Raising the bar on chatbot adoption

What will it take to move the dial on consumer acceptance of chatbots?

Kaveer Beharee, CEO at Ubiquity AI looks at what it will take for consumers to consider chatbots the best choice to resolving their issues.

The mass adoption of artificial intelligence technologies hinges on one attribute more than any other: usefulness.

The branch of AI that immediately stands out in its ability to bring companies and governments closer to their consumers or constituents to solve complex problems in a post-pandemic world is that of AI chatbots and their ability to fulfil core tasks, such as addressing customer queries, executing transactions, and providing timely and reliable access to real-time information.

Accurate fulfilment of consumer/constituent queries, great user experience, reliability of service and resolved needs proved really difficult during the various pandemic lockdowns, judging by countless stories of clogged call centres and stories of people unable to get proper advice or help.

As countries struggle to restore their services and move towards a “new normal”, chatbots present a significant opportunity for governments and related service providers. Chatbot technology offers a pertinent way both to improve and automate engagement functions, and enhance relationships, while also dealing with social distancing, reduced budgets and reduced staff, and the many other challenges all governments are having to navigate.

Companies have similar challenges, with uncertain economic circumstances making it hard to plan for fulfilment of customer support in ways that retain customer loyalty and efficient user support.

Commercial chatbots have been around for a few decades now, but despite surveys from Oracle and other tech providers showing significant commercial interest in chatbots, market adoption is low. Poorly-designed chatbots can be extremely frustrating and present major risks, including reputational risk. Conversely, well-designed chatbots will increase engagement, customer reach, save money and execute complex tasks.