A new study highlights how empathy can bridge the customer satisfaction gap between expectations and experience, according to Zurich Insurance Group.

In a new report, “Addressing the Empathy Gap: How human connection can give businesses a new competitive edge,” research revealed 73 percent of consumers avoid businesses that don’t show empathy with almost half (43 percent) taking their business elsewhere when brands fail to deliver.

Developed in collaboration with empathy academic Professor Jamil Zaki, director of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Laboratory, the report examines the role of empathy in business, revealing a growing disconnect between customer expectations for empathy and what they experience from businesses.

Consumers remain skeptical of AI, with 71 percent believing AI cannot recreate genuine human connections and 92 percent reporting they still value direct human interaction over 24/7 availability.

Drawing on a global YouGov survey of over 11,500 consumers across 11 countries, the data shows that consumers deeply value understanding and care, especially in vulnerable moments.

Three in five consumers surveyed (60 percent) said they only used companies that genuinely cared about them and their needs.

In addition, 43 percent of consumers surveyed said they have left a brand in the past due to a lack of empathy and an additional 61 percent would be willing to pay more for a brand that genuinely cares.

Offering a cross-industry view, the report shows that empathy is especially expected in financial services – 88 percent of consumers believe it is important (second only to healthcare providers), yet only 63 percent agree the industry is genuinely empathetic.

“In today’s world, empathy is key to shaping customer experience,” said Conny Kalcher, group chief customer officer. “Organizations need to embed genuine human connection as a foundation for trust, loyalty, and sustainable growth. Through empathy, businesses can gain a competitive edge and build lasting customer relationships.”

Embracing empathy as a learnable skill and embedding it into operations can help build resilient customer relationships, Kalcher added.

Key recommendations from the report include:

• Strategically integrate empathy as a central part of business strategy, treating it as essential to long-term success rather than just a gesture.
• Invest in bespoke training which is tailored for both the market and the business function so frontline employees can genuinely understand and respond to customer needs.
• Ensure leaders model empathetic behavior and track its impact as a key performance indicator.
• Blend technological efficiency with authentic human interaction – use AI to support, but not replace, personal engagement in customer interactions that matter.
• Integrate empathy into daily operations and company culture, making it a foundation for all business activities.

Zurich’s global empathy training reveals that despite 45 percent of consumers believing empathy can’t be trained, its program proves otherwise.

Created with Be Human Partnership, 26 percent of the insurer’s global employees have carried out nearly 46,000 hours of training across the UK, Switzerland, North America, Malaysia, and Australia since launching in 2023.

Measurable improvements have been seen, with customer advocacy and loyalty trending upwards.