing complex.
So I did what most of us do now.
I went to their website. I looked for the HELP button.
And up popped the little chat box.
“Hello. How can I help today?”
Nice welcome I thought, this is good. Let’s do this.
I typed my question and the robot replied instantly.
That tiny moment of speed feels impressive.
For about 5 seconds.
Because the answer it gave me was not an answer.
It was a paragraph. A generic paragraph.
The kind of paragraph that could apply to anyone.
Anywhere. At any time.
So I tried again.
A more specific question this time.
It replied again. Another paragraph. Another set of links.
Another suggestion that I “visit the FAQ page”
It felt like being offered a map when I was asking for a door handle.
So I asked the obvious.
“Can I speak to a real person please?”
It replied with something cheerful: “I can help with that. Please tell me more”.
So I reluctantly told it more.
Then it asked me to confirm details I had already typed.
And I complied and confirmed my details – again.
Then it asked again. In a slightly different way.
So I confirmed again. Even more reluctantly now.
Then it asked me for the same information a third time.
At this point, David looked up from his laptop, staring at me in the disbelief I was feeling.
He didn’t even need to ask what was happening.
He could hear it in my voice.
That tight polite voice.
The one you use when you are trying to stay reasonable.
Then the robot did the thing that really got me.
It offered me an option. “Would you like to speak to an agent?”
Er YES PLEASE! – that’s what I asked you a few minutes ago!
I clicked yes.
Then the robot said: “Please explain your issue in a few words”.
I stared at the screen. In a desperate, unforgiving way hinting “are you kidding me!?”
I’ve already explained it to you dumbwit. 4 times to be precise.
So I copied and pasted my original message – again.
Then it said: “Thank you. Please wait while I connect you”.
Progress. Finally. Hoorah!
A minute later a human agent appeared.
“Hello. How can I help?”
My mouth fell open and I felt a tiny laugh rise in my chest.
Not a happy laugh. The other one. The “are you being serious?” laugh.
Because the human could not see a single word of what I had already typed.
So I explained it. Again.
Now to be clear, the human was lovely.
Warm. Apologetic. Helpful.
The issue was sorted quickly.
Which proves the issue was never the issue.
The issue was the journey.
The effort. The repetition. The feeling of going round in circles.
I closed the chat and sat back.
And it got me thinking about business.
Because this is what your customers are experiencing every day.
Not with your exact system.
With the modern service landscape.
AI is everywhere. Automation is everywhere. Self-serve is everywhere.
And used well it is brilliant. It can reduce queues. Speed up simple tasks.
It can answer basic questions. Free up humans to deal with more complex needs.
However, used badly it does something REALLY dangerous.
It makes customers WORK.
And when customers have to work to get served, they get emotional.
Not because they are awkward.
Because effort feels like disrespect. Effort feels like “your time doesn’t matter”.
Effort feels like “prove your case”. Effort feels like “earn your way to a human”.
Now here’s the business link in my view:
AI in CX is not the enemy. Poor design is.
The customer does not wake up thinking: “I hope I get a human today”.
They wake up thinking: “I hope this is going to be easy”.
They want a result. They want clarity. They want progress. They want to feel safe.
If AI can do that brilliantly, brilliant. If a human can do that brilliantly, brilliant.
The channel is not the point – the experience is.
So, this week – design for the handover.
If you use AI or automation anywhere in your customer journey, the most important moment is the handover to a human.
This is the REAL Moment of Truth.
Not the welcome message.
Not the chatbot personality.
Not the little typing dots or the emojis.
The handover – because that’s where trust is either strengthened or broken.
Here are the 3 rules we should all follow:
1. Tell me once. 2. Show you understand. 3. Give me the next step.
“Tell me once” means the customer should not have to repeat themselves.
If they have already given details, the human should see them on screen.
If the bot has collected context, the agent should inherit it.
If the customer has chosen options, that history should travel with them on their journey.
“Show you understand” means the first human message should reflect what the customer has already said.
Not “How can I help?” More like: “I can see you’re trying to change X and you’ve already tried Y. Let’s sort this for you now”.
That one line changes everything.
It tells the customer they have been heard – and understood.
It reduces emotion instantly.
“Give me the next step” means do not leave the customer in limbo.
Set Expectation. Give Timeframes. Offer Options. Take Ownership.
“Here’s what I’m going to do now…”
“Here’s what you can expect next…”
“Here’s when I’ll update you…”
Those sentences are customer comfort. They build safety and security – and trust.
I’ve never been more certain than I am now about the role of AI in the customer journey:
AI will NOT replace great Customer Experience. It will expose it.
It will amplify what is good. And it will magnify what is clunky.
So let’s make it good. Let’s make it easy.
Let’s make customers feel seen and heard and understood, knowing progress is being made.
And let’s keep the human magic for the moments that matter most.
At the handover.
Have a brilliant week – take care and keep FIT
Best regs
Marie
