AI is now moving beyond technology to assist customer experience (CX) and becoming a tool that expands the very mindset of CX strategists. More important than implementing tangible features like chatbots or recommendation systems is defining where and in what context AI should intervene. For CX strategists, AI is not a technology; it's a new language for understanding customers and reimagining services.

Market Needs: Personalization is the Basic, Consistency is the Challenge

As digital channels proliferate, customer experiences become fragmented. While customers experience a single brand across websites, apps, emails, customer support centers, and offline stores, internally, data and decision-making across channels are often siloed. The market now demands more than mere personalization; it demands a consistent experience across channels, and AI is a key tool enabling this.

The CX Strategist's First Role: Redefining the Customer Journey

The starting point for implementing AI is not technology selection, but redesigning the customer journey. CX strategists define the context for each touchpoint based on customer behavioral data and identify where AI should intervene. For example, they segment AI's role into areas such as summarizing and comparing information during the exploration phase, removing anxiety before purchase, and maintaining relationships after purchase. This is closer to "designing the experience flow" than "adding AI functionality."

Second Role: Translating the Meaning of Data into Experience

AI can process vast amounts of data, but determining which data to prioritize is a strategic matter. CX strategists design data structures that can understand customer intent and emotional shifts beyond metrics like clicks and dwell time. While AI can discover patterns and provide predictions, translating those findings into actual experience elements rests with the strategist.

Third Role: Setting the Boundaries Between Automation and Human Intervention

Automating every experience can actually harm CX. CX strategists clearly distinguish between areas where AI should handle tasks and moments where humans should intervene. While AI should handle repetitive inquiries, basic recommendations, and real-time guidance, a structure that naturally connects with humans for critical decision-making and emotional moments is crucial. This balanced design determines the quality of CX.

Common pitfalls in AI applications

Many organizations adopt a feature-centric approach when implementing AI. However, even as functionality increases, the experience often doesn't improve. The reason is simple: AI is designed from the perspective of internal efficiency, not the customer. CX strategists must constantly ask, "What inconvenience does this feature reduce for customers?" when implementing AI.

Iropke's Approach: Designing CX Strategy and AI Simultaneously

Iropke doesn't consider AI a follow-on to CX strategy. From the very beginning of service planning, he designs customer journeys, content structures, and data flows, then layers AI on top of them. AI isn't a proxy for answers; it's a strategic amplifier that helps CX strategists make more sophisticated decisions. This approach builds long-term experience competitiveness, not short-term automation.

conclusion

For CX strategists, AI isn't something to consider whether or not to adopt. It's already a prerequisite. What matters isn't how much AI is used, but how and to what extent it's used to create the experience. Ultimately, the difference in customer experience lies not in technology, but in design. And AI is becoming a tool that deepens and broadens that design.