Singapore firms lag in phone support as customers still prefer calling for help

A survey found 80% of customers want phone support, but only 9% of companies plan to prioritise it.

A ServiceNow survey found that 80% of Singapore consumers prefer calling a service representative for help, yet only 9% of organisations plan to make phone support a priority over the next three years.

The survey also found that 52% of Singapore customers would switch brands after slow or poor service, with businesses reporting 31% revenue losses and 52% higher customer churn.

Whilst 83% of customers use self-service channels like portals and chatbots, 47% said these systems do not understand their questions.

Service representatives work across an average of four platforms, leaving just 35% of their time to address customer issues directly.

AI adoption has helped improve experiences, with 60% of customers reporting better service quality.

Service reps reported lower administrative burdens at 53% and reduced stress levels at 44%.

The study titled The CX Shift: A study of customer expectations in the AI era was conducted by ThoughtLab in 2025 with 1,485 respondents aged 18 and above.

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