In today’s digital age, businesses are constantly striving to enhance the customer experience in order to improve brand perception and loyalty. A recent report, the “2025 Coveo Customer Experience Relevance Report,” highlights the importance of reducing customer effort through better search and AI experiences.
According to the report, customer effort plays a major role in how customers perceive a brand. A staggering 84% of respondents felt that they had to put in a significant amount of effort to find information or get help. This high level of customer friction can lead to customers abandoning a brand’s website for competitors or turning to search engines like Google for assistance.
The report identifies five key areas where customer effort can be reduced and brand perception improved.
Firstly, the website search experience is crucial as it serves as a primary entry point to the digital experience. Investing in a robust, unified search experience that connects all customer touchpoints can significantly enhance the customer journey. Location-aware search is also highlighted as a tool that can drive both online and offline conversions.
Generative AI is another area where businesses can improve customer experience. While tools like ChatGPT can deliver positive outcomes, it is essential to balance novelty with relevance and coherence. Trust in generative AI outputs requires verification and transparency to avoid AI hallucinations or fake answers.
Personalization remains important in a privacy-conscious world, but the report found that customers are becoming less willing to share personal data. Marketers can leverage data like on-site behavior to provide personalized recommendations without relying on explicit personal information.
Self-service expectations are on the rise, with customers increasingly seeking online information and assistance. Providing answers directly in search results, helpful content recommendations, and AI-guided assistance within products can meet these evolving expectations.
Consistency across multiple customer service channels is also crucial for a seamless customer experience. Inconsistent communication across departments can lead to increased customer effort and negatively impact brand perception. Aligning marketing efforts with customer service strategies can ensure a consistent experience across all touchpoints.
The “Coveo Customer Experience Relevance Report 2025” surveyed two groups of adults in the U.S. and U.K. and highlighted the evolving digital customer experiences and the need for businesses to prioritize reducing customer effort. By investing in better search and AI experiences, businesses can improve brand perception and loyalty in today’s competitive market.