Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation are playing a greater role in contact centers than ever before by empowering teams to be more productive and creative, streamlining workflows, and enhancing consumer interactions. This is particularly true following the rise of generative AI tools, frequently referred to as “Copilots”.
AI Copilots, such as those developed by Microsoft and Salesforce, are a prime example of the impact that intelligent tools can have not only on the customer experience, but on the performance of contact center employees as well. Companies of all sizes are using these conversational AI tools to boost team productivity, engagement, and efficiency.
Here’s what companies can expect from the rise of C in customer service.
What are Copilots in Customer Service?
AI Copilots are bots that act as intelligent coworkers or assistants for contact center employees. They combine conversational AI abilities, such as natural language processing, with machine learning and large language models.
So what’s the difference between traditional chatbots and AI Copilots? “The difference is really in scale,” explains Chris Bardon, Chief Software Architect at ComputerTalk. “Unlike traditional chatbots, large language models are able to at scale and without specialized training.”
Copilots have a variety of use cases in the customer service landscape. They can be used to provide real-time coaching to employees,
Essentially, working with an AI Copilot is similar to having a skilled assistant on hand at all times, to help you streamline your workflow and deliver exceptional customer experiences.
What to Expect from Copilots in Customer Service
Copilots and similar generative AI tools are becoming increasingly common in the contact center world. However, many solutions are currently in their
Here are some of the ways Copilots can benefit customer service teams within contact centers.
1. More Informed, Efficient Agents
Customer service agents need access to the right information quickly, so they can deliver incredible support to consumers. Unfortunately, sourcing the right information to solve a problem can be challenging, particularly when content is distributed across multiple channels.
AI Copilots can rapidly search through large volumes of information, to provide the right documents and resources to agents while they’re handling an interaction. These tools can draw insights from CRMs and business databases in seconds, and even suggest ways for agents to personalize the conversation. They can also automate the analysis of interactions and provide step-by-step coaching to team members during discussions.
Chris Bardon, Chief Software Architect at ComputerTalk, explains: “In customer service, where interaction handling time is often one of the most important metrics, reducing the amount of time it takes for agents to find answers can be transformative.”
2. Improved Interactions with Customers
Having an AI Copilot on hand doesn’t just empower agents to deliver quicker and more personalized responses to customers. It can also enhance interactions in many other ways. For example, a generative AI solution can seamlessly identify a caller using voice recognition, streamlining the routing process and minimizing support delays.
These tools can also translate languages, allowing agents to fully understand customers from different countries. Plus, they can summarize conversations and highlight action items, ensuring agents follow up with customers promptly.
3. Enhanced Workflow Automation
AI tools and automation are excellent at minimizing repetitive tasks in virtually any environment. In a contact center, Copilots can help boost employee productivity and transform business performance by handling various tasks on behalf of agents. They can summarize and transcribe calls automatically, and instantly source information.
Additionally, they can help with routing customers to the right agent, transferring calls to a live agent, and even take notes during conversations. Insights gathered from generative AI solutions can also help business leaders determine how to manage teams, make the most of internal resources, and even design workflows within contact center software.
4. Unlocking Greater Business Insights
Generative AI is incredible at analyzing data and surfacing valuable insights for business leaders and employees. These tools can instantly surface real-time information to agents during conversations, helping them respond to customers based on their mood, intent, or preferences. They can also automatically generate surveys to collect insights into scores.
AI Copilots can also help business leaders unlock insights into opportunities for training agents and improving their performance. Plus, they can assist in constructing efficient training strategies, materials, and even coaching workflows.
5. Better Agent Experiences
While some contact center agents have expressed concern about AI tools making their roles redundant, the reality is that these tools are here to augment — not replace — human staff. AI Copilots are supportive tools, that can help reduce the number of frustrating and repetitive tasks agents face each day helping them achieve their objectives efficiently.
With AI Copilots, companies can eliminate the complexities that drain employee motivation and engagement levels throughout their workday. They can also provide their agents with a constant source of support, ready to offer advice and coaching even when a supervisor isn’t available. Some tools can even be used to rapidly troubleshoot and address technical issues.
Discovering the Power of Copilots for CX
Artificial Intelligence is quickly taking the contact center industry by storm. Voice bots, speech analytics tools, and chatbots are all having a resounding impact on how agents work and serve customers. Copilots, powered by generative AI, have the potential to unlock even more opportunities in the contact center, paving the way for better customer and agent experiences.
However, like any new technology, these tools need to be implemented with care. Companies need to ensure they’re training their AI bots using the right data, protecting , and remaining compliant with industry standards.
That’s why it’s so important to choose a solution provider that can offer your organization access to innovative tools, without compromising security, customization, and reliability. You can learn more about ComputerTalk’s AI solutions for contact centers by clicking here.
