According to data released by digital support experts, Helpshift, customers may be ready to embrace the power of AI, machine learning, and chatbots within the customer service experience. Their survey of over 2,000 Americans found that while people generally prefer dealing with a person, over communicating with a robot, they do appreciate bots that can help them solve their issue more quickly.
We caught up with the new CEO behind the Helpshift brand, Linda Crawford, to get her thoughts on the findings of the latest research, and learn a little more about Helpshift as an upcoming brand in the world of UC.
A Bit About Linda Crawford, and Helpshift
CEO Linda Crawford has only been working with Helpshift for about three months now, after starting her position on the 5th of September. However, that doesn’t mean she’s not full of useful information about the company. I asked Linda to tell me what Helpshift offers its customers in the era of customer experience.
“We provide a message-based user interface for the consumer service market that works across countless channels, including phone, in-app messages, mobile web messages, and mobile desktop. Today, we feel that nobody wants to email a brand or call the centre anymore if there are other options available. Our message-based interface gives companies a way to interact intuitively with customers through AI and chatbots.”
Though many companies are already aware of Helpshift’s mobile app platform, the brand only recently released “Web chat” into the marketplace, an AI offering that gives businesses the chance to scale their communication strategies across an omni-channel approach. Already, Helpshift is helping companies like Microsoft, Virgin Media, and Viacom manage customer experience.
Why Are We Now Welcoming Chatbots?
I was interested to find out what prompted Helpshift to conduct research into the potential of chatbots and machine learning for customer experience (CX). Linda told me:
“There’s a tremendous amount of hype around chatbots today. Brands love them because they can reduce the costs of serving a customer, while simultaneously improving the engagements they have with those customers. This technology is changing the way services are delivered.”
“At Helpshift, when we think about chatbots, we’re thinking about how there needs to be a seamless connection between the bot, the human agent, and the customer. We wanted to do some research to find out if people really understand what chatbots are, and how they feel about them in customer service.”
Helpshift’s research uncovered some pretty interesting findings. For instance, out of 2,013 respondents, 75% said they enjoy using chatbots when it makes the customer service process more efficient, while 70% they were happy to interact with chatbots if it meant solving their problems faster.
Tell Us About the Survey Respondents
Of course, one factor to be aware of is that there are different generations to consider in the marketplace today. The response that millennials have to the chatbot revolution might be very different to the opinions of their counterparts in Generation X. Linda told me that they tried to survey widely across the general population, and millennials were included in the mix.
Interestingly, many of the respondents surveyed weren’t always initially aware of what was meant by the term “chatbot”. Many assumed that the word was used to refer to bots that came to them on a platform and offered help, rather than bots they could interact with as part of the customer service process.
Overall, more than half of the respondents—65% of the millennials—said that they want chatbots in the service process if it means giving them better, more efficient experiences with a brand.
So, It’s Not About Personal Attention, But Speed and Convenience?
Ultimately, the results of the survey seem to suggest that customers are happy to work with chatbots if it means resolving problems faster.
“A bot can ask you the questions that a company needs to move you through the service process faster, and deliver a more efficient solution to problems. This basically replaces the IVR process, and makes customers feel like they’re getting better service.”
Of the respondents surveyed:
- 75% were happy to use a chatbot to speed up customer service
- 73% would use a chatbot if it meant getting an agent on the phone faster
- 71% would work with chatbots to resolve issues more quickly
- 70% would use chatbots if it meant they didn’t have to call customer support or send an email
- 67% were happy to use chatbots if it meant they could spend less time explaining a problem
The survey also drew attention to the fact that Americans appreciated the 24/7 nature of chatbots and the fact that they could connect with a brand whenever they needed something.
Will the Call-Based Contact Centre Start to Fade?
As solutions like Helpshift’s make it easier for companies to improve the customer experience through instant chat, it’s worth thinking about whether the UC environment will begin to see an end to the “call-based” contact centre. Linda told me:
“We believe that chatbots will make a huge impact on the call centre over the next two years. It’s something that’s coming quickly, and the question for a company to answer is what they’re going to do with that information. Do you choose to take advantage of the technology to solve more complex problems faster, or do you spend extra cash on training your service agents instead?”
Since most Americans and customers around the world would prefer to avoid contacting customer support wherever possible, it’s safe to say that chatbots do have the potential to bridge the gap when it comes to improving customer experience, and enhancing support for both consumers, and agents alike.
According to Helpshift:
“If a brand can embrace the advantages that AI and chatbots provide, then they can engage with their customers on a deeper level, and cut costs at the same time. This could be the end of the old-fashioned IVR, and the beginning of a new age of faster, more efficient, and more reliable customer service.”
