Pitney Bowes today launched the Converse chatbot platform, which is part of its EngageOne suite of customer engagement solutions.
EngageOne Converse is an intelligent self-service platform that integrates data and location information into leading messaging software to assist consumers seeking chatbot-based customer support.
The platform allows consumers to use their preferred messaging applications to send their queries at any time, not just during business hours. The chatbot can then respond to the conversation directly, guiding customers to specific support pages online or to other support options. Additionally, it integrates with the wider portfolio of Pitney Bowes software and data for additional functionality aimed at enhancing the customer experience. For example, text-based conversations with chatbots can be supplemented with interactive personalized video from EngageOne Video.
"EngageOne Converse is an intelligent, deterministic chatbot platform that allows rules-driven, non-human conversations to take place via the web, mobile applications, and messaging applications, like Facebook Messenger," says Chris Hall, vice president of product management for customer engagement solutions at Pitney Bowes.
"The system evaluates the message sent and its intent and then provides an intelligent response to help customers solve some of their most pressing issues, 24/7, at the time they need it most, and on their schedule—not necessarily during businesses' operating hours or the availability of a call center agent," Hall says.
"What I find to be so special about EngageOne Converse is the level of diverse solutions it can provide to answer customer inquiries," he adds. "It's not just an automated text response. Depending on the original question, EngageOne Converse might offer a video to better explain a complex topic. Or it might offer an interactive PDF to better highlight transactional information. Or it could offer a map so that a customer can visualize the location they're looking for."
Another highlight of the platform is the speed with which bots can be built and deployed.
"When you look at traditional chatbot technology, it's often managed by an organization's IT department. If a change needs to be made, extensive coding and programming go into making the change, which could take days, or even weeks. But when we look at customer service, organizations don't really have time to wait. Customers expect improvements and answers on the fly," Hall says. "EngageOne Converse is a high-quality, low-cost platform that anyone in an organization can use. With easy-to-use drag-and-drop tools, any professional can update the tool to ensure timely and relevant customer needs are met, in real time. We've simplified the process for creating robust, intelligent, automated conversations through consumers' preferred communication channels, and that will ultimately increase customer satisfaction."