Why your business needs virtual helpers in the customer service space

20 years ago, the first bot generation was invented to make the internet seem more humane, these were in the form of Avatars. They playfully kept users on a page for as long as possible and they "belonged" to marketing. Since then "Generation Chatbot 2022" has evolved significantly. Today, chatbots play an important role as virtual helpers in providing digital customer service across all channels. 

"Artificial intelligence is the key technology for intelligent systems and tools that make up modern customer service in all its facets," says Stefan Grieben, CEO of novomind, who have been AI pioneers right from the beginning. Based on computer linguistic and semantic processes, novomind has been developing, amongst other things, highly efficient FAQ centres and increasingly "intelligent" virtual helpers - from avatars to chatbots. In times of social media and messaging, the use of these virtual helpers have gained enormous momentum. 

Fast and efficient: chatbots provide relief

Diversifying into chatbots within the customer service sector has become a necessity in a world where customer service expectations have grown more demanding. In addition to quality; speed, availability and accessibility have become the order of the day. So why do you need a chatbot in your cutomer service space? 

Firstly, chatbots are always available – around the clock, 365 days a year. A good chatbot can handle up to 80 percent of all incoming service requests with the first contact and without an employee having to intervene. This can be done quickly and easily, while enabling the human agent to take over the chatbot communication at the exact point where the customer is at with his queries, continuing the the dialogue in the live chat.  

This means that the human, service employee can focus on important individual inquiries, while their chatbot colleague keeps focussed on the more standard queries. This relieves the workload and reduces costs. At the same time it enables customer self service which underpins the data from a Gartner study, which states that by 2022, 85% of all customer service interactions will start with self-service. 

The targeted use of modern chatbot colleagues is neither highly complicated nor disproportionately expensive. The prerequisites are standard software, such as novomind iAGENT and an understanding of the chatbot-suitable areas of application in your current business.  

Knowing how and where - intelligent channel use and smart training

The basic rule for the use of chatbots is to keep them focussed on their field of expertise and to have a timely handover to human agents when their capabilities are exceeded. This happens within the framework of a flexible communication platform in which creativity, know-how and AI flow together. From here, the service employee controls the use of tools across all channels. 

Chatbots are capable of dialogue. They conduct longer "customer conversations" and are able to recognise when they don't understand something. They are "trained" by employees to make rapid progress. Good permanent "coaching" of chatbots is therefore important, because this is how they keep improving. 

If a chatbot is well trained, it can assist quickly and efficiently in many areas of application: as a team assistant in healthcare, as a shopping assistant in online retail, on WhatsApp and Facebook, as well as via email or live chat. Almost anything is possible and the use of chatbots are not limited to any specific industry.