Chatbots aren’t a new concept in the age of customer experience. For years now, they’ve offered companies an easy way to support clients through convenient messaging and self-service. However, since the pandemic, customers have begun shifting drastically towards a more digital world. With more interactions now happening online and over text, chatbots could be more valuable than ever.
Zendesk’s studies found that Global growth in WhatsApp messages across the CX landscape since the pandemic was around 111%. Text, SMS, social media, and chat interactions have all seen significant growth too.
So, what does this mean to the future of chatbots in your business? Should all companies invest more into text-based interactions, and what kind of chatbots will deliver the best results?
The Evolution of the Chatbot
When chatbots first began to emerge in the CX sphere, they were mostly simple tools, designed to respond to basic questions. Companies could use chatbots as a quick way to serve clients who wanted to get answers to FAQs on a website, without bothering a human agent. Although these tools were useful, they were often a little too simplistic to deal with most queries.
Today, however, we have more technology available to transform the chatbot experience. The arrival of conversational AI means that bots with machine learning algorithms can learn from every conversation with a customer and respond more effectively to queries.
The right chatbot technology can efficiently sort through customer questions, and search for information relevant to their needs in seconds. What’s more, these tools know when a call or conversation needs to be escalated to a human agent. In the world of COVID restrictions, where human employees are under more strain than ever, the chatbot is a valuable filter.
Bots can sort through thousands of customers, reducing the number of clients who go through the human interaction stage. At every stage of the strategic, enterprise wide CX landscape, this reduces agent overwhelm and improves customer outcomes.
Chatbots are a Powerful Partner for CX
More than basic question-and-answer systems, modern chatbots and intelligent tools are giving today’s customers more control over the way they serve themselves and get the assistance they need. What’s more, the technology can also assist agents in providing a better overall experience too. Bots can collect information in any conversation, no matter the medium.
This means that when a customer decides to continue their conversation with a human agent, on any channel, that agent can tap into information from previous calls. The result is a more aligned omnichannel customer experience with less repetition, and faster results. Chatbots can contribute to the overall collection of CRM data and insights that drive better, more personalized outcomes.
Some agents can also use chatbots to find crucial information from knowledgebases and internal resources more rapidly, so they don’t have to keep clients on hold for long. Now more than ever, we’re seeing the value of a human team aligned with supplemental AI support. Bots could be the key to a more successful CX journey in the world following COVID.
