[24]7, a customer experience solutions firm, announced that it is launching the [24]7 Virtual Agent solution. As a result of its acquisition of IntelliResponse, a provider of enterprise virtual agent technology in 2014, [24]7’s virtual agent solution will be powered by IntelliResponse’s technology.
Enterprises have struggled to close the gap between their existing disparate and siloed customer service solutions and the seamless experience that customers increasingly demand. [24]7 is responding to these needs by adding virtual agents to its existing integrated product offerings.
[24]7 Virtual Agent is unique in that it is the only solution which combines digital self-service technology and live-agent assistance in a single integrated solution, ensuring that customers who cannot complete their journey in self-service, can seamlessly escalate to a live agent in real-time.
Virtual agents are automated customer service tools that are equipped with the ability to understand the intent of customer questions, using machine learning and natural language processing technology, and deliver the one right answer or ask for clarification in order to be able to match the question to the right answer.
For example, using traditional site search, a question such as ‘How do I pay?’, or ‘Do you take Visa or MasterCard?’ will typically result in a page or more of options that users will then have to read through to identify the most relevant answer. [24]7 Virtual Agent, however, recognizes that each of these questions can be mapped to the same answer –in this instance, the answer to the question ‘What are my bill payment options?’
Unlike search-based approaches used by competitors, [24]7’s unique patented software is capable of recognizing variants in natural human language and turning it into a single core question that is mapped to the one, accurate answer, providing an effortless experience for the customer.
Algorithms can also recommend related questions, based on the original question asked, for a more guided customer journey. For example, if a customer has asked about bill payment options, the algorithm might also suggest how to schedule a recurring bill payment, or how to correct a bill payment error. [24]7 virtual agents can also deliver relevant offers to the customer to enhance the customer service experience.
According to industry analyst firm, Forrester Research, “Organizations are turning to live chat and virtual agent tools in order to keep pace with the ever-demanding consumer. An integrated self-service approach will not only help to improve customer satisfaction, but will also drive faster customer response times, improved agent productivity and increased sales.”
Key benefits of the [24]7 Virtual Agent include:
• Consistently accurate answers that inform consumers, while reducing the costs associated with live channel escalation.
• Relevant offers that seamlessly lead customers down the ‘purchase path’ for greater online sales conversion in real time.
• The ability to build a better, more detailed profile of customers over time, by capturing the voice of customer data in natural language and presenting this data in a highly visual format that enables fast action and decision making.
• Easy and contextual transitions to live-agent assistance when more help is needed.
[24]7’s virtual agent and knowledge management technology offers real-time offer management and customer intelligence tools. The company’s patented virtual agent technology handles over 75 million transactions per year and has over 450 global deployments. The technology [24]7 gained when it acquired IntelliResponse is deployed by top global brands and public institutions, including five of the largest banks in North America.