Effects and implementation examples of introducing AI to customer service

Are you considering introducing AI in your customer service operations, but are unsure of which specific parts of your business it can be used in? In Japan, approximately 50% of companies have introduced AI in their contact centers.

In this article, we will explain the current state of AI implementation in customer service, and explain what kind of work AI can be implemented in and what kind of effects can be expected, along with actual implementation examples.

Please take a look at this information as it will be useful when considering the introduction of AI.

Current status and issues of customer service management

Customer service is not just about solving customer problems and providing support, but nowadays it is required to deliver a customer experience (CX) that is tailored to each customer’s needs from before to after purchase.

First, let’s review the current status and challenges of customer service, which is currently attracting attention.

Customer service that expands its scope and attracts attention

The purpose of customer service is to deliver a customer experience that is appropriate for each step of the process, from before purchasing a product or service to after using it. These days, consumer expectations are high, and companies need to provide a better customer experience and improve customer satisfaction to increase their competitiveness.

Rather than simply providing appropriate answers and support, the content and quality of support is being questioned as part of the customer experience related to products and services.

To this end, many companies are increasing their investment in customer service to meet ever-changing needs. This will help you differentiate yourself from others and prevent customers from canceling or leaving your company. The call center plays an important role in this regard.

Customer service management challenges

An important aspect of customer service is customer success, that is, leading to customer success and customer satisfaction.

However, as we operate customer service services that are expanding in scope, we are facing challenges such as a lack of manpower and the resulting lack of training for human resources.

It is difficult to solve the problem simply by resolving the labor shortage, as there may be differences in the knowledge of operators, or incorrect knowledge may be delivered to customers, leading to further complaints.

Current status of AI implementation in customer service

Nowadays, AI is being used in services and operations to support operations. In Japan, the introduction of AI is relatively advanced, mainly among major companies and manufacturing industries. However, from a global perspective, Japan is lagging in the introduction of AI. According to a survey by Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting , the AI ​​implementation rate in Japanese companies’ contact centers is 50%. The introduction of AI in customer service, not just contact centers, is expected to continue in the future, so it is important to understand examples of its introduction and its effects.

Examples of customer service operations that can be realized with the introduction of AI

We will explain the content that can be supported by introducing AI in customer service operations.

Telephone support

The first example of customer service work that can be handled using AI is telephone support. For example, you can accept reservations, apply for services, receive primary calls, and request payments over the phone. Using voice recognition AI, you can respond to calls as if you were talking to a human.

AI converts what the customer says into text and analyzes the content. It then selects an appropriate answer from the sample answers provided and answers on behalf of the operator. This reduces stress by shortening waiting times and enables 24-hour reception, leading to improved customer satisfaction.

Reception work

AI can also be introduced to reception work that is performed face-to-face. Recently, an increasing number of companies are using AI to handle hotel receptions instead of humans. For example, at hotels in tourist destinations, there was a long check-in line at the front desk, which took a long time, but by using AI facial recognition, check-in can be done smoothly.

support

AI can also be used to provide support to customers. Install an AI chatbot on your website so that you can make inquiries at any time and send appropriate answers to your customers based on pre-prepared scenarios. You can change smartphone price plans, change subscription plans, and perform various settings and troubleshooting for home appliances and devices.

sales forecast

Sales forecasting by customer service can also be done with the introduction of AI. It learns past sales data and communication content with customers and makes sales forecasts based on that data.

By identifying factors that affect sales based on past data and making sales forecasts, you will be able to adjust purchasing quantities and carry out promotional activities for customers.

Expected effects of introducing AI

There are many business examples of AI implementation, which supports customer service operations. I will explain the four main effects of this.

Improving productivity and resolving labor shortages

The first effect of introducing AI is improving productivity and resolving labor shortages. By automating tasks, work hours can be shortened or reduced, increasing productivity. Existing personnel can be freed up to perform other tasks, reducing the need to hire additional personnel.

Reduced human error

The second effect of introducing AI is the reduction of human error. As explained at the beginning, customer service is a broad field and requires a large number of people. If people try to solve this problem alone, they will make many mistakes. By introducing AI, employees can work for long hours and help employees with their work.

Advanced analytics and predictions

The third effect of introducing AI is the ability to perform advanced analysis and prediction. Using machine learning, we can combine and analyze purchasing patterns, trends, and seasonal factors among a large number of product lineups, making it possible to make highly accurate sales predictions that take into account external factors that affect sales.

They can also play a marketing role in devising effective ways to approach customers based on these predictions.

Expanding customer service

By introducing AI, we can expect to expand customer service. We can provide 24-hour support and multilingual support, which is difficult to do if you only have enough personnel. This also helps improve the quality of customer service.

Examples of AI implementation in customer service operations

There are various types of AI. We will explain each implementation example.

Achieved customer satisfaction of over 90% with introduction of AI chatbot (TEPCO Energy Partner, Inc.)

TEPCO Energy Partner, which is conducting company-wide DX promotion initiatives with the themes of “strengthening sales capabilities” and “improving operational efficiency,” has developed an AI chatbot to reduce incoming calls at call centers and improve response efficiency.

is being introduced. We were having issues with customer satisfaction with our FAQ page and system, so we switched our phones to Amazon Connect and linked Zendesk’s interactive AI chatbot to enable flexible responses.

As a result of the introduction, the number of tickets received via the chatbot is approximately 15,000 per day, and the number of tickets received by operators via chat is approximately 1,500, resulting in a rapid increase in chat usage and customer service satisfaction of over 90%. It has risen.
Reference: ITmedeia Business

One-stop AI support reception (Sompo Japan Insurance Co., Ltd.)

Sompo Japan Insurance operates a call center for receiving accident support. In the non-life insurance industry, a drop in response rate can be fatal, but call centers were flooded with calls during disasters, and there were many complaints that calls could not be answered.

To respond to a large number of inquiries, we are using NTT Communications’ COTOHA Voice DX Premium as our conversational AI. This is a system that uses AI to automate not only the reception work but also a series of derivative and subsequent work such as recording the contents after the reception and business processing.

We are now able to accept 3,000 requests per hour, reducing operator workload.

Started operating an in-house developed AI chatbot (Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.)

In August 2023, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical launched an in-house AI chatbot called “kAIbot,” which it developed in-house using Azure OpenAI Service provided by Microsoft Japan, targeting all 3,200 employees in Japan, including group companies. announced that it would begin operation.

It was developed to use AI technology to quickly respond to changing trends and increasingly diversifying customer needs. Google Chat, which you use in your daily work, can be used to generate ideas for new products and improve work efficiency.

summary

There are various types of AI implementation in customer service operations, and it can solve common problems such as improving internal productivity, resolving labor shortages, and automating tasks that are dependent on individual employees.

In this article, we have explained examples and effects of introducing AI into customer service operations, but the scope of customer service operations will continue to expand, and training and securing human resources will become more difficult than now.

The introduction of this will become essential.
When introducing AI to customer service operations at Tech Farm, we do not just introduce local improvements, but also consider customer success, making it possible to further increase the effectiveness of AI introduction.

If you would like to learn more about implementation examples and effects, please download the materials and contact us.