A State of Service report unveils how AI, data, and escalating demand is driving perception of customer service as a revenue driver. How do organizations balance this with a priority to cut costs?

Salesforce has recently released the new State of Service report, sharing insights from over 5,500 service professionals across 30 countries — including 100 from Singapore.

The report covers the priorities, challenges, and strategies shaping customer service. It includes how service teams tap AI and data to increase revenue, efficiency, and customer satisfaction amid rising customer expectations.

According to the Singapore Business Federation’s National Business Survey, revenue growth (76%) and reducing costs (62%) were among the top priorities for business leaders this year, amid rising economic pressures and uncertainties.

Against this backdrop, Salesforce’s report finds that 80% of service professionals expect service to contribute more revenue this year. With AI enabling greater personalised customer experiences, service teams are well-poised to maximise upselling, cross-selling and customer retention opportunities to drive revenue.

The trend of viewing service as a revenue driver instead of a cost centre is accelerating, and service teams are investing in scaling up.

“Service teams cannot afford to miss the moments in the overall customer journey to build stronger relationships and loyalty. Generative AI will allow agents to provide a smoother and more personalised customer service experience, freeing up time to focus on relationship building. At the same time, data and AI is enabling service teams to demonstrate their ability to drive revenue growth through greater efficiency and upsell activities,” said Gavin Barfield, Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Solutions at Salesforce ASEAN.

Gavin Barfield, Salesforce

“AI is helping customer service agents be more efficient by reducing administrative tasks, which frees up time for them to focus on delivering personalised customer experiences and revenue generation. This will fundamentally shift the role of service teams within businesses from cost centers to profit centers.”

Key insights for Singapore:

• Service Professionals Double Down on Revenue Generation. The trend of viewing service as a revenue driver instead of a cost centre is accelerating, and service teams are investing in scaling up. This year:

• • 77% of service professionals expect more budget
  • 71% of service professionals expect more headcount

• Service Professionals Lean into AI to Boost Efficiencies. To scale service without sacrificing quality, professionals are increasingly turning to AI.

• • 90% of service professionals are using or evaluating AI
  • 90% of service professionals plan to increase AI investments this year
  • Top 3 service use cases for AI : Automated summaries and reports, customer-facing intelligent assistants, and service responses
  • 97% of service professionals with AI say it saves them time

• Escalating Demands Adds Pressure on Service Teams. As customer expectations rise, service agents are feeling the squeeze.

• • 65% of service professionals expect higher case volume next year
  • 81% of service professionals say customers are more demanding than they used to be

• Service Boosts Its Data Capabilities. Service professionals are stepping up their data integration efforts to fuel human agents and AI systems.

• • 72% of service professionals say better access to data from other teams would improve support
  • 87% of service professionals are increasing investment in data integration this year

Methodology

Salesforce conducted a double-anonymous survey of over 5,500 service professionals between December 8, 2023, and January 22, 2024. Respondents were sourced from 30 countries and roles including service operations, service agents, mobile workers, service managers/directors, and service leadership/head of service. Additional methodology and survey demographic details can be found in the report.

About Salesforce

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(This article was adapted from a press release).