The Role of AI in the Contact Center 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology can help to significantly enhance contact center operations, efficiencies and customer experience by performing actions such as speech recognition, problem-solving, decision and prediction making, real-time feedback, and even using information to learn and adapt to situations. In this blog, we explore the many roles of AI in the contact center environment.

Chatbots
Having an effective chatbot system that can answer frequently asked questions allows contact center agents to focus on more complex inquiries. It’s recommended that your chatbot includes answers to FAQs from the various areas of your business such as:

● Product and stock information
● Shipping and returns
● Billing and refunds
● Account setup/reset
● Hours of operation

Since a many customers use chatbots before calling a live agent to try to quickly get answers to questions, it’s best to make chatbots as effective as possible. You can even integrate them with your contact center systems and let customers set up callbacks.

Improved Routing
One of the most time-consuming and frustrating things for customers when seeking customer support is being routed to the wrong place. This is also not ideal for agents who then must manage frustrated customers. With the use of artificial intelligence, routing can be improved for phone calls and online channels.

Natural Language Processing (NPR) is a technology that can help improve where customers are directed. Rather than having to choose from a set of options, it allows customers to state their inquiry in natural spoken language. This technology can increase the efficiency of Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems and can also be used to assess written information from customers.

If the customer is asking a basic question, the AI can automatically give them an answer. If an agent is needed to answer the question, the customer can be sent to the appropriate department.

Assessing Large Sets of Data
AI can be very helpful when it comes to assessing large amounts of information – which is often challenging and time-consuming. With the help of AI, you can track how data sets, such as ones related to calls, have changed over time. The information gathered can help you to manage your staffing levels effectively. Another way AI can analyze large amounts of data is by identifying how often a phrase is used on a call.

Basic Task Automation

During the process of responding to inquiries, agents often go through routine tasks, many of which can be automated by artificial intelligence to save time. An example of this is a system that can quickly verify a customer’s account before the customer is routed to an agent. Workflow automation using AI is another area that can save time, helping to reduce the number of steps that need to be done manually. For example, some of the steps may be triggered by voice statements, reducing the need for manual data entry.

Real-Time Monitoring
AI can provide real-time contact center monitoring, which is especially beneficial for training purposes.

• When training agents, their actions can be corrected in real-time rather than after-the-fact, which allows them to quickly learn the right way of doing things to avoid developing bad habits.
• You will be less reliant on logs to identify problems.
• It helps to maintain a high level of service and customer satisfaction.
• It allows agents to have more flexibility when communicating with customers because of immediate feedback or suggestions based on information from the past.

Although AI can significantly help to improve contact center operations and customer and employee satisfaction, it is not a replacement for agents, who are necessary for creating connections with customers, demonstrating emotional intelligence, and solving complex problems. To learn more about how AI can help to complement live agent support and enhance the customer experience in your contact center, contact CH Consulting Group today.