Best Practice: The Power of a Digital First Contact Center
What makes a support chatbot genuinely useful — and how do the AI capabilities, system integrations, and escalation paths required to resolve common support requests autonomously determine whether a support chatbot reduces agent workload or just frustrates customers trying to get help?
The operational benefits of support chatbots.
A support chatbot is software that can mimic human speech. It relies on artificial intelligence (AI), natural language processing, and machine learning to understand what people are saying to it, respond appropriately, and get smarter over time. Organizations have been implementing support chatbots on their own websites and apps as well as popular messaging apps, such as Facebook Messenger, mostly in a customer service capacity. Support chatbots can perform functions like answering questions, setting appointments and taking orders.The potential operational benefits are numerous and include the following:
Ability to handle 100s of contacts simultaneously
Support chatbots are an efficient method of customer service because they can handle large numbers of simultaneous interactions, something that would be expensive to scale using live agents. This is especially beneficial for one-off events, like promotions that drive a lot of website traffic.Ability to provide 24/7 support
Not all businesses are equipped to provide 24/7 support with live agents. Support chatbots enable this capability. The bots may not be able to resolve all of the customers' after-hours issues, but they can at least reassure them that a live agent will be able to help them at 7:00 the next morning.Allows agents to focus on more complex interactions
Support chatbots will typically pick off the easier issues, leaving the more high-value contacts for the live agents to handle. This is a more efficient use of labor, plus some agents will love the challenge.Cost savings
Support chatbots automate tasks like making hotel reservations and providing order status. Theoretically, every customer interaction handled by a chatbot represents one that didn't have to be handled by a live agent, leading to labor cost avoidance. Juniper Research predicts that certain major industries will realize combined annual savings of $8 billion due to chatbots by 2022.More consistent chat experience
A support chatbot is never in a bad mood, doesn’t misspell words, and never accidentally leaves a customer hanging, unless you program it that way (wouldn't recommend that, although a cranky chatbot might be kind of fun). Eliminating the human element has its drawbacks, but it also has some benefits. It makes it easier to create a more consistent, branded experience.Related resources
How NiCE can help with your support chatbot needs.
NiCE CXone is leading a new era of Smart Digital Conversations by eliminating traditional barriers to exceptional omnichannel customer experiences with new innovations across your contact center operations. We have partnered with leading chatbot providers in order to provide a holistic, integrated solution for all your digital support needs. Find out more about why NiCE is the right partner for you.Any digital channel
Your customers are trying to reach you for service on digital channels – even if you’re not there yet. How many SMS text messages go to your call center phone number with no response? Who’s trying to find you on Facebook, Twitter, or WhatsApp and not finding you? Now with CXone it is easy to provide digital-first omnichannel service in all the channels your customers expect.- Personalized digital interactions: deliver native experiences in each of 30+ messaging channels, such as rich media, emojis, and other collaboration tools.
- Simple to Activate: pre-integrated channels make it easy to offer to customers and agents.
- Easy to Say “Yes”: simple packaging removes barriers to offering all channels to customers and agents.
Empowered agents
CXone empowers all your agents to deliver a true digital-first omnichannel customer experience by simultaneously combining all customer interactions in one intelligent inbox across multiple digital channels and voice for agents to select ("pull"), while dynamically prioritizing the most time-sensitive or real-time interactions according to service levels ("push"). All delivered in a single application – complete with full customer context, journey history, and sentiment.- Single Interface: one inbox for all digital messaging and real-time (voice/chat) channels – retaining native experience of each messaging platform.
- Agents in Control: ‘pulling’ work in natural flow, while dynamic prioritization maintains SLAs – and prevents ‘cherry picking’.
- Customer Card: full customer context, journey and conversation history, plus sentiment.
Holistic management
With CXone, omnichannel interactions are managed holistically, from agents to supervisors and beyond. Integrated workforce optimization, analytics, automation and artificial intelligence across digital and voice interactions ensure complete management across contact center operations.- Self-Service: native AI-powered chatbot and 20+ DEVone AI bots with seamless elevation to agents.
Intelligent Routing: AI-powered natural language and Predictive Behavioral Routing for voice/chat and digital messaging channels. - Blended Agents: complete quality, coaching, recording, scheduling tools to optimize management and engagement of a true omnichannel team.
- Digital Voice-of-the-Customer: feedback surveys and speech/text analytics that capture, analyze, and drive action on CX insights.