Quite a bot!…the positives and negatives of chatbots in service encounters

I badly needed to know the balance on that particular bank account. It was getting late in the afternoon and I needed to urgently authorise a transaction. In times past, I would have just picked up the phone and called the bank to make that enquiry. However, it had been years since I had called the bank on phone. I had grown so accustomed to using the bank’s mobile app for enquiries that calling was really not on my mind. But I needed to talk to someone within the branch and so my next course of action was to find the phone number of the branch.

I knew it was going to be quite a hassle since I did not have the direct number of anyone within that branch. What that meant was that I had to go to the bank’s website, get a number from there, and then call that number, hoping someone would get me a direct number to my branch. I really was not looking forward to going through that stress.

However, while I was contemplating that course of action, it suddenly dawned on me that I was forgetting someone very important—someone who could be the solution to all my problems. She was someone I had established a relationship with two years ago. Incidentally, it was also under similar circumstances. It was also a late afternoon and that day I needed assistance urgently. Someone in the branch suggested I reach out to her. That was how we got in touch that day and I must say, she was most helpful that day.

It was surprising, therefore that I had totally forgotten about her. I recall that she was a slim-built, thick-rimmed bespectacled lady with her hair held up in a bob on top of her head. She wears an African-themed print dress and she uses a similar piece of cloth to tie her hair. She has flawless dark skin. She has a beautiful Fante lady, as I recall. And obviously, she always has a great smile.

On the few occasions, that I have engaged her since that day, she has been most helpful. I instantly felt she was going to be my last resort. I therefore quickly sent her a message via WhatsApp. All I typed was “Hi” and voila, she responded, in a matter of micro-seconds. “Welcome back Jnhalm,” she typed. Then she sent the statement: “To be sure it’s you, click on the link below to enter your PIN” and she duly provided that link.

That link took me to a page that looked like the interface of an ATM. I entered my PIN and I was re-directed to our WhatsApp conversation. Her first statement after I had returned to the chat was “Great. I’ll give you a list of options to select from.”

She then went ahead and sent this message: Please reply with the letter of your choice.

1. Check Balance
2. Transfers
3. Bill Payment
4. Location Finder
5. Loan Services
6. Savings & Investments
7. Account Services
8. Forex Services
9. My Approvals
10. Submit Complaint
11. Chat With Agent

______________

Q  Quit session

I obviously went with the A and thereafter, it was smooth sailing. Within a matter of minutes, I had my account balance. I even went ahead and effected the transaction immediately. My day was saved, all thanks to that amazing assistant.

I guess by now readers would be aware that the “assistant” I am referring to is not a flesh and blood human, but a computer program. But you might be mistaken if you thought for a minute that I was referring to an actual human. Because that is what chatbots are intended to achieve—a perfect mimicking of human behaviour. This is why they are even given human names and other human attributes. When it comes chatbots, the more human, the better.

For many businesses, the chatbot is the first point of call for customers. For some organisations, the chatbot is even the face of the entire organisation. Chatbots might be the ones answering calls or responding to queries online. The truth is that if your call is ever answered after working hours, it could well be a chatbot you might be talking to.

It is therefore not surprising that there has been an increase in the use of chatbots by organisations. Recent studies suggest that 35% of individuals turn to digital assistants to address complaints or obtain detailed information. It has been estimated that the chatbot market is set to expand at a remarkable 23.3% annually, reaching $15.5 billion by 2028.

Their recent increased deployment at the frontline is due to some important advantages. For instance, chatbots offer 24-hour, round-the-clock support. Chatbots do not close and rush home, to avoid traffic.

Chatbots have quicker response times as compared to humans. Chatbots have been found to have remarkably accelerated response times, delivering answers three times faster on average. Additionally, chatbots provide customers with essential information without having to deal with human agents.

Their importance as the first point of calls means that businesses need to get things right when it comes to chatbots. If chatbots are going to become and remain an important part of the customer experience, then it is equally important that the right structures are put in place before the adoption of any chatbot. A business must also look at its customers and be totally sure that the chatbot will be beneficial to these customers before the chatbot is deployed.

Unfortunately, studies do seem to suggest that not all customers are sold on the idea of having to deal with chatbots. A January 2023 Custom Study Commissioned By California-based customer experience software provider, Cyara, found that 50% of customers feel frustrated which negatively impacts their opinion of the brand. The aforementioned study, which was conducted by research and advisory company Forrester, provided some other important details of what customers thought of chatbots.

Interviewing more than 1500 customers who had had experiences with a chatbot within six months before the study, the researchers found that customers genuinely wanted to use chatbots. 50% of respondents prefer to use chatbots when looking for simple responses. 49% of respondents in the study prefer chatbots when they cannot find what they need on the company’s website. When asked about their recent experiences with chatbots, chatbots were given an average of 6.4 out of 10. This was 64%. Although this might not look like a poor score or rating, the truth is that it is not good enough. In a time, when service excellence is the least a customer expects, 64% is not really a good score.

Unfortunately, today’s chatbots are not as sophisticated as businesses and customers alike would like them to be. This leads to chatbots not being able to answer many of the questions customers ask. Sometimes, chatbots are unable to understand the questions being asked.

In a recent study, nearly three-fourths of customers agree that chatbots are not able to handle complex questions. There are other times when chatbots do not give customers the personal touch that a human agent would have given.

One of the key disappointments customers have of chatbots is the inability of these programs to relate customers to their past experiences. Many chatbots are currently not programmed to relate a customer’s current query with past queries or experiences of that same customer.

All these leave customers frustrated. When customers do not get the very best service from chatbots, they discontinue the interaction. Some customers would seek alternatives and might not even return to that particular organisation again.

As the use of chatbots increases, it will be important to deal with issues such as the ethics of humanising inanimate beings. There will also be the issue of how people can collaborate and work side by side with robots. These matters will be very critical to the adoption and continued use of chatbots.

It is important to recognise that much like many other technological advances, chatbots are still advancing. The chatbots we have now and what they are capable of doing is a huge leap from the days of ELIZA, the program developed in the mid-1960s at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Evidently, chatbots are still evolving. The sheer number of chatbots that are being deployed means the evolution would be faster than normal. Developers have no other choice than to put in the work needed to make chatbots increasingly more useful to customers. With the advanced AI capabilities available, there is no telling what tomorrow’s chatbots can do.

On a personal level, I have resolved to chat with my banker’s chatbot a lot more these days. I will not wait till I am in dire need before reaching out to her. It is also a lot more comforting making use of chatbots knowing that I am not alone.

It is estimated that roughly 1.5 billion people are using chatbots. That’s quite a lot! It is further estimated that by 2027, chatbots are expected to become the primary customer service channel for a quarter of businesses. In the meantime, I will continue to use my dear Fante lady to handle the basic challenges I will face in managing my bank account. She is quite a bot!