2026 Market Study: Modernizing Service Experiences With AI & Digital

Once again, customer service is entering a new phase of transformation. As organizations look to 2030, they expect self-service to play a key role in the modern customer experience. Not only is it going to be positioned as the first point of contact, but a channel capable of resolving even complex needs.
 
The findings from this study demonstrate a shift in how customer service leaders envision the future of support. While they are certain that humans will play a role, it is increasingly clear that self-service is expected to handle a dominant share of interactions. 
 
Leaders anticipate the percentage of contacts that begin in self-service to rise from 56% today to 77% by 2030. At the same time, they predict that self-service will become significantly more effective at resolving end-to-end customer needs. They expect containment rates to increase from 56% today to 74%.
 
While the data points to the fact that self-service will play a pivotal role in the future of support, the goal is not just to automate every interaction away. Speed was named the most important characteristic of the ideal customer service, but empathy, personalization, customized resolutions and accessible support were also highlighted as key values.
 
The channel mix also continues to expand, with organizations stating an increase in availability of almost all channels by 2030. Most organizations, however, are still forcing customers into their preferred journey — only 26% of leaders say they give customers access to all channels. While they are expanding operationally, most organizations are still placing parameters around the customer journey. 
 
Together, these findings paint a more nuanced picture of the future contact center. The goal is not necessarily to deflect or shift customers away from human support, but create a model where AI and self-service can handle most of the frontline work. With this, agents can shift their time to leverage judgement, empathy and expertise.
 
Organizations are now placing greater emphasis on technology, data and relationship building, giving their employees more freedom to exercise their own judgment, make exceptions when needed and move beyond their past of rigid scripts and robotic conversations. Because 70% of customers still prefer live service, organizations must continue to ground interactions with human-led support.
 
When considering the findings holistically, it is evident that self-service will become a larger piece of the customer journey. The important distinction, however, is whether organizations can build a self-service experience that consistently meets customer expectations. If it is effective enough to earn customer trust, this scenario will likely play out by 2030. If not, leaders will have to adjust their reliance on self-service and continually work toward customer adoption.

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