Thailand is experiencing a digital revolution that is reshaping consumer lifestyles in unprecedented ways, with the adoption of innovative technologies, particularly in the realm of artificial intelligence (AI).
From voice assistants to facial recognition platforms, Generative AI (Gen AI) is making significant inroads into consumers' day-to-day lives.
The digital transformation consultancy Publicis Sapient recently conducted a survey of consumers in seven countries to see how they viewed Gen AI, and how brands can harness the technology for the best possible return on investment through enhanced customer experience.
The firm's latest edition of "Guide to Next" -- its annual outlook on digital business transformation trends -- includes a Gen AI report based on a survey of more than 10,000 consumers in the US, the UK, Australia, France, Denmark, Germany and Thailand.
The survey reveals most consumers (78%) have heard of Gen AI, while only 30% have used it.
However, among the 2,061 Thai respondents surveyed, more than one in three consumers (35%) have used Gen AI tools personally or professionally. This puts Thai consumers near the top of the table in terms of Gen AI usage, alongside their Australian peers (38%).
"We are extremely excited for the potential that Gen AI brings when it comes to transforming the customer experience," said Andrew Male, Publicis Sapient client partner for Asean.
"Thailand has shown itself to be a leader in embracing the use of Gen AI tools, and we look forward to collaborating with our partners and customers to harness these innovative technologies, continually developing innovative solutions that transform how we live, work and play."
Based on the survey, Publicis Sapient drew the following insights on expectations from organisations about harnessing the Gen AI experience:
Customers expect Gen AI to enhance their experiences: Almost half of Gen AI users (43%) want brands to use the technology to improve overall customer experience. This expectation is mirrored among Thai consumers, with 55% expecting Gen AI to improve their customer experience when interacting with a brand or its products and services.
Organisations can develop three strategies to help harness Gen AI for customers. First, focus on product research and discovery to enable faster and more accurate search results, a primary concern for Gen AI experts and novices alike.
Next, focus on helping consumers find the best deals amid rising costs of living and inflation. Finally, invest in Gen AI-powered customer services to enable seamless, automated interactions such as product returns and exchanges.
Personalised, retail experiences can power growth: While Gen AI can be deployed to elevate a wide range of customer experiences, retail applications stand to have the most impact. For Thailand, a country with more Gen AI users on average, 86% of all Gen AI users (compared with the global average of 63%) report its impact on shopping experiences excites them.
Organisations can consider deploying a conversational chat assistant. This is a popular emerging use case for Gen AI, with 45% of users globally saying they are extremely or very likely to use a conversational app for travel and hospitality shopping. In Thailand, 63% of Gen AI users say they are very likely to do so.
Unprecedented ethical implications remain top of mind: In addition to prevailing concerns about the impact of Gen AI on job security in the near future, a large majority of consumers remain apprehensive about the content produced by Gen AI and the safety of using the tools, with only 21% trusting the output.
Though Thai consumers are more trusting about Gen AI content and outputs (44%) and consider it safe to use (42%), organisations must continue to ensure ethical adoption and deployment to establish deeper trust for longer-term customer retention.
Strategies include investing in development of guardrails for large language models (LLMs) to promote accurate responses; securing private consumer and/or client data revealed during interactions with chatbots and conversational searches; and establishing a foundation of transparency based on clear communication of data sources.
Customers today are more than ready for better experiences using integrated Gen AI, and brands that go the extra mile to have a clear understanding of their views on the technology can reap the benefits of investing in enhancing customer experiences.
To read more of the study, visit https://tinyurl.com/2unrrrvn