The future is now, and it often feels like science fiction has turned into our everyday life. The rise of advanced technology in artificial intelligence has, in some cases, rendered humans unnecessary. The idea of people aiming weapons at robots trying to eliminate us seems too extreme to take seriously, but machines have already created problems for many. Workers on assembly lines, operators of phones, and calculators (back when this was a human job) from the past would surely agree.

In customer service, there are no major issues ahead. In fact, automated processes have likely helped more customer representatives than they have hurt. After all, software doesn’t deal with human distractions, software is generally great at listening, but it can’t function without the creativity of human service providers. People are learning to enhance their service using these smart machines.

Business Intelligence: The Sky is the Limit

The benefits of direct automation to the customer go far and wide. For instance, the simple fact that conversation logging tools allow for simple referral of existing customer-company correspondence to the agent saves time and frustration. Another direct benefit is the semantic analysis of his question. This tool provides the customer with an answer that’s likely to satisfy him right off the bat. Indirectly, the extraction and collating tools provided with leading automated customer service software enriches the knowledge base of the questions asked and the answers accepted – further enhancing the ability of the company to provide a sophisticated self- service system which grants customer solutions immediately.

On the enterprises, who are, as of yet, predominantly human, naturally benefit from having to employ less first line operational staff and can invest more in hiring the best staff available or in training their current point personnel to reach a higher level of expertise. The most crucial advancement is the insight an automated tool can provide. The best solutions out there have foundations that can be coupled with analysis and reporting tools, allowing the manager to inquire into questions which can assist in both internal employee development as well as the betterment of the customer support service to their consumers.

Permutations of the data that is available to us are only confined by our imagination, bringing us one step closer to a very successful and profitable future. We can definitely incorporate some of the useful ideas from the humanless office into solutions to current problems; however, in the decisions that managers take when shaping up the customer service process, humans are undoubtedly the powerhouses of intelligence.

Accessibility. Engagement. Profit: Step into the future of E-commerce. Find out how with a free nanorep demo now.

The hidden secret is in the merger between these two realities.

The pros and cons of humans versus computers are clear, but the key to success is in the fusion between the two. An automated, online, always-on, multi-language agent contributes to the level of service by providing availability that is comparable to a worldwide-distributed service team that is highly adept in languages; this supports unattended operation – since most businesses cannot afford a human agent around the clock – and reduces costs while increasing the quality of customer experience.

The automated service can provide answers on demand to a huge mass of customers at the same time – for frequently asked, common inquiries. This is not advantageous unless there is a human behind the scenes to:

  • Adapt the generic system to the company’s specified industry
  • Cater to the escalation of issues that are beyond the scope of this resource pool
  • Maintain the system and ensure that it is navigated efficiently to suit the image and mission of the company, as well as the experience of the particular customers

This human can approach the case in a calm, educated, and professional manner after having investigated the documented data from the system, thereby allowing the escalation with the customer to flow smoothly and to reach a proficient resolution. Once this resolution is sealed, this case can be submitted back to improve the FAQ pool, ultimately preventing future problems.

In the end, automation is just a tool in the hands of the support staff and business owner to shape up their service model. The creators of automated systems aim at allowing companies to enhance their business procedures by enriching customer engagement, satisfaction, and general communication. The sustainable ecosystem of computer-man cooperation clearly determines the fact that it is better to make love than war when it comes to the fight of man versus machine.

Optimize your online business with intelligent automated solutions. Learn more through a free nanorep demo.

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% my own.