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Nearly one in five consumers who have used AI for customer service saw no benefits from the experience, marking a failure rate almost four times higher than for AI use in general, according to the 2026 Consumer Experience Trends Report from Qualtrics. As companies face increasing pressure to prove returns on AI investments, the report highlights how efforts to scale service excellence with AI are underperforming, while concerns over customer data usage in automated interactions continue to escalate, impacting SaaS-driven customer experience (CX) platforms and IT strategies for personalization across industries.
Consumers rank AI applications for customer service among the lowest for convenience, time savings, and usefulness—only "building an AI assistant" fares worse. Misuse of personal data now tops concerns at 53%, an 8-point increase year-over-year, with half of consumers fearing reduced access to human support and 47% worried about job losses from AI deployment.
"Too many companies are deploying AI to cut costs, not solve problems, and customers can tell the difference," said Isabelle Zdatny, head of thought leadership at Qualtrics XM Institute and the author of the report. "AI should be used to build connections and enhance the human experience, with capable AI agents managing simple, transactional requests. Then, AI can aid human agents in solving complex customer problems with the relevant background details and suggested solutions."
This underscores the need for balanced SaaS implementations in CX tools, where AI augments rather than replaces human interactions to foster trust in technology services for businesses.
Despite AI's challenges, global consumer experience improved across every industry in the report. Satisfaction, trust, and loyalty behaviors saw the strongest gains in switchable sectors like fast food and online retail, while harder-to-switch industries such as universities and utilities progressed more slowly, heightening vulnerability to disruptors.
| Metric | 2026 Score | YoY Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Satisfaction | 79% | +3.0 PTS |
| Trust | 76% | +2.7 PTS |
| Recommend | 72% | +2.7 PTS |
| Purchase More | 70% | +2.6 PTS |
These improvements highlight opportunities for IT-enhanced CX platforms to drive loyalty, but sustained investment in responsive, adaptive services is essential to maintain momentum in competitive markets.
Amid economic pressures from tariffs and inflation, 46% of consumers prioritize value in brand choices, yet those selecting based on superior customer service report higher satisfaction and trust than those driven by value, convenience, or familiarity.
"A race to the bottom on prices might win customers in the short term, but price is a temporary differentiator with fleeting impact," said Zdatny. "Long-term customer relationships will be built on meaningful connections, not transactional interactions that won't set an organization apart when the economy shifts."
This insight advocates for SaaS solutions that prioritize experiential depth over cost-cutting, enabling organizations to cultivate enduring customer relationships through integrated technology and human elements.
Less than one in three consumers now share negative feedback—an all-time low at 29%, down 7.5 points from 2021—with 30% opting for silence, up nine points in the same period. Nearly half (47%) of poor experiences result in reduced spending, leaving businesses uninformed about churn drivers.
The report stresses the value of indirect signals from social media and reviews to compensate for this gap. "Companies are flying blind while customers vote with their wallets," according to Zdatny. "In today's business environment, experience, operational, and behavioral data all need to come together to ensure leaders can take action to resolve systemic issues before losing customers to bad experiences."
Leveraging analytics in CX SaaS platforms becomes crucial for aggregating these dispersed insights, supporting proactive IT interventions to mitigate revenue risks.
Consumers crave tailored experiences—64% prefer brands catering to individual needs, up 2.5 points year-over-year—but privacy fears hinder adoption. Only 39% trust companies with personal data responsibly, with 66% concerned about security, 33% fearing fraud, and 23% worried about hacking.
Comfort levels peak at 30% for habit-based personalization like coffee recommendations, yet 32% reject all forms. Transparency and control offer a solution: 46% would share more data with clearer collection details, and 45% each with enhanced usage or deletion options.
"Companies need to stop collecting everything for the sake of having all the data – don't ask for more than you need," said Zdatny. "Understanding customer context wins out over building detailed profiles as it allows businesses to address needs based on current situations. Showing how their data improved their experience, paired with transparency and control, will build a foundation of trust that drives lasting loyalty."
This calls for ethical AI in personalization SaaS, where context-aware IT tools prioritize consent and value demonstration to rebuild consumer confidence.
The 2026 Consumer Experience Trends Report from Qualtrics signals a pivotal moment for AI in CX, where high failure rates and eroding trust demand a shift toward human-augmented, transparent solutions. By integrating behavioral data with actionable insights, businesses can fortify fragile gains, reverse feedback silence, and unlock personalization's potential—ultimately driving sustainable loyalty and growth in an uncertain economy.
Methodology The data comes from a global consumer study conducted by Qualtrics XM Institute in Q3 2025, surveying more than 20,000 consumers across 14 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, UK, and US. Responses reflect the gender, age, and income demographics within each country.
Download the full 2026 Consumer Experience Trends report: https://www.qualtrics.com/ebooks-guides/custome...
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