Smaller customer accounts may remain unaffected by modest Trump tariffs but larger customers would see price increases, says Miika Mäkitalo, CEO of HappyOrNot. For example, if the tariff imposed on the devices sold by his firm were 10%, the total cost for the customer would rise by approximately 5%.
He tells RBI: “Should the tariffs be significantly higher than the levels currently being discussed, and small shipments were also subject to tariffs, we would consider initiating assembly and production in the US.”
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The chances are, that if you have visited a major retailer, hospital or airport in recent years, you will have used the ubiquitous and instantly recognisable smiley-faced feedback technology supplied by HappyOrNot, the global leader in micro-feedback.
And now HappyOrNot has launched new AI-powered open feedback capabilities in order to help business better understand their customer feedback, in the age of big data. The new features, Spotlight & categories powered by HappyOrNot AI, allows businesses to instantly summarise and categorise customer feedback, transforming large volumes of unstructured data into clear, actionable insights.
The introduction of AI-driven data sifting will enable companies to better understand their customer feedback data, and effectively implement changes and action strategies in real-time, improving service quality and customer experience in the process.
So after a period of sustained growth, interrupted only by the Covid period challenges, the last thing that the Finland-headquartered firm needs is the imposition of tariffs.
‘Clouds in the sky-nearly 50% of our business is in US’
“After the pandemic, many businesses realised that investing in customer experience is the key for their success, and therefore every quarter we’ve been increasing our business after the pandemic. Things are looking quite positive. Now, clearly there are some clouds in the sky. Nearly half of our business is in the US.
“Should the tariffs become come into force, there’s an impact on us and currently, of course, the details are still open. But if the tariff was to be 25% on physical goods like we have, then of course, customer prices would go up.
“Clearly this is something we are carefully watching and then considering actively, what are some of the coping strategies we could put in place to mitigate the maximum impact of tariffs. The worst-case scenario is a trade war-that is not good for the economy.”
AI-powered open feedback capabilities to deliver faster, smarter customer insights
On a much more positive note than the threat of tariffs, Mäkitalo is understandably excited about the potential that AI can deliver to the firm’s prospects.
He says that unstructured feedback has long been a blind spot for businesses, making it difficult to pinpoint exactly what needs attention. By applying AI-powered open feedback capabilities, HappyOrNot is making it both easier and faster for companies to turn raw comments into concise summaries and meaningful actions, invariably helping them to improve customer satisfaction and operational efficiency, and boost revenue and income as a result.
“We’ve seen the first small steps of AI really benefiting and impacting businesses and consumers. I think this will be a massive landslide. We will see in the coming years how AI is shaping how companies operate and how consumers behave. There is a lot of hype, but I think in the next quarters and years, we will see really tangible solutions coming in play. We will start seeing the great benefits of AI driven applications and how it’s helping consumers and businesses.”
