LiveVox Study Reveals Contact Centers Have Increased Adoption of AI, But Struggle to Capture ROI

Rhea-AI Summary

LiveVox Holdings (NASDAQ: LVOX) released a study by Forrester Consulting revealing that only 44% of organizations see benefits from AI in contact centers. Despite increased adoption, challenges like high implementation costs (43%), lack of customer data (40%), and insufficient skilled staff (38%) hinder ROI. Contact centers use an average of three AI tools, yet less than half leverage chatbots and analytics effectively. A need for integrated AI solutions is emphasized to improve flexibility and success.

Positive

• Increased interest in AI technology within contact centers.
• On average, companies use three AI tools, with some using over four.

Negative

• Only 44% of organizations experience benefits from AI tools.
• High implementation costs (43%) and lack of access to customer data (40%) hinder ROI.
• Over 50% of decision-makers cannot adapt AI tools due to vendor dependency.

The research study finds that despite increased interest in AI technology, only 44% of organizations experience benefits from implementing AI tools in their contact center

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- LiveVox Holdings, Inc. (“LiveVox” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: LVOX), a leading cloud-based provider of customer service and digital engagement tools, today released the results of a commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting to identify the key use cases and challenges when deploying AI technology in the contact center. The study, entitled “Contact Centers and AI: Sounds Like You Need Help Unlocking Full Benefits” surveyed 315 IT and operations leaders responsible for AI contact center technology in U.S. companies and found that while AI technology adoption within the contact center has increased and resulted in improved customer experience (CX), measurable ROI has been delayed by a number of significant challenges.

The top ranked obstacles preventing contact centers from achieving ROI from AI technology investments include: the high cost of implementation (43% -top three rank), not having access to necessary customer data (40%), and a lack of skilled in-house staff (38%). Additional findings include:

• AI Adoption is Well Underway. On average, executives report that they are using three AI tools in their contact centers today, with a quarter of respondents reporting use of more than four. Even so, only about half are using chatbots, AI virtual agents, real-time speech and text analytics, and agent assist. Overall, by wide margins, contact centers with 100 to 250 agents lead the way in adoption of AI and are using a range of tools including robotic process automation, chatbots, and virtual agents.
• Delays During Initial Deployment and Routine Updates are Widespread. Over 50% of contact center decision-makers say they are unable to make the changes needed to machine learning (ML) models and AI tools because they depend on vendors and lack the staff and expertise to do so themselves. Additionally, high implementation costs, limited data access, and the need for integration with legacy CRMs slow down initial deployment for 40% of firms.
• High Expectations, Low Measurable ROI. Although many contact center leaders believe AI tools will raise both customer and agent satisfaction, fewer than half of respondents experienced benefits from implementing AI tools. However, 80% still agree that a pre-integrated AI solution could provide greater flexibility to deploy, test, and change applications quickly.

“The adoption of AI within contact centers remains both the largest potential benefit and biggest challenge to delivering an exceptional agent and customer experience,” said Louis Summe, CEO and co-founder, LiveVox. “In order to remove the barriers around AI adoption and implementation, contact centers need to partner with technology companies that understand the application of practical AI and how the technology can be seamlessly integrated within agents’ workflows. AI is not a silver bullet; the technology must be easy to implement and manage, informed by data, supported by informed people, and consistently applied throughout the customer journey to deliver tangible, measurable ROI.”

To learn how your contact center can take advantage of AI technology and see the benefits, register for LiveVox’s upcoming webinar featuring Forrester on Thursday, May 19^th at 11am PT / 2pm ET. Register here.

To download the full study, click here.

About LiveVox

LiveVox (Nasdaq: LVOX) is a next generation contact center platform that powers more than 14 billion omnichannel interactions a year. By seamlessly unifying blended omnichannel communications, CRM, AI, and WEM capabilities, the Company’s technology delivers exceptional agent and customer experiences, while helping to mitigate compliance risk. With 20 years of cloud experience and expertise, LiveVox’s CCaaS 2.0 platform is at the forefront of cloud contact center innovation. The Company has more than 650 global employees and is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in Atlanta; Columbus; Denver; St. Louis; Medellin, Colombia; and Bangalore, India. To stay up to date with everything LiveVox, follow us at @LiveVox or visit livevox.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Some of the forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words. Statements that are not historical in nature, including those containing the words “anticipate,” “expect,” “suggests,” “plan,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimates,” “targets,” “projects,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “may,” “will,” “forecast,” “opportunity” and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based upon management estimates and forecasts and reflect the views, assumptions, expectations, and opinions of the Company as of the date of this press release, and may include, without limitation, changes in general economic conditions, including as a result of COVID-19, all of which are accordingly subject to change. Any such estimates, assumptions, expectations, forecasts, views or opinions set forth in this press release constitute the Company’s judgments and should be regarded as indicative, preliminary and for illustrative purposes only. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are subject to a number of factors, risks and uncertainties, some of which are not currently known to the Company, which may cause the Company’s actual results, performance or financial condition to be materially different from the expectations of future results, performance of financial condition. Important factors, among others, that may affect actual results are described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 11, 2022. Although forward-looking statements have been made in good faith and are based on assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable, there is no assurance that the expected results will be achieved. The Company’s actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and the Company does not undertake any obligations to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220516005180/en/

PR for LiveVox

Katie Creaser

LiveVoxPR@ICRInc.com

IR for LiveVox

Ryan Gardella

LiveVoxIR@ICRInc.com

Source: LiveVox Holdings, Inc.

FAQ

What did the LiveVox study find about AI adoption in contact centers?

The study found that while AI adoption is increasing, only 44% of organizations report benefits, hampered by high costs and data access issues.

What are the main challenges identified in the LiveVox study regarding AI in contact centers?

The main challenges include high implementation costs (43%), lack of necessary customer data (40%), and insufficient skilled staff (38%).

How many AI tools do companies typically use in their contact centers according to LiveVox?

Companies typically use an average of three AI tools in their contact centers.

What percentage of contact center leaders believe AI tools will enhance satisfaction?

Many leaders believe AI tools will increase both customer and agent satisfaction, though less than half have experienced measurable benefits.