Chatbots have been in existence for quite some time already, but they are now really making inroads. Since major platforms such as Facebook, Skype and Slack have admitted bots into their systems, the use of chatbots becomes more accepted and accessible. More and more companies are using them for customer service. Gartner has even predicted that, by 2020, 85% of contact between companies and customers will take place without the intervention of a human being.
By using chatbots, companies become accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The response time of a chatbot is also minimal. Chatbots are also making inroads in the Netherlands: the most well-known Dutch chatbots are KLM's bot, which gives customers information about their flights, and Jinek, which informs users about the news.
Two types
In order to avoid confusion: there are two types of chatbots. The first is the 'traditional' bot, which works on the basis of preprogrammed rules. So if a question is put to this chatbot which is not preprogrammed, the bot can't help you. The second type is learning, smart chatbots, on the basis of AI or Machine Learning. The strength and possibilities of this second type of chatbots are increasing all the time.
The ‘human touch'
Not everyone enjoys talking to a bot. There is a debate going on about the extent to which chatbots can replace the 'human touch'. For this reason, chatbots are an interesting subject for discussion in the context of the 'Turing test’. A machine, such as a chatbot, which passes this test is able to mimic human intelligence. Are chatbots going in that direction?
There is no definitive answer to that question for the time being. But there are already functionalities which can bring a chatbot closer to the human touch in terms of customer contact, particularly in combination with AI or Machine Learning. Three aspects which show that chatbots can make customer contacts stronger:
Standard questions and speed
Customer service employees spend a great deal of time answering standard questions. Chatbots are very suitable for taking over these tasks. At ING, it is now possible to provide customers with help immediately if something goes wrong with a bank card while abroad. That takes a great deal more time through the helpdesk. When a chatbot is used, the customer service department has more time to deal with complex problems or questions. This allows them to pay more attention to the human touch when this is really needed.
Sometimes you would prefer a service desk employee to be sitting next to you at all times while you are carrying out a complicated activity for a company. Chatbots make this possible. For example, the chatbot of energy provider Eneco helps customers submit their meter readings. In the same chat screen, customers can submit their readings and get answers to their questions about them. This makes a complicated assignment a lot easier.
This technology is still in its infancy, but thanks to machine learning methods and AI, chatbots are increasingly able to better measure people's moods in conversations, and recognise language. The technology for this is already being used on a large scale. All developers can already make use of this intelligence by getting their software to tap into services from larger players who are developing this technology and making it available, such as