Over on The Conversational AI Divide, a podcast hosted by Knowbl’s founder and CEO Jay Wolcott, we’ve talked to some of this year’s greatest AI groundbreakers, troublemakers, hackers, and forward thinkers. Each conversation showed a new perspective, but there were a few themes we noticed in each episode.
Here’s our roundup of AI advice and predictions for 2024 from AI industry leaders.
1. Don’t be afraid to do something different.
You can’t do the same things over and over again expecting different results. If you’re ready for a change, start by having a conversation in your company about the technology you use. What works? What doesn’t? Listen to all stakeholders – including staff at all levels, investors, and customers – and use these conversations as a starting point toward getting unstuck from old ways.
Leveraging AI and other technologies can bring about radical change in your company. Taking risks can be a scary proposition, but the most successful companies aren’t afraid of change. And if you’re asking the questions, it’s probably time for your company to take a risk and find different results.
2. Move quickly.
AI tech evolves quickly, and companies can’t move fast enough in today’s environment. The solution is to stay proactive – not just in adopting new technologies, but in analyzing them for your business. Do your homework and don’t wait to leverage technology that can rapidly prototype and prove concepts.
Tech evolution isn’t slowing down, either. So enjoy the journey! It’s exciting to explore new technologies and become an early adopter. Don’t allow it to become an overwhelming task, but instead take it as a challenge to learn and grow with technology.
3. Set clear goals and expectations.
Start with intent. Understand the use cases of deploying AI, and develop a roadmap based on your organization’s needs. Is your primary intent to reduce costs? Improve customer loyalty? Create self-service options?
Figuring out your intent will lead you to the next step: picking a product. Based on your goals, what level of scalability do you need? How much can you invest into AI startup, and what are your profit projections?
Once you can answer all these questions, you’ll be able to clearly define how AI can help your business. Conversational AI helps you orchestrate the customer journey and is most effective when your business sets clear intentions for its use. Your goals and expectations are also invaluable for getting buy-in on the use of AI from internal and external stakeholders.
4. Be inclusive.
Consider the customer perspective at each and every touchpoint. Think through all potential customer scenarios and map their journey. This will help you understand your customer’s experience, make adjustments to ensure smooth engagement, and figure out how AI can improve your business.
Adopt a team mentality of collective success and failure. Foster collaboration among your team, and ensure diversity at every step of the decision-making process. It’s important to leverage AI responsibly, and one of the best ways to do that is to make sure that all voices are heard and feel free to speak up. Create this inclusive environment before AI is deployed, that way, you’ll get it right from the start.
Everyone on your team should have a role and know what their role is. As a leader, look for and empower the “hustlers” on your team, as people with a hustler mentality can navigate challenges quickly and effectively.
Being inclusive means considering every viewpoint and making sure they’re all represented when making big decisions for your business. Be mindful of how AI can change how your customers, stakeholders, and employees interact with your brand.
5. Garbage in, garbage out.
Your brand’s existing knowledge base is the foundation for creating a truly custom experience. But if your knowledge bases are out-of-date, your customer interactions won’t accurately represent your company. Before deploying AI, it’s important to get your internal documents and databases in order.
6. Look past immediate results.
It’s easy to see AI as a shiny new object and therefore expect immediate results. But in reality, AI is already a crucial part of how customers interact with many brands, and it should be leveraged intentionally, with long-term goals in mind.
Executives often push for quick solutions to complex problems, and many C-suite employees see AI as a bandage over all wounds. AI integration gets better with time, and managing expectations among stakeholders is an important part of deploying AI.
It’s also important to accept a level of uncertainty. There will be some trial and error along the way. While AI is a tested, trustworthy technology (when used properly), it is designed to be more fluid and adaptable than most of the tech your business is using. Your team will need to stay equally fluid and adaptable to get the most out of AI.
7. It’s a noisy world out there.
The AI landscape is complex, crowded, and full of conjecture. Navigating an industry with this much buzz can be tough, especially for business leaders with so many other issues to deal with. Seek out trusted information from reliable sources to guide you to the best solution for your business. Good information and solid advice will keep you agile, smart, and quick as you integrate AI into your business.
In the coming years, we look forward to seeing more AI advancements and pushing the industry forward. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast for the latest news, features, and advice from AI experts.
For more specific instances and applications of these pieces of advice, download The Conversational AI Divide Industry Insight Report for free at this link.