When customers are looking for answers, they often attempt to try to find the answers themselves before turning to others. In a report by Microsoft, titled the “Global State of Multichannel Customer Service Report”, Microsoft stated that “more than 90% of customers expect brands or organizations to have an online customer self-service offering, and 60% percent say they have a more favorable view of a brand if that self-service offering is mobile responsive.”
One of the greatest abilities AI has to offer is the ability to power intelligent self-service. Through speech and text analysis, AI self-service streamlines the customer’s journey and empowers customers.
One form of AI-powered self-service is Conversational IVR. Conversational IVRs allow customers to use their own words to ask for assistance from an AI that is listening rather than navigating through a rigid IVR menu. Customers can speak freely in their own words while the AI understands their intentions and routes them to the best possible resource. These conversational interfaces can also be used to collect and triage basic information, which can then be passed on to a live agent, further streamlining the customer’s journey.
Another piece of AI-powered technology for self-service is chatbots. Chatbots can be powerful tools when used correctly. Chatbots can save businesses money by triaging simpler customer inquiries and allowing agents to focus on more challenging customer interactions. Bots also provide customers with immediate feedback 24/7 365. With an omnichannel platform, bots and humans can work as one, also known as “blended AI”. A “blended AI” approach breaks down existing silos in the customer experience by providing a seamless handoff from the bot to the agent, boosting the productivity of contact center agents and creating more personalized experiences.
Implementing self-service technology like chatbots and AI-powered Conversational IVRs can have a massive impact on the workflow of your contact center. During times of uncertainty, call volumes can spike, impacting call flow and the productivity of remote agents. Through the use of AI-powered self-service options, call volumes can be managed easily and call flow can be streamlined. Customers can get to the right resource faster and agents can manage their workload much more efficiently. Self-service technology can also create better queue management since callers can be directly connected with the right department and agent rather than wait in line with hundreds of other callers.
Effective, AI-powered self-service requires the right platform and technology. Seamless integration of AI with self-service means having a compatible platform that can handle it. For tips and advice on what the right technology is and how to seamlessly integrate AI into a remote workforce, check out the full “Contact Center AI for Remote Workforces”.
About the author:
Having spent over 20 years selling technology and services to companies like Goldman Sachs, EMC, PricewaterhouseCooper and more, he is passionate about helping organizations achieve desired business outcomes with cutting edge technology and strategy. Certified in Cloud Economics and ROI through AWS and having successful stints at Interactive Intelligence and Genesys, Peter brings a unique perspective to service based companies that are striving to move away from legacy technology infrastructure and processes towards a true Omni-Channel CX model.
