AI in Contact Centers: New Value From New Processes

Artificial Intelligence (AI) sometimes suffers from a bad rap. Fear mongers will have you believe that the technology will take jobs from human workers or, at worst, further isolate human beings from each other. Yet, AI also offers some of the exciting new possibilities in the ways we communicate and offer service to our customers. The combination of AI in contact centers, along with cloud-based delivery of the technology, is producing new value for businesses trying to understand how AI can help them evolve.

What Value is AI in Contact Centers Bringing Its Users?

Artificial Intelligence (the ability for a computer system to *think* for itself, to interact with a human being more naturally (for us), and learn from its experience to become, well, more intelligent) is moving out of the conceptual phase and into the real world. In contact centers, we're seeing several new options that offer real-world benefits.

Sentiment and keyword detection. Word choice, tone of voice, and more can help determine a caller's emotional state. AI can spot these points well, listening specifically for keywords and changes in tone that indicate emotional states. Having a second pair of ears—even artificial ones—can better help spot an opportunity when it emerges. Additionally, the keyword detection can make sure the agent is presenting the right matter to the caller.

Improved IVR. Improved interactive voice response (IVR) systems, thanks to AI in contact centers, are handling interactions that satisfy customers without the need for human agents. They are also connecting callers to the best possible person in your company to serve the customer's needs. With calls getting routed to the right place the first time, callers are happier that they have fewer hoops to jump through, while contact center staff can take care of problems directly. First-call resolution becomes par for the course rather than a major achievement.

AI as staff. The growth of chatbots—AI-driven systems that can interact with customers via a chat window without the need for a human agent—augment the contact center by allowing you to provide two levels of interaction: the AI handles simple questions like hours of operation, and humans handle the complex issues. This keeps the human staff out of the easy stuff to ensure they're able to focus on what they're better at (handling complex interactions).

Internal analytics. With AI, it's easier to put the data coming from your contact center system to work. By combining those data sets with data from other systems across your enterprise, AI can be used to deliver answers to questions we were once only able to imagine. For example, want to be able to predict whether or not a customer is more or less likely to purchase after talking to your agents? AI can combine call data with eCommerce data to get your answer.

How to Get Help Bringing AI in Contact Centers

AI in contact centers can be a big help, especially when paired with cloud-based solutions. Get help putting this combination to work in your business by reaching out to us at City Communications. 

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