#240 – Rick Delisi: Customer Effort Beats Satisfaction, AI Eliminates Bad Service

Rick Delisi is a customer experience researcher, author, and thought leader who has spent over 20 years studying customer service from the rotary phone era to today's AI-powered solutions. As co-author of The Effortless Experience and Digital Customer Service, Rick has pioneered the understanding that reducing customer effort—not maximizing satisfaction—is the key to building loyalty.

In this episode, we explore how AI is finally making it possible to eliminate bad customer service interactions entirely. Rick breaks down the concept of "AI for All" at Glia, where AI handles routine inquiries while empowering human agents with supercharged tools for complex, emotional interactions. We discuss the balance between efficiency and experience, the dangers of AI dependency, and why the best creativity now comes from asking questions no one's thought to ask before.

🔑 Topics Covered:

• Why customer effort predicts loyalty better than satisfaction or NPS
• The dual role of AI: external automation + internal agent empowerment
• How AI can create both efficiency and exceptional experience simultaneously
• The "channelest platform" that seamlessly blends digital, voice, and AI
• Overcoming fears about AI replacing human connection in customer service
• Using AI as a journalist and creative professional without losing authenticity
• The importance of industry-specific AI vs. horizontal approaches
• Voice AI and meeting customers across all demographics

⏱️ Timestamps:
03:15 – Rick's 20-year journey researching customer service
05:45 – The singular passion: eliminating bad customer service
08:30 – Why AI is the hero of the customer service story
11:20 – The learning curve: Can AI really provide better service than humans?
14:40 – "AI for All" at Glia: External automation + internal empowerment
18:25 – How the channelest platform works in practice
22:10 – Customer effort: The best predictor of loyalty
26:35 – How journalists can use AI without losing their craft
30:50 – The danger of AI dependency stifling creativity
35:20 – The new creativity: Asking questions no one's thought to ask

🔗 Connect with Rick:

• Website: glia.com

• Books: The Effortless Experience & Digital Customer Service

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