Invoca has released The B2C Buyer Experience Report 2026, revealing how response speed, AI quality, and human support are shaping customer purchasing decisions across the UK. The study highlights a growing revenue challenge for brands, with consumers increasingly abandoning businesses that fail to deliver fast and seamless interactions during high-stakes buying journeys.
The report examines how UK consumers interact with AI-powered customer engagement systems and human support channels, showing that while AI adoption is improving customer experiences, delayed responses and poor execution continue to drive customers toward competitors.
According to Invoca’s findings, the largest gap between consumer expectations and actual brand performance relates to response speed. More than half of surveyed UK consumers expect businesses to respond within one hour after submitting a form, yet only one-third reported receiving responses within that timeframe.
The report also found that 79% of consumers are willing to switch to a faster competitor, while 29% abandon businesses entirely when response times are too slow.
Consumer expectations for phone support are similarly demanding. Seventy-one percent of respondents stated they have hung up after being placed on hold for too long, representing a significant increase compared to the previous year.
Invoca’s analysis of more than 60 million phone conversations showed that 37% of phone leads convert during live calls, with top-performing industries reaching conversion rates of up to 46%.
"The speed gap is a revenue gap," the report emphasized, highlighting how delayed engagement directly impacts customer acquisition and sales outcomes.
The report indicates that AI systems are now deeply integrated into customer buying journeys, with consumers increasingly evaluating brands based on the quality of AI interactions.
According to the findings:
Consumer sentiment toward AI-driven engagement has improved compared to 2025, with 42% of respondents stating AI enhanced their buying experience, while only 20% reported negative experiences.
Additionally, 70% of UK consumers said they can no longer reliably distinguish whether they are interacting with AI or a human representative.
"AI agents have graduated from experiments to a fundamental business requirement for brands," said Peter Isaacson, CMO at Invoca. "Consumers expect speed at every turn, and AI can provide it at the most crucial moments when leads drop off and head to the competition. Without fast, smart AI engagement capabilities, you're relegating yourself to second place."
Despite growing AI adoption, the report shows that consumers continue valuing human interaction during important purchasing decisions.
The research found:
Invoca concluded that successful customer engagement strategies require balancing fast AI automation with accessible human support. The report emphasizes the importance of integrating digital interactions, AI-driven conversations, contact center support, and conversion workflows into a seamless customer journey.
As businesses continue investing in AI-powered customer engagement technologies, the report suggests that brands delivering both speed and empathetic support will be better positioned to retain customers and drive revenue growth.
About Invoca
Invoca is an AI-powered revenue execution platform that connects marketing, commerce, and contact centre teams to orchestrate seamless buyer journeys and turn every interaction into measurable, profitable growth. The Invoca platform features deep integrations with leading technology partners, enabling revenue teams to connect paid media investments to business outcomes, improve digital engagement, and convert more leads into sales.
Invoca's AI vision centers on using trustworthy, first-party data to deliver AI that is intelligent, authentic, and empathetic — connecting digital and human experiences to build lasting customer relationships. Top consumer brands, including Mayo Clinic, Mutual of Omaha, and Verizon, rely on Invoca to power profitable growth. Invoca has raised $184M from leading investors, including Upfront Ventures, Accel, Silver Lake Waterman, H.I.G. Growth Partners, and Salesforce Ventures. For more information, visit www.invoca.com/uk.
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