How can your brand take a human-centered approach to customer experience?

Rapid progress in artificial intelligence (AI) drives a radical transformation in customer experience (CX). According to our CX trends report for 2025, both brands and their customers are becoming more comfortable with the technology.

Take customer service as an example. Over two-thirds (67%) of consumers say they’ve used an AI-based chat service, while 41% say they are entirely comfortable with AI handling their customer service needs. On the brand side, 69% say they’re already using AI in customer service, and 72% of those report an increase in positive customer feedback.

But before we get completely carried away with AI-powered CX, it’s vital to see the other side of the story. Consumers still want to feel a human presence behind the technology, with 78% believing some form of human interaction is essential for a good customer experience. Equally, most brands don’t foresee a full-scale AI takeover, with 71% saying humans will remain a crucial part of their CX strategies.

These responses suggest brands need to strike a thoughtful balance between AI and the human touch. Rather than just adopting AI to increase efficiency, they must make the effort to really understand what their customers want and then combine the innate strengths of people and technology to deliver the right experiences.

Our new report, A Human-Centered Approach to Customer Experience, delves into five trends that sit at the intersection of people and technology. It explores how both consumers and brands in the US and UK are experiencing these trends, which we predict will play a key role in shaping customer experience in 2025.

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to using AI for customer experience because people’s willingness to engage with the technology varies according to multiple factors. Age is an obvious one, with younger people often more comfortable using AI than older generations.

But whether or not someone wants to engage with AI can also depend on what they’re trying to achieve. The research reveals people are significantly more comfortable using AI when they have a non‑complex technical issue or are making a low-value purchase, for example, than when they’re trying to resolve a complex query or make a high-value purchase.

Our report also reveals that, in their eagerness to adopt AI, brands can sometimes overestimate the extent to which their customers want AI‑powered interactions. Take a look for yourself and discover how to balance technology with the human touch, and tailor CX based on individual needs.

Being part of a group that shares passions or interests is key to feeling socially connected. With brands deeply embedded in consumer lives and identities, it’s not surprising that fandoms and communities are increasingly forming around them.

More than half (53%) of the consumers we surveyed are involved in fandoms or online communities of some sort, and 85% of those engage specifically with brand-related communities. The report explores the benefits of participating in such a community, and how those benefits are impacted by the frequency of engagement, as well as the impact of fandoms on brand perception.

Despite communities presenting an incredible opportunity to cultivate customer relationships and turn customers into advocates, only 37% of brands currently have a fandom. Read the report to discover the long-term rewards of these types of communities (spoiler alert: higher customer lifetime value and increased customer loyalty both make an appearance). You’ll also learn about the barriers brands are facing in creating them.

Subscriptions, memberships, and loyalty programs allow brands to offer unique experiences, exclusive access, and personalized rewards that make their customers feel valued and appreciated.

Consumers clearly understand how important their continued support is to brands, with 78% saying they deserve rewards for being loyal customers. The same proportion says they’re more likely to stay loyal to a brand if they receive rewards in return for their continued investment. In this instance, brands are ahead of the game, with 91% saying they offer some form of rewards, and that the biggest benefits are increased referrals through brand advocacy and higher customer lifetime value.

Take a look at the report to find out which loyalty or membership benefits will make consumers more likely to consider your brand for their next purchase, as well as the ways other brands are currently rewarding their customers. And there are valuable lessons to learn from the luxury brands that have nailed customer loyalty.

Almost two-thirds (64%) of consumers say it’s important for brands to demonstrate inclusivity through their products and services, and this sentiment is even higher in younger generations. Their views on inclusivity can have a significant impact on the brands they choose to buy from, and those they choose to avoid.

While 80% of brands recognize that a commitment to inclusivity is important to their customers, only 55% say they’ve taken action to ensure their products or services are inclusive. What’s more, there’s a disconnect between the types of inclusivity brands are catering to (like financial literacy and technological fluency) and the ones consumers find most important (like disabilities and cultural background).

Read the report to discover how consumers want brands to convey a genuine commitment to inclusivity, and the steps your brand can take to meet growing expectations.

Consumers generate massive volumes of data through digital interactions, and 98% say they know that data is being used to tailor marketing and advertising. But there’s a misalignment between their perception of this data exchange and the way brands perceive it.

For example, 67% of brands believe their customers have a good understanding of how their data is used for marketing, but only 56% of consumers agree this is the case. What’s more 78% of brands feel they’re meeting customer expectations around personal data collection, but only 49% of consumers say they’re satisfied with the level of data transparency companies currently provide.

With 78% of consumers saying they’re more likely to trust a brand if it’s transparent about personal data collection, your brand needs to get this right. Read the report to discover three ways your brand can enable a transparent data exchange.