Where Experience Leads, Loyalty Follows: Key Takeaways From Zoom’s CX Summit

Now in its second year, Zoom’s annual CX Summit has already become one of the industry’s go-to gatherings – a space where leaders, innovators, and curious minds come together to explore how technology is transforming the customer experience. And this year’s theme was loyalty.

For as long as we can remember, customer experience in the industry has been structured, predictable, and undisturbed. Then AI arrived, and not quietly! Rather like a stone hitting water – sending ripples through every part of how brands now connect and earn loyalty.

Opening the day, Ben Neo (Head of CX for EMEA) brought warmth and humour to the virtual stage, but it wasn’t long before he made his point clear: we’re living through a transformation, and CX will never look the same again.

AI isn’t optional anymore, and it’s already changed the game – with tools such as generative summaries, real-time coaching, and faster onboarding boosting confidence, cutting attrition, and creating something deeper than efficiency: happier customers and stronger emotional connections.

Ben likened it to a Michelin-starred kitchen: the customer sees the perfect dish, while behind the scenes, AI is the sous chef, helping humans deliver something exceptional.

And with that, everyone jumped into a summit packed with powerhouse speakers, practical blueprints, and proof that experience done well doesn’t just retain customers, it turns them into your most valuable advocates.

Let’s dive in.

The Product of Customer Experience Is Memory

Vinay Parmar opened his session with a story: Barcelona airport, and Vinay’s eight-year-old nephew Ryan misbehaving and running circles around his family.

In the midst of the stress, a Jet2 staff member overheard a family joke about checking Ryan in with the luggage. Instead of dismissing it, she joined in – playfully measuring him, printing a sticker, and declaring him a “checked-in item”.

That one moment created a core memory, and just like that, Jet2 earned a family’s loyalty. Not through points or price, but through humour, empathy, and connection.

Vinay learnt one very important thing about CX that day: the real product of customer experience isn’t about a specific process, it’s about the experience.
He also shared these other gems:

Inconsistency kills trust – A single indifferent interaction can undo months of good ones.
Memory drives behaviour – Customers don’t remember the average experience, they remember the peaks and how things ended. Emotionally charged moments leave chemical imprints in the brain (that’s neuroscience).
Trust is the true loyalty engine – Real loyalty comes from consistent care – showing, again and again, that you’re not just in it for yourself.
Break the borders – Vinay urged leaders to get out of their offices and back onto the frontline – to listen, sit with agents, and experience what customers actually go through… because silos suffocate great CX.

In his sign-off, he brought it back to Ryan once again. What cemented Jet2 in that family’s heart wasn’t the policy or the product, it was a story worth retelling.

It became proof that special moments shape emotion, emotion becomes memory – and memory becomes loyalty.

Real Stories of Loyalty and Impact

The next session, hosted by Zoom’s CX AI Lead Laura Ball, brought two very different worlds to the same table: local government and luxury hospitality.

On paper they couldn’t be more different, but the lessons were very similar: whether you’re helping someone through a crisis or welcoming them to a five-star resort, loyalty comes from making people feel remembered, not processed.

From Oxfordshire County Council, Clare Martin and Richard Merritt shared how they’re transforming public service through empathy, not gimmicks.

“Our citizens don’t come to us for fun,” Clare said. “They come when something’s gone wrong… so trust becomes everything.”

Instead of focusing on shiny new tech, they focused on empowering frontline staff to deliver small, genuine moments of care. “It’s not about the tools,” Richard added. “It’s how we use them to make people feel heard.”

Then came Subash Sebastian, Associate Director of Reservations at One&Only Resorts in Dubai. A completely different world, but the same emotional core.

“Luxury guests don’t remember the thread count,” he joked. “They remember how you made them feel seen without them having to ask.”

His team currently uses Zoom AI to anticipate guest needs before arrival, giving staff more time to create meaningful human connections like remembering birthdays, predicting preferences, and personalizing service.

“Technology should fade into the background,” he said. “What guests remember is the gesture.”

Laura wrapped the session up beautifully by saying: “Whether it’s a resident in distress or a traveller on holiday, loyalty comes down to making people feel they matter. AI helps scale that, but the feeling? That’s always human.”

Building a Truly Connected CX

John Aspinall, Head of CX Solution Engineering at Zoom EMEA, kept things refreshingly practical. He didn’t just talk about AI, he showed us.

His goal was simple: to prove what a fully connected customer journey actually looks like when empathy and automation work together.

“The question isn’t what channels you offer anymore,” he said. “Voice, chat, WhatsApp – they should all feel like the same conversation, not different departments. It’s how seamlessly those channels connect.”

John walked us through a live demo following a fictional customer, John Jones, chasing a missing refund. The agent didn’t start from scratch.

AI surfaced past conversations, relevant transcripts, and even live coaching prompts. Within minutes, the refund was resolved, the customer received a personalized apology, and a 20% discount sealed the deal.

“Frustration turned into a repeat purchase,” John said. “And the agent’s already on to the next call, because all the admin happened automatically.”

John then walked us through imagining the same customer’s call after hours. The voicebot could not only recognize him in this instance, but adapt its pace to match his speech.

“The real goal is empowerment for agents and customers alike,” John concluded. “When every channel works in sync, loyalty isn’t a KPI. It’s the natural outcome.”

Five Building Blocks for Delivering Real Value With AI

Finally, Kane Simms, Founder of VUX, came in hot with the last session of the day.

“You can’t walk into a meeting without hearing about AI,” he said, “but talk is cheap. Ninety-five percent of generative AI pilots never make it past testing. The goal is to be in that successful five percent.”

His five building blocks were a reality check for any CX leader chasing impact over headlines:

Design first, tech second. Don’t just feed your process into GPT and hope for the best – every conversation needs purpose, stages, and clear outcomes.
Pick tech that grows with you. Choose flexibility and visibility. You need control over prompts, data, and speed, otherwise you’re locked out of your own system.
Get your data house in order. Eighty percent of AI projects fail because the data’s messy. Understand intent, policy, and process before you automate.
Test, monitor, trace. Every AI conversation can play out differently. You need technical testing, outcome testing, and what he calls “MOT” (Monitoring, Observability, and Tracing.)
Measure what actually matters. Don’t chase novelty. Track how AI reduces effort, drives revenue, and cuts cost – because less than half of customers even believe their issue’s resolved on first contact.

Kane closed with the statement: “AI isn’t a badge of innovation, it’s a discipline. Build it on design, data, and intent, and you’ll create something that quietly and consistently delivers value.”

AI Doesn’t Create Loyalty, Experience Does!

To summarize, Ben Neo reminded us that AI doesn’t replace people; it amplifies them.

Vinay Parmar reframed CX as memory.

Clare Martin, Richard Merritt, and Subash Sebastian showed how empathy scales through technology. John Aspinall demonstrated it live, and Kane Sims gave the blueprint to make it all real.

Together, what they all proved is that the future of CX isn’t about the tools you use, it’s about how meaningfully and memorably you use them.

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