In 2016, we founded a company called Intelligens, the first virtual assistant for Latin America powered by Artificial Intelligence that communicated with customers via email. We were quite a novelty, and yes, we also talked about Skynet and iRobot. Fortunately, none of this has happened: despite our fears, machines are not going to take our jobs "for now."
What has happened is that these tools have become more specialized, covering more and more aspects of our daily lives. Some studies show that in 2020, 85% of customer interactions are handled through bots. For example, in the automotive industry, scheduling a workshop appointment.
Another important fact is that bots are no longer unfamiliar to us, nor to customers, in fact. 50% of consumers no longer care whether they are interacting with a human or a bot, as long as it resolves their request. This is why companies in Latin America are increasingly adopting these tools, seeking to leverage advanced automation and a better customer experience—one that can now extend 24/7, 365 days a year, taking advantage of the best combination of human + machine.
Over time, I have slightly refined my definition, and after gaining a better understanding of machines, I believe I can share my perspective on what a bot is and its benefits. So...
What is a Bot?
A bot is a conversational tool linked to what we know as artificial intelligence. Chatbots aim to simulate human conversation through an interface that can now be diverse, including email, SMS, live chat, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, voice, among others. It is programmed with pre-written responses that assist and guide the customer toward achieving an objective, progressively displaying replies based on previous customer inputs to help them find what they are looking for. Bots interpret user messages to understand their requirements and subsequently deliver self-service solutions based on the information received.
What Are the Benefits of Implementing a Bot on Your Website?
- Workload Optimization
Bots can handle multiple inquiries, particularly the most frequent ones, simultaneously. This significantly reduces the volume of tickets handled by customer service representatives. Since bots are pre-programmed, they can answer frequently asked questions, freeing up representatives while acting as self-service tools. Prospects and customers do not have to wait for a human representative to get answers. If the information they seek is common, the bot can search a knowledge base or FAQ page to deliver the required information. This allows your team to focus on more complex inquiries that demand greater attention and detail. - Uncovering True Needs
The bot asks the initial questions and can determine when it lacks an answer, escalating only the truly important cases to representatives. When specialized live support is required, bots seamlessly transition the conversation to a human agent. This frictionless, uninterrupted handoff improves the customer experience because they do not have to repeat their request; representatives can simply review the chat history and take over the case from there.
In most cases, bots integrate with CRM systems, enabling more personalized conversations. By accessing the details of previous interactions between the customer and the company, they provide valuable context, making the interaction more personal and equipping the human representative with the necessary details to resolve the issue. Studies show that 72% of consumers expect a company to know who they are, regardless of whether they are speaking to a person or a machine; what matters is that if they reached out last week, that context is preserved. The real efficiency of bots lies in their ability to retrieve this information instantly and make it available to ensure top-tier service. - Automation
Imagine an inquiry arrives at 3:00 a.m.; you likely do not have a representative available to handle that case. Bots can follow up with this customer automatically. In fact, if a customer schedules an appointment for a few weeks out, a bot can follow up via phone call or email to confirm the appointment. Bots can schedule meetings and route cases to representatives with the right skills to resolve them. This prevents inquiries from being overlooked and supports process standardization, ensuring customers are always assisted promptly and accurately.
Bots are not a replacement for the workforce; on the contrary, they are its evolution. Hybrid collaboration between humans and robots is the best combination for achieving coverage, immediacy, and complex problem-solving capabilities—delivering the best of both worlds to your customers.
