How can a chatbot help build a digital-first customer experience?
According to Genesys’ State of Customer Experience report, the number of consumers interacting with customer service through messaging, mobile apps, and chatbot has more than doubled between 2017 and 2021. It comes as no surprise due to the speed of digital acceleration and adoption in the past few years, spurring the adoption of digital solutions. Bots can enhance self-service encounters by lowering resistance and accelerating the resolution process.
Furthermore, bots can also provide triage, respond to simple inquiries, and direct clients with significant problems to the appropriate contact centre professional. Bots can also effectively and quickly respond to FAQs. Additionally, they can manage transactions like address changes and the processing of refunds and have the potential to lower service costs when they perform these duties successfully.
How will chatbot improve customer experience? Why should chatbot be a part of customer experience strategy?
Today, virtual agents have the capability to perform several fundamental human activities, thereby facilitating the evolution of modern businesses. When deployed for businesses, these bots function most efficiently in collaboration with human agents. A virtual agent on the website serves as a conversation starter and the first line of defence for human agents. In other words, a chatbot lays the foundation, but it cannot endure indefinitely.
Bots are becoming increasingly prevalent, though not all bots are the same. Knowing what is expected of the bot to accomplish, how it should look and the knowledge and power available can help implement one that works best for any business. The labour and knowledge invested beforehand determines the efficiency and effectiveness of a virtual agent. As a result, in a market where bots are pervasive, what has already been accomplished and what businesses still need to do before the technology is made available can be a key differentiator.
What are the best ways of rethinking a company’s bot strategy?
Consumer bot usage has increased — from 14 percent of consumers using them for service interactions in 2017 to 34 percent in 2021. However, consumer satisfaction with these increasing interactions has decreased. Only 25 percent of consumers polled in 2021 were satisfied, compared to 35 percent in 2017, which suggests it’s time to rethink the current bot strategy. Here are a few ways to do it:
- Observe the situation objectively to decide whether a bot is required and if it will provide positive change.
- Avoid oversimplifying and clearly define the needs. Think about the requirements for each bot interaction and how they relate to the rest of the CX strategy.
- Overextended bots will struggle to get tasks done well. Using a variety of bots aids in this. Some bots can focus on a single task, such as processing financial transactions, while others can handle several different requests and responsibilities.
- It is important to have a strategy in case a bot fails and leads a customer to a dead end.
- A bot that answers the questions do that by identifying keywords rather than natural language comprehension. Using built-in artificial intelligence (AI) can deliver a smoother, more fluid conversational experience by incorporating chatbot and voice bots into the customer journey.
- Customers desire empathy and a personal connection from service providers. Businesses can deliver compassionate interactions when they include conversational bots in customer journeys.
How does the evolution of AI impact chatbot, and what does the future of chatbot look like?
With AI and automation, organisations can perform real-world activities quickly and effectively. There is a keen interest seen to implement emerging AI technologies due to their immense potential. But, the fundamental objectives remain the same as always: to increase revenue, enhance customer experience, and save costs. Technology has the potential to increase production and efficiency significantly. However, AI is just a superior means to an end in a world where almost anything is possible.
As contact centres implement AI-based solutions to better manage incoming consumer complaints, agents may notice a shift in emphasis toward proactive outreach. As AI becomes more adept at predicting issues, employees will be entrusted with connecting with clients and ensuring that problems are resolved before they arise. This might pave the way for managers to encourage employees to develop more meaningful connections with clients, bringing in more money while improving the company’s reputation.
Furthermore, the change in agents’ roles will enable them to generate creative ideas as opposed to simply following orders. Consequently, both customers and employees will be satisfied.
