SIXTH EDITION

State of the
Connected
Customer
Insights from 14,300 consumers and
business buyers on how AI, digital
transformation, and macroeconomic trends
are changing customer engagement
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 2

What You’ll Find

in This Report
For the sixth edition of the “State of the Connected Customer” In this report, we examine survey results from
report, Salesforce surveyed 11,000 consumers and 3,300 three primary groups:
business buyers worldwide to discover:
Consumers
• How economic shifts have reshaped customer Those reporting their interactions with
expectations and behaviors companies when purchasing for themselves
• The changing ways that customers engage with
companies across the buying lifecycle Business Buyers
• Customer sentiments around new technologies like Those reporting their interactions with
generative artificial intelligence (AI) companies when purchasing on behalf of their
employers
Due to rounding, not all percentage totals in this report equal
100%. All comparison calculations are made from total Customers
numbers (not rounded numbers). Aggregated consumers and business buyers

Data in this report is from a double-blind survey conducted

from May 3, 2023, through July 14, 2023. Respondents
represent 25 countries across six continents. All respondents
are third-party panelists. For further survey demographics, 3,300 business buyers
see page 28. surveyed worldwide

11,000 consumers
surveyed worldwide

Salesforce provides data-driven insights to help businesses

transform how they drive customer success.
Browse all reports at salesforce.com/research.
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 3

Contents
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 04

Chapter 1: A Changing World Shakes Up Customer Expectations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 06

Chapter 2: The Customer Engagement Playbook Evolves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Chapter 3: The Trust Gap Widens as AI Goes Mainstream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Survey Demographics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 4

Customer expectations continue to rise as businesses face increasing costs, the

quest for efficiency, and privacy hurdles. Generative artificial intelligence(AI) holds
tremendous promise to help businesses get through these challenges. However,
the stakes are high for getting it right. As we stand at the doorstep of a
completely transformed way of doing business, it's a crucial time to check in:
what do customers want right now? How can companies responsibly implement
AI to build trust?

In our sixth “State of the Connected Customer” report, we surveyed 14,300

business buyers and consumers worldwide. We see tension between generative
AI's ability to improve customer experience and customers' caution around the
technology's risks. We’re also seeing that, despite their hesitancy, customers
are open to artificial intelligence when it's transparent, secure, and improves
their experiences.

Customers demand fast, consistent, and personalized interactions everytime they

interact with a company. They’re seeking brands that offer exceptional products
Michael Affronti, and services, and are loyal to those that deliver. With customer loyalty at stake,
SVP & GM, Commerce Cloud this is a pivotal moment for businesses to thoughtfully use generative AI to
supercharge way to supercharge the seamless experiences their customers expect.

Generative AI is the future, and businesses that use it strategically and ethically
will come out on top. At Salesforce, we believe now is the time for companies
to build secure, innovative, and efficient experiences with trust at the forefront.
Insights from today’s “connected customers” are an essential guide for how to do
that. I sincerely hope you find this research helpful as you navigate the new era of
technology and customer engagement.
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 5

Executive Summary

01
Rising costs and shifting priorities A Changing World Shakes Up Customer Expectations
have customers rethinking
Economic and technological shifts are changing customer
their relationships with brands.
priorities, behaviors, and expectations. The pressure is on for
Meanwhile, companies are feeling
brands to step up. Eighty-one percent of customers expect
pressure to increase efficiency.
faster service as technology advances.
Although evolving technologies
like generative AI intelligence*
promise to elevate their experiences, 02 The Customer Engagement Playbook Evolves
Customers have revealed the recipe for companies to earn
customers are wary of risks involved.
their loyalty: consistency, efficiency, and a human touch.
This creates an opportunity for
Seventy-nine percent of customers expect consistent
companies to drive differentiation
interactions across departments.
through technology strategies
grounded in trust and
human connection.
03 The Trust Gap Widens as AI Goes Mainstream
Brands are turning to generative AI to boost efficiency while
improving customer engagement. Customers — wary of the
technology risks — demand a thoughtful approach built on trust.
Eighty percent of customers say it's important for humans to
*Silvio Savarese, Chief Scientist of Salesforce AI, defines
generative AI as “AI that doesn’t just classify or predict, validate AI’s outputs.
but creates content of its own, be it text, imagery, video,
or even executable code. And, it does so with a human-
like command of language.”
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 6

1
A Changing World
Shakes Up Customer
Expectations
 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 7

01 Customers Revisit
Their Priorities
Customer Experience Remains Crucial Amidst Pricing Push
Compounding factors like inflation and
technological advancement are leading Consumers Who Say the Following Have Affected Their Priorities
people to rethink what’s important,
Cost of living 82%
including where and how they spend
Personal well-being 44%
their money.
Advances in technology 34%

62% of consumers have Climate change 23%

recently reassessed Social justice 18%

their priorities. Other 2%

Base: Consumers who recently reevaluated their priorities as customers.

Finances are top of mind for many: cost
of living is the #1 factor influencing their
priorities, and better deals are the most
common reason for switching brands. Consumers Who Say They've Switched Brands for the Following Reasons

Better deals 72%

Nevertheless, customers are not single-
Product quality 55%
minded in their quest for a good deal,
leaving room for brands to compete on Product availability 41%

more than price. Product quality remains Product selection/variety 41%

essential, as does customer experience.
Changing needs/expectations 39%

80% of customers say the Base: Consumers who switched brands in the past year.
experience a company
provides is as important as its
products and services.
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01 Personalization Gives
Favorite Brands a
Leg Up Personalization Falls Short, But Favorite Brands Have the Edge

Extent to Which Brands Adapt to Changing Needs

Personalization is a tenet of modern
customer engagement, as almost two- Favorite brands 16% 40% 35% 9%
thirds of customers say they expect
companies to adapt experiences to match Most brands 12% 34% 39% 15%

their changing needs and preferences.

Always Often Sometimes Rarely or never
However, most customers feel companies
Base: Consumers who have a favorite brand.
treat them as a number rather than as
an individual. This is particularly true
of consumers, whose relatively small
transactions don’t prompt the tailored
attention of large and slow-moving

65%
business deals.

Customers’ favorite brands have an edge

78%
of customers expect
61%
of customers say
against the competition when it comes to companies to adapt but most companies
to their changing treat them as a
matching changing needs, but even they needs/preferences 66%
number
have room for improvement. 61%

46%

Business buyers Consumers

 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 9

01 Data and Technology

Up the Ante
for Customer More Customers See Data as a Motivator Than Spend

Engagement Customers Who Expect Faster Service Under the Following Circumstances

When technology advances 81%

Customers know that companies depend
on data to meet their standards for When they provide more data 75%
personalized engagement, but they
expect something in return when they When they spend more 65%

hand it over. The more data customers

provide, the better experience
they expect.
Customers Who Expect Better Personalization Under the Following Circumstances

More of today's customers see data as a When technology advances 73%

factor than money in determining whether
they’ll get the fast, tailored experiences When they provide more data 74%

they desire.
When they spend more 64%

Technological breakthroughs like

generative AI can help businesses scale
support and personalization, and are
further raising customers’ standards: 81%
of customers expect faster service as
technology advances, and 73% expect
better personalization.
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01 Customers Demand a
Mindful Approach to
Their Data Customer Seek Transparency As Trust Erodes

Well aware of its value, customers are Customers Who Say the Following
increasingly protective of their data. Customer experiences

80%
should be better 85%
However, companies have opportunities considering all the
data companies 79%
to earn their trust. collect

For example, customers are more

79%
I'm increasingly 84%
comfortable providing data if they’re protective of my
given a clear explanation of how it will be personal data
78%
used — not as details buried in a long user
agreement. This is partially in response to I'd more likely trust

71%
80%
the general sense that not all companies a company with my
personal data if its
use data to maximize benefit to use were 68%
clearly explained
customers to benefit customers, and that
they collect more of it than they need.
80%

51%
58%
Most companies
don't use my
Not all data is the same, of course. personal data in a 68%
48%
Customers are more comfortable when way that benefits me

companies collect first-party data directly

from their platforms (such as website
44%
I'm comfortable with 64%
clicks) than when they source third-party brands collecting
first-party data 39%
data from data brokers.

30%
I'm comfortable with 53%
brands collecting
third-party data 23%

Business buyers Consumers

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2
The Customer
Engagement
Playbook Evolves
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02 The Online/Offline
Divide Narrows as
Revenge Shopping Ebbs Online/Offline Split Evens Out

After the restrictions of early COVID Estimated Share of Customer Interactions Taking Place Online
lockdowns, customers rushed back to 60%
brick-and-mortar establishments in 2022. 60%
This reactive zeal, commonly known 56%
52%
50%
as "revenge shopping," is now giving 40% 49%

way to equilibrium, with engagement

evenly split between online and offline
channels. Customers anticipate a slight 20%
bump in their online interactions in
2024, resuming the shift to digital
channels that was underway before the 0%
public health emergency. 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
projected

Regardless of where they engage,

customers expect companies to meet
their needs all the same. Customers Who Prefer to Engage Digitally

Total
74% of customers expect to 53%

be able to do anything online Baby boomers 38%

that they can do in-person or Gen X 54%

by phone. Millennials 65%

Gen Z 61%
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SPOTLIGHT:
Retailers Elevate
Store Experiences
Digital transactions are on the rise, but
brick-and-mortar stores remain critical to Physical Shopping Delivers Instant Impact
driving shopper engagement. Retailers
are adapting and optimizing the store Top Reasons to Shop in a Physical Store
to remove friction for shoppers and
1 To get merchandise immediately
delivering experiences that will set them
apart from competitors. 2 To touch and feel the merchandise

Today, many retailers that carry highly- 3 To avoid shipping fees for purchases
considered or technical merchandise
4 To take advantage of in-store discounts
already deliver high-touch service,
reminding shoppers about the benefits 5 To enjoy the shopping experience
of going to a store in person. Retailers
are exploring additional services and
experiences that differentiate their store
experiences from the competition. From Retailers Level Up Store Services
personal shopping to holding blowout
events with exclusive products and deals, Retailers Plan to Implement Value-Added Services
these encounters build loyalty by helping
customers feel recognized, understood,
59%
and appreciated. 51% 50%
45% 43%
40% 44%
36%

9% 7% 11%
5%

Data on this page comes from Salesforce's Appointment Space for events Augmented reality Virtual stylists
Connected Shoppers Report, Fifth Edition. scheduling (e.g., virtual try-on)

Currently offer this Plan to offer No plans to offer

 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 14

02 There’s a Time and

Place for Each Channel
Customer Engagement Is Decidedly
On average, business buyers engage Omni-Channel, Including Across Social
with companies across 10 channels,
while consumers typically use eight. How Channels Used to Engage with Companies
customers decide which channel to use
Email 93%
depends on where they are and what
they’re doing. Phone 88%

71% of customers prefer In-person 86%

different channels depending Mobile app 76%

on context.
Online chat 72%
Social Networks for
Facebook is the most popular social Engaging with Companies,
Online portals 70%
platform for brand engagement Ranked by Popularity
worldwide, though top platforms vary Text/SMS 66% 1. Facebook
greatly by region. For example, WhatsApp 2. WhatsApp
is the leading platform in Germany, India, Messenger apps 65%
3. YouTube
Italy, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Online knowledge bases 65% 4. Instagram
Africa, Spain, Switzerland, and the United
5. Twitter
Arab Emirates. Social media 64%
6. TikTok
Online communities 49% 7. WeChat

Video chat Base: Customers who have used social

48%
media to engage with companies.
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SPOTLIGHT:
Tougher Sales
Cycles Raise Business Buyers Who Say the Following About Their Company’s Procurement Process
Standards of B2B My company is more careful about
spending money than before
78%

Engagement My company extracts maximum value

from every purchase 76%

B2B sales cycles have lengthened as

There are more stakeholders involved in
the number of stakeholders grows and purchase decisions than before 68%

budgets come under scrutiny. Companies

are focused on extracting maximum value Sales cycles are longer than they used to be 58%

from every purchase, and 69% of

My company purchases fewer products/
50%
sales professionals say selling is services than before

increasingly difficult.*

B2B customers expect sales

representatives to act as trusted advisors,

86%
taking the necessary time to understand
their goals. However, close to three
of business buyers are but
59%
quarters of business buyers say selling more likely to buy if say most sales reps
don’t take the time to
companies understand
relationships feel transactional, lacking their goals understand them

desired depth and personalization.

63% of business buyers say

most customer experiences
fall short of what they know
is possible.
84%
of business buyers
but 73%
say most sales
expect sales reps to interactions feel
act as trusted advisors transactional

*Salesforce State of Sales, December 2022.

 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 16

02 Customers Prefer
Self-Service When
the Task Is Simple Self Service Is Preferred — When It Works

While assistance is crucial in complex Customers Who Agree with the Following
cases, for simpler issues, customers Total 52%

61%
generally prefer the convenience of self- I would rather 61%
use self-service
service tools like account portals, FAQs, for simple issues 68%
and chatbots. This is particularly true for 64%
digital natives — i.e., millennials and Gen Z.
72%
I wouldn't use

68%
Self-service tools do require thoughtful a company's 68%
chatbot again
implementation, though. Case in point: if I had a bad 64%
over two-thirds of customers won’t use experience 64%
a company’s chatbot again after just one
Baby boomers Gen X Millennials Gen Z
negative experience.

72% of customers have

used self service portals, Extent to Which Brands Make Information Easy to Find
and 55% have used
self-service chatbots. Favorite brands 27% 50% 21% 3%

Most companies 16% 43% 34% 6%

Always Often Sometimes Rarely or never

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02 Human Assistance
Is a Differentiator
Human Connection Prized as Customer
Nearly half of customers — including Service Grows as a Differentiator
three-fifths of millennials — are willing
to pay extra for better customer service, Customers Willing to Pay Extra for Better Customer Service
underscoring the importance of
customer experience even in an age 59% Total
46% 48%

47%
of price sensitivity. 35%

Most customers now expect instant

Baby boomers Gen X Millennials Gen Z
responses upon contact. A challenging
task for service teams to scale, this is a
prime case for a premium offering. Instant
responses are a competitive differentiator, Extent to Which Brands Make It Easy to Reach a Human
as even favorite brands fail to consistently
Favorite brands 22% 40% 29% 9%
make a connection between customers
and agents fast and easy. Most companies 15% 36% 34% 14%

77% of customers expect

Always Often Sometimes
to interact with someone Rarely or never

immediately when they

contact a company.
 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 18

02 Service Experiences
Spur Purchases
and Advocacy Great Service Drives Repeat Purchases,
Advocacy, and Even Forgiveness
Companies that prioritize good customer
service don't just grow their reputation — Customers Who Say the Following

they grow their business.

88% of customers say good 85%

customer service makes them 77%
82%

more likely to purchase again. 74%

71%
68%

Quality service influences purchasing

decisions, earns forgiveness, and leads
to word-of-mouth referrals. Investing in
service yields benefits beyond improving
attrition rates. This is particularly true with
business buyers, a population with large
deal sizes, which makes it critical to get
customer service right.
75% 75% 71%
of customers forgave of customers recommended of customers made
a company's mistakes a company based on purchase decisions based
after receiving excellent excellent customer service on customer
customer service service quality

Business buyers Consumers

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02 Proactive Service Is
Rare and Prized
Customers Carry the Burden of
Increasingly, customers expect companies Service on Their Shoulders
to deliver proactive customer service
rather than relying on them to file
the initial case. However, while most
customers expect companies to anticipate only

their needs, they generally find customer 53% 33%

service is reactive by nature. 73% of customers but say most
expect companies
companies
to anticipate their
Across the board, customers spend address service 29%
needs
issues proactively
significant time and energy getting service 47%
issues resolved. When agents are unevenly 48%
trained and equipped, customers can feel
Business buyers Consumers
getting good service depends on luck.

14%

25%

66%
of customers
say getting good
Amount of Customer
71% customer service Effort to Get Cases
65% depends on being Resolved
matched with the A lot of effort
right agent
Moderate effort

Little effort
61%

Business buyers Consumers

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02 Companies Struggle to
Provide a Connected
Customer Experience Consistency Does Not Match Expectations

Customers value consistency across Customers Who Agree with the Following
channels, devices, and departments.
However, consistency is not the norm,
and many customers find themselves
repeating information to different
representatives — a sign of
79% 56%
often have to
of customers expect but repeat or re-
siloed information. consistent interactions
explain information
across departments
to different
representatives
Ultimately, poorly integrated technology
and processes leave 55% of customers
feeling like they generally engage with
separate departments rather than
holistically with one unified company.

Consumers’ #1 frustration with

organizations is disconnected
experiences.* 70%
of customers
55%
say it generally
expect all company but feels like they’re
representatives communicating
to have the same with separate
information about departments, not
them one company

* "Personalization, Data Security, and Speed Drive Customer

Loyalty Amid Uncertainty — Salesforce Research," Salesforce,
January 19, 2023
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 21

3
The Trust Gap
Widens as AI
Goes Mainstream
 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 22

03 As Companies
Embrace Generative
AI, Customers Consumers, Business Professionals Split on Generative AI
Remain Cautious Customers Open to the Use of AI to
Improve Their Experiences
Seismic and quickly advancing, generative 69%
AI has captivated the world, creating new
53%
2022 82%
content like text, imagery, and video from 65%
large language models. of customers say
72%
generative AI will
help companies
As companies focus on efficiency, better serve
56%
generative AI promises time and resource customers
2023 73%
savings by scaling content creation. Six 48%
51%
in 10 desk workers use or plan to use
generative AI.*
Total Business buyers Consumers Business buyers Consumers

While most customers are open to AI, that

sentiment has dipped since generative
AI burst onto the scene. Compared to Professionals Who Say Generative AI Will Help Companies Better Serve Customers*
consumers, business
84%
buyers are more confident that 79%
70%
generative AI will improve customer 62% 61%

experience — a perspective shared by

those employees on the frontlines of
customer engagement. IT Commerce Marketers Service Sales
professionals professionals professionals professionals professionals

"61% of Workers Embrace Generative AI, but Lack Trusted Data

and Security Skills," Salesforce, June 12, 2023
 SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 23

03 Generative AI Evokes Curiosity Above All

Generative AI’s promises — and risks — are still taking shape in customers’ minds. Curiosity is consistent across the board
but subsequent sentiments vary depending on age.

Millennials and Gen Z — generations that came of age with the Internet — are more excited by generative AI, while older
generations are more suspicious.

As younger generations gain influence in the market, attitudes towards the technology may warm.

Top 5 Sentiments About Generative AI by Age Group

1 2 3 4 5

Baby boomers Curiosity Suspicion Anxiety Hope Fear

Gen X Curiosity Suspicion Hope Anxiety Excitement
Millennials Curiosity Excitement Hope Suspicion Anxiety
Gen Z Curiosity Excitement Hope Suspicion Anxiety
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 24

SPOTLIGHT:
The State of
Customer Trust
51% Consumers
of customers say
A baseline of trust is necessary for they generally Business buyers
67% trust companies
business transactions to take place.
However, trust is complex and
multifaceted: a customer can, for instance,
trust a company’s product quality without 47%

trusting its environmental commitment.

Many customers trust companies to

respect their privacy and be truthful, but
only half say they trust companies in a Extent to Which Customers Trust Companies To Do the Following
Make honest claims
broader sense. about their products 17% 59% 21% 3%
and services
While there is room for companies to
Respect customer privacy 21% 47% 26% 6%
improve trust across the board, one
impactful area is ethical AI. Just over half Use customer
information responsibly 17% 51% 27% 5%
of customers trust companies to use
AI ethically. Tell the truth 19% 48% 28% 5%

68% of customers say Make honest claims about

their social initiatives 15% 52% 28% 5%
advances in AI make it more
Make honest
important for companies to claims about their 15% 49% 30% 6%
environmental initiatives
be trustworthy.
Act with society's best
interests in mind 15% 48% 30% 7%

Use artificial
13% 45% 33% 10%
intelligence ethically

Completely trust Mostly trust Mostly distrust Completely distrust

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03 Customers Stress
Importance of a
Human Touch in Humans Involvement in AI Is Key to Securing Customer Trust

the AI Era Customers Who Agree With the Following

It's important to know when I'm

Most people are concerned about the communicating with AI or a human
89%

implications of generative AI on data

It's important for a human to
security, ethics, and bias. To combat this, validate the output of AI
80%
companies can focus on transparently
Generative AI may introduce
communicating how they use AI, and new data security risks 75%
making clear that their employees — not
technology — are in the driver’s seat. I'm concerned about the 74%
unethical use of AI

For instance, a mere 37% of customers

I'm concerned about bias in AI 63%
trust AI’s outputs to be as accurate as
those of an employee. Accordingly, 81% Generative AI will lead to unintended
63%
consequences for society
want a human to be in the loop, reviewing
and validating those outputs. I trust AI to be as
37%
accurate as a human
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 26

Expert Perspective on Ethics

in Generative AI
What ethical concerns are you hearing when it comes to generative AI?
As an enterprise AI company, the risks we focus on are accuracy, bias,
toxicity, safety, and privacy. And we’re not alone with these ethical concerns
— the public, our customers, and regulators are paying very close attention
as AI technologies rapidly progress. In a recent survey of IT leaders, concerns
around generative AI included security risks (79%), bias (73%), and its
carbon footprint (71%).

What risks specific to customer data do you foresee coming from

generative AI?
At Salesforce, we take a three-pronged approach to mitigating these risks.
First, by ensuring model safety and privacy. Second, we build trusted
feature designs and architecture. And finally, implementing policy and use
case safeguards.

This includes carefully choosing what data we use to train our AI, red-
teaming and assessing bias and toxicity before they impact customers,
and building in risk mitigations directly into our generative AI
technologies. Such mitigants can include ensuring there is a human in the
loop, confidence scores, prompt engineering, safety filters, citations and
explanations, and more.

What can companies do to prepare? Paula Goldman

It’s always been important to collect quality data and ensure transparency Chief Ethical and Humane
Use Officer, Salesforce
and consent in the collection process. But it’s not just about taking data
in. It’s also about what happens to that data once we have it. We protect
the people whose information enables our AI models by ensuring their
data is never left in a repository that can be easily breached or misused.
Companies may need data as much as ever, but the best thing they can
do to protect customers is to build methodologies that prioritize keeping
that data — and their customers’ trust — safe.
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03 LOOK AHEAD:
AI Driven By
Trust & Ethics Factors that Would Deepen Customer Trust in AI

Greater visibility into use 57%

As companies increasingly integrate
AI across their businesses, customers Human validation of outputs 52%
grapple with concerns around responsible
use of the technology. More customer control 49%

When developing their AI strategies, Third-party ethics review 39%

companies can deepen trust by focusing

Additional government oversight 36%
on areas customers define as priorities.

Industry standards 32%

Transparency is the foundation of what
customers want. Over half of customers
Solicitation of customer feedback 29%
say greater visibility into how AI is applied
would boost their trust. Human validation Training on diverse data sets 27%
of AI’s outputs follows closely, just ahead
Public availability of
of increased control of where and how AI underlying algorithms
27%

is applied in their engagement — such as

Other 1%
opportunities to opt out.
None of the above 8%
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 28

Survey
Demographics
SALESFORCE S TAT E O F T H E CO N N E C T E D C U S T O M E R , 6 T H E DI T I O N 29

Survey Demographics
Country Customer Type
Business buyers .................................. 23%
Australia ..................................................3%
Consumers .......................................... 77%
Belgium ..................................................5%
Canada ...................................................5%
Denmark .................................................1%
Generation
Finland ....................................................2%
France .....................................................5% Baby boomers (1946-1964) .............. 27%
Germany .................................................5% Gen X (1965-1980) ............................. 35%
India ........................................................5% Millennials (1981-1996) ..................... 29%
Ireland ....................................................5% Gen Z (1997-2012) ............................... 9%
Italy .........................................................5%
Japan ......................................................5%
Gender
Netherlands ...........................................5%
New Zealand ..........................................1% Male ..................................................... 53%
Norway ...................................................1% Female ................................................. 47%
Philippines ..............................................5% Other ....................................................<1%
Poland ....................................................5%
Singapore ...............................................5%
South Africa ...........................................5%
Spain .......................................................5%
Sweden ...................................................2%
Switzerland .............................................5%
Thailand ..................................................5%
United Arab Emirates ............................5%
United Kingdom ....................................5%
United States ........................................ 9%
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