Chat Self-Service

What Is Automated Self-Service?

In today's highly competitive business market, customer experience (CX) is everything.

As Jeff Bezos said, "We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are hosts. It's our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better."

One way to elevate customer experience is to provide the type of excellent customer support and service people expect — the kind that supports the on-demand world we currently live in. 

This is where self-service automation comes into play. When you empower your customers to help themselves quickly and conveniently, those customers will remain engaged and loyal. Here's how to streamline marketing efforts by using automated self-service technology.

Why Is Self-Service Important?

From Uber to Airbnb, Starbucks to Fandango, consumers are starting to solve their problems whenever, wherever — and they prefer it this way. When people know what they want, they like to achieve those goals with the least resistance possible. For these types of customers who crave autonomy and enjoy using their preferred chat channels, this can make all the difference between the companies they support and those they don't.

When you automate self-service options, you provide customers with the 24/7 instant support they seek. Whether that means choosing flight times and details, confirming an upcoming appointment, or checking the status of an order, customer service automation takes customer experience management to the next level.

What Are the Advantages of Automated Customer Service?

The benefits of automated customer service are vast although they can depend on the type of company and its specific goals. But some advantages are simply undisputed and apply to almost any company.

When best practices are followed, intelligent self-serve support provides faster answers and resolutions for your customers while reducing time-consuming customer inquiries. These benefits can be achieved without sacrificing an excellent experience. Everyone wins, including your team, and that's the best part.

Whether you're implementing an automated self-service strategy for the first time or aim to improve your current conversational commerce strategy, keep goals in mind. The companies that score highest on customer satisfaction are those that focus on customer outcomes and provide proactive support. And although chatbots are becoming increasingly popular, self-service options can include everything from informative blog posts to online communities and forums.

The advantages of automated customer service mean you can:

  • Significantly reduce customer service costs, which is the case across many industries and sectors, especially eCommerce and banking.

  • Improve customer experience and overall satisfaction. The convenience of chat commerce leaves customers feeling happy when they have a great brand experience.

  • Boost sales. By implementing products tailored to your business needs, you can increase customer interactions and transactions.

Examples of Customer Self-Service Solutions

Several self-service solutions are available, including chatbots and voice assistant solutions.

AI chatbots are becoming increasingly popular based on the evolution of artificial intelligence and Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology. These chatbots allow companies to increase their ROI as part of their overall self-service marketing strategy. By encouraging customers to use self-service options, you can help eliminate some of the most common CX challenges, such as inefficient customer service, lack of personalization, and long wait times.

Here are some tips on how to set up self-service customer support with chatbots.

The other most common self-service option is voice assistant technology. Many see this option as the next big user interface for self-service, especially for allowing customers to handle routine tasks autonomously. Many experts agree that voice is the most immediate and natural form of interaction. While focusing on a customer-centric omnichannel marketing strategy, this is certainly an area you'll want to consider. Discover more about the ways conversational technology can benefit your business.

Tips for Success With Automated Self-Service

As a business, your goal is to remain as productive as possible while reducing costs. No matter how large or small your company may be, automated customer support allows you to grow by reducing labor costs while increasing satisfaction for your customers. When implemented well, automated self-service allows your business to scale without increasing your company headcount dramatically.

The best automated self-service options allow customers to choose the next steps based on their unique needs. Some customers want to dive deep into help center articles, whereas others want a quick resolution to a simple problem. Automation helps improve the efficiency of this process while reducing human error. For example, a chatbot can route a customer to the right team or person which, of course, saves time. In cases where the chatbot can successfully answer questions for the customer, your team is freed up to answer more complex questions, address complaints, troubleshoot issues, and so on.

The key is to ensure personalization every step of the way. Data shows that 63% of people will stop buying from brands that ignore personalization tactics. When you find that optimal balance between personalization and automation, that's when you'll benefit most from your brand's self-service automation options.

Take Advantage of Automated Self-Service with Clickatell

Clickatell, a global leader in chat commerce, will help you implement automated customer self-service support based on your company's unique goals and overall digital strategy.

Check out Chat Flow to see how your company can build meaningful conversations through the power of engaging chat experiences right within your customers’ trusted chat app. Chat Desk is another excellent end-to-end chat solution to deliver better customer service experiences. This tool enables live agents to communicate with customers via chat to resolve their issues quickly and conveniently to boost engagement while improving operational efficiencies.

Together, we'll help you find the right solution. Call us today to learn more!

 

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