Spotlight

Report:

The Forrester Wave™: Conversation Intelligence For Customer Service, Q3 2023

How does Forrester define the Conversation Intelligence for Customer Service market in 2023?

Conversation Intelligence for Customer Service (CICS) is a market evolved from speech analytics, now focused on developing practical applications including automated quality monitoring (AQM) and agent augmentation. CICS vendors must offer technology that empowers enterprises to drive business improvements within and beyond the contact center. The market emphasizes ecosystem openness and the ability to extract insights from multiple conversational touchpoints across platforms, including sources outside the contact center such as surveys and reviews. The emergence of generative AI represents a major breakthrough, with all evaluated vendors either deploying LLM-based products or planning near-term implementation.

Key Facts for The Forrester Wave™: Conversation Intelligence For Customer Service, Q3 2023 in 2023

How did the Conversation Intelligence for Customer Service market evolve in 2023?

What product features are required to be included in this year's evaluation?

What are the common features of top products in the Conversation Intelligence for Customer Service space?

No common features specified.

Scope Exclusions

Inclusion Criteria

Vendors must, among other requirements:

Offering Strengths — Relative Weighting

Strategy Strength — Relative Weighting

FAQs

Q: What does this research cover?

A: This research covers a 32-criterion evaluation of conversation intelligence for customer service (CICS) providers. It evaluates vendors across three categories: current offering (including conversation analytics, automated and hybrid quality scoring, coaching, agent augmentation, service-driven revenue, compliance, insights, unified platform experience, delivery model and integrations, and accessibility), strategy (including vision, innovation, roadmap, partner ecosystem, adoption, pricing flexibility and transparency, and supporting services and offerings), and market presence (revenue and number of customers).

Q: Who should use this research?

A: Customer service leaders should use this research to evaluate and select the right conversation intelligence provider for their needs. The report helps buyers understand how each vendor measures up across key criteria and provides guidance on which vendors are best suited for different use cases, such as companies with mature contact center operations, smaller teams looking for bleeding-edge AI, enterprises adopting a CX-informed approach, or teams with large messaging programs.

Q: What are the mandatory features of vendors included in this market?

A: All vendors included in this evaluation must offer: (1) A standalone conversation intelligence solution purchasable independently that includes speech and text analytics, automated quality monitoring, and/or agent augmentation capabilities, not dependent on vendor's own interaction channels or WFO solution; (2) Generate at least $30 million in annual CICS license revenue demonstrating proven product viability; (3) Proven track record serving enterprise customers with over $1 billion in annual revenue; (4) Significant mindshare and interest from Forrester clients as evidenced by inquiries and inclusion in vendor shortlists.

Q: What are some reasons for not being included in this report?

A:

  • Solution cannot be purchased independently from vendor's own interaction channels or WFO platform
  • Annual CICS license revenue below $30 million threshold
  • Lack of proven track record serving enterprise customers with over $1 billion in annual revenue
  • Insufficient interest and mindshare from Forrester clients
  • Solution lacks required core capabilities (speech and text analytics, automated quality monitoring, and/or agent augmentation)
  • Vendor declined to participate in evaluation process
  • Vendor only partially participated in evaluation process

Q: What should buyers consider when evaluating products in this market?

A:

  • Look for providers that offer more than just fancy algorithms - prioritize enterprise-ready workflows that intelligently incorporate generative AI and ML while augmenting human workflows
  • Consider rightsized vendor involvement - evaluate the level of self-service control needed and whether this might change in the future, ensuring vendor support aligns with preferred working model
  • Seek vendors that can deliver value beyond operations - prioritize those who share vision of driving multifaceted business value across CX teams, marketing, and digital teams, not just reducing average handle time
  • Evaluate ecosystem openness and ability to extract insights from multiple conversational touchpoints across platforms
  • Assess vendor's commitment to practical applications versus theoretical capabilities
  • Consider vendor's approach to balancing knowledge-based and machine learning-based AI
  • Evaluate coaching and performance improvement alignment with company's CX objectives

Q: How has the Conversation Intelligence for Customer Service market evolved in 2023?

A:

  • Evolution from speech analytics to practical applications including automated quality monitoring and agent augmentation
  • Emergence of generative AI and large language models (LLMs) as a major breakthrough
  • Ecosystem openness as a notable trend and requirement for market participation
  • Shift from simple dashboards to technology that drives business improvements within and beyond contact center
  • Focus on extracting insights from multiple conversational touchpoints across platforms
  • Integration of sources outside contact center including surveys and reviews
  • Movement toward customer-centered value beyond traditional operations metrics
  • Emphasis on augmenting human workflows and empowering frontline agents

Q: What differentiates Strength of Offering vs. Strength of Strategy?

A: Current Offering (vertical axis) measures the strength of each vendor's existing product capabilities across conversation analytics, quality scoring, coaching, agent augmentation, compliance, insights, platform experience, integrations, and accessibility. Strategy (horizontal axis) evaluates the vendor's future direction and market approach including their vision, innovation commitment, product roadmap, partner ecosystem, adoption programs, pricing models, and support services.

Reference

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