Customer Experience: The real world
Practical, no-fluff thinking on getting support right — where AI helps, where humans matter, and how to measure what actually moves your customer experience.
Why is customer service so bad now?
Service got worse for structural reasons, not because people stopped caring. The five decisions behind it, and what the companies that avoided them did differently.
AI & SupportAI customer service for small business: what actually works under 50 people
Most AI support advice is written for 200-agent teams. What is worth doing under 50 people, matched to your ticket volume, and the order to do it in.
MetricsWhat is a customer support SLA? Examples for small businesses
What an SLA means in customer service, what goes in one, example targets by priority and by channel, and how the response-time clock is actually calculated.
AI & SupportHow to prepare for AI in customer support (before you buy a tool)
Most AI support projects fail on preparation, not technology. What the research says, and the checklist that gets your knowledge, scope and people ready first.
OutsourcingHow much does outsourced customer support cost?
The four pricing models providers use, what the market charges, what drives your price up or down, and the costs that never appear in the headline rate.
OutsourcingHow to choose an outsourced customer support provider
Outsourcing your customer support? What to prepare, the questions to ask a provider, the red flags, and what a good handover looks like.
ScalingBuild a support team or outsource? What it really costs
Is it cheaper to build a support team or outsource? What a support hire really costs beyond salary, how outsourcing is priced, and how to compare the two fairly.
ScalingOutgrowing your support: how to scale a support team as your company grows
Company grown but support hasn't kept up? The signs, how to scale a support team without hiring into chaos, and when to build in-house or outsource.
AI & SupportThe AI-to-human handoff: designing escalation that doesn't lose the customer
Most AI support fails at the seam, not the bot. The three ways escalation breaks, what context has to cross it, and how to test your own handoff before a customer does.
AI & SupportHybrid AI + human support: how it actually works
Full automation over-promises and under-delivers. Here's how the best teams blend AI and people — and why "55% deflection with great escalation" beats "90% and a frustrated customer."
Self-serviceSelf-service done right: knowledge bases that deflect the easy stuff
Around 70% of customers try to help themselves first — and self-service costs a fraction of an agent contact. What separates a knowledge base people love from one they abandon.
MetricsThe CX metrics that beat Average Handle Time
AHT rewards speed, not outcomes — and it can quietly make your support worse. The value-focused metrics to track instead, and how to actually act on them.