Chatbots can be both a blessing and a curse. They can help in assisting customers when all human agents are busy. They're also available 24/7. Chatbots can cut down on costs as human agents aren't needed when they're helping customers.
However, their responses are only as good as the platform they are running on and their input. That might seem subtle, but it can mean the difference between a customer sticking with your brand or getting frustrated and seeking out a competitor.
A January 2023 Forrester report found that 38% of customers said their overall chatbot experience was negative. 66% said their question was outside the scope of what a chatbot can help with. 48% walked away feeling as though the chatbot didn't help them.
Clearly, chatbots have limitations. Some companies don't recognize this and try to leave their customers chatting with chatbots for as long as possible. This sends customers down constant mazes where the chatbot just throws the customers' questions back to them or provides some generic, useless response.
Instead, companies should be quicker to intervene with human help. When intervention is needed greatly depends on how well the chatbot has been trained. More expensive, sophisticated platforms allow for better-trained chatbots that can be useful. But even with the most advanced chatbots, automated conversion will always have limitations over a live person.
When used with the right mix of chatbot responses before a human agent takes over, chatbots can help strengthen a company's brand. A well-trained chatbot can set off hours expectations so that customers can still get help but understand that not every request can be handled by the chatbot.
With artificial intelligence, chatbots have improved from just a few years ago. But companies still set expectations too high for these bots, believing that they can handle the majority of customer requests when in fact, they are only frustrating customers. The right balance between chatbot and live agent intervention can be difficult. But those that find this balance are generally ahead of the competition.
Let Us Know What You Thought about this Post.
Put your Comment Below.