The problem with AI is there is no EI

The customer experience in the Moving business is going to hell because we are trying to replace emotional Intelligence with artificial intelligence. Our cool-dashboard mentality is taking our focus off the customer and placing it on technology.

I have been in the moving business for over 40 years and over the course of that time I reckon I have moved approximately 15000 families, around 50,000 people, not counting the dogs, cats and hamsters. Although I rarely do in house surveys anymore, I still do them when they are in my area, and I still love doing them. What I love about it is that every situation is different, every person has a story and every single one of them is apprehensive about making a long-distance, life changing, move. ?

I started in COD sales and still have that little edge on a competitive move. If you’re in the game, you know what I mean. If you’re not in sales and you play competitive sports, you know what I mean. I started in the industry when all the pricing was basically the same. We had to develop a knack of identifying customer needs and addressing those needs in a customized service offering AKA a unique customer experience, (not a discount).

My closing ratio is still extremely high, and I always tell the customer that my price will be higher than the competition. I also tell them I don’t play with the weight or hide services and most importantly I always leave their home, with them feeling better about their decision to move, than when I walked in. ?

Thank God IQ was not a game changer in my success, rather EQ was and still is. ?The ability to pickup on the customers emotions about the relocation, the ability to just chat about their situation and uncover some real serious concerns. The ability to relate to an older person, a young family, or a 20 something year old. No matter the demographic each one has concerns and personal needs that when identified and addressed, make for a fantastic customer experience.

Leaving them feeling that everything is going to work out just fine. Replacing a stressful situation with a positive, exciting adventure as their mindset. The empathy and recognition of whatever is keeping them up at night and a explanation as to how we are going to customize a service to address that concern, far outweighing a blunt bottom line bid or the ability to provide a quick report for the C-suite. ?Technology may make the management of the process a little easier but does very little for the delivery of that allusive "customer experience". ?

In my opinion the Moving industry is getting all caught up on technology, volume is replacing value. Distancing ourselves from the client using AI rather than EI. Moving is a very emotional business and we are doing everything we can to make it sterile and a commodity. With every step we take away from the customer we lose our ability to customize the experience, period. Video surveys, bid boards, everything that is being done in the name of progress is reducing the customer experience and turning customers into cargo. Now before you brand me as a Luddite let me explain.

A customer experience is developed around nuance, a subtle message that someone with a high EQ notices and creatively addresses two things AI can't do. Counting chairs is the least important aspect of what I consider to be a great household goods moving consultant.

In the new book AI 2041, authors Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan state that. ?“AI will replace simple mundane tasks and services” (like say warehousing and delivering widgets to a dock). The book goes on to say that “AI has a really hard time replacing abstract concepts, reasoning, common sense, and creativity”. All EI traits needed to identify and customize moving service for our unique customer and with that follows, the positive “customer experience”.

If, as an industry, we want to stop being treated like a commodity, we must stop trying to act like one. Again, in my opinion our lack of customer contact is a direct reflection of the lack of customer experience. Let’s not get all caught up in the potential AI has in the moving industry and get back to focusing on EI and the differentiation of our service through customization. The problem in the Moving industry is that there is no EI in AI . ?

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