What Can Bots Do For You?
The COVID-19 pandemic hit us hard in March of 2020. As businesses we scrambled to abide by Shelter in Place and Limited Gathering orders. We closed lobbies, restaurants and universities. We canceled weddings, concerts and events. We rushed to set up remote services and sent our employees home to work. We closed non-essential businesses and factories, laying off millions of people. Everyone was affected in some way, you, me and all of our customers.
Some businesses are experiencing huge spikes in activity while other are experiencing substantial reductions. In both cases, companies looked to automated conversational bots, or virtual assistants, for assistance.
Common Use Cases for Bots
- Basic inquiries (pricing, product information, order status, claim status, balances owed or payment information)
- Creating a transaction such as placing an order, submitting a claim, scheduling a meeting or making a dinner reservation
- Make a recommendation such as which delivery service is best for me, what are the best flowers for my occasion, or should I see a doctor based on my symptoms
- Open a support ticket for issues such as password help, remote system troubleshooting, non-functional product troubleshooting
- Collect information such as survey responses, information on the reason for the contact so it can be passed or routed to the best agent
- Provide training such as videos, documents, or web redirects
- Marketing offers such as promotions, warranty information, up-sell offers and new product feature demos
Bot Examples
I can’t login to my online account
Gartner reports that 20% – 50% of all help desk calls are related to password resets. Forrester indicates these calls cost an average of $70 each.
Password reset is an expensive call. You can expedite resolution and reduce the cost through use of a bot. Authentication policies and password procedures vary; bots are flexible and can be configured to accommodate most processes. See an example of one solution below.
I need to schedule an appointment
Scheduling appointments is common for doctors, veterinarians, insurance, investment services, home repair and more; however, the pandemic has caused other industries to implement “appointment only” visits in order to limit exposure to the COVID-19 virus. There is a rise in scheduling needs for auto dealers, banks, retailers with curbside pick up or deliver, to name a few. Automating the scheduling process should make it simple and easy for your customers. See an example of one scheduling process below.
Do you have an idea or use case for a bot? Contact EDCi’s experts to help your vision become a reality!