Your vacation was ruined, and the company apologized — with a heartfelt note written by ChatGPT

🌈 Abstract

The article discusses how travel companies are using ChatGPT, a generative AI chatbot, to respond to customer complaints and negative reviews more efficiently. It highlights the benefits of using AI for this purpose, such as speed, consistency, and lack of defensiveness, as well as the potential risks, such as the "ghosting" effect of not responding to reviews. The article also explores the industry's mixed views on using AI for customer service, with some companies embracing it and others preferring the "human touch."

🙋 Q&A

[01] Using ChatGPT to Respond to Customer Complaints

1. What are the benefits of using ChatGPT to respond to customer complaints?

• ChatGPT can generate responses to customer complaints much faster than a human, taking "two seconds" instead of an hour.
• The responses from ChatGPT are comprehensive, addressing every complaint mentioned by the traveler.
• ChatGPT's responses are not defensive like human-written responses can be.

2. What are the potential downsides of using ChatGPT for this purpose?

• The responses generated by ChatGPT can be "schmaltzy" and adjective-laden.
• The responses still need to be checked and edited by a human to ensure they are appropriate.
• There is a risk of the "ghosting" effect, where companies fail to respond to online reviews, which can harm their brand's reputation.

3. How do some companies view the use of AI for responding to customer complaints?

• Some companies, like the five-star resort director interviewed, prefer to keep the use of AI a secret, as they want customers to think they are "toiling away" on the responses.
• Other companies, like the travel booking platform Voyagu, acknowledge using AI to help travel advisors respond to customers.
• Some companies, like the family-run vacation rental company Simple Life Hospitality, prefer the "human touch" and do not use AI for this purpose.

[02] Adoption of AI for Reputation Management in the Travel Industry

1. What is the estimated value of using generative AI for "reputational management" in the travel industry? According to a 2023 Skift report, the use of generative AI for reputational management is worth an estimated $1.3 billion to the travel industry.

2. How are different sectors of the travel industry adopting the use of AI for responding to reviews?

• Hotels: 45% of hotels already use reputation or review management software, which can include the use of AI.
• Short-term rentals: The short-term rental/Airbnb industry has been an early adopter of using AI for responding to reviews.

3. What are the reasons driving the adoption of AI for responding to reviews in the travel industry?

• Responding to reviews is time-consuming, which is one of the reasons companies like Jurny provide this service using AI.
• Companies see the benefits of using AI, with the majority of Jurny's users "absolutely loving" the AI-powered review response service.