How Intelligent Virtual Assistants Can Benefit Your Customers 471 Filed under - Archived Content, Interactions Lauren Spinella discusses the potential positive impact of intelligent virtual assistants (IVAs) across different types of organisation. In an age where technology is constantly improving consumers’ daily lives, companies are also ready for a tech helper. However, the personal virtual assistants that the public knows and loves – Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri – are not in line with what the business sector requires. The answer to business-to-consumer needs? IVAs. IVAs provide high-quality customer care for a wide variety of industries, with the ability to both listen to customers’ inquiries and respond accordingly. Interactions involving IVAs are not limited to basic communication. Customers can request information about their accounts with a company, update their account passwords, and even securely make payments. Most importantly, IVAs are a one-stop-shop for B2C customer service. IVA capabilities can be tailored to various different industries, and can focus on improving the customer experience in that particular industry. Here are a few examples where IVAs can dramatically improve the customer experience. Healthcare and Insurance The healthcare field is dominated by the need to serve millions of customers safely, effectively and, of course, quickly. Gone are the days of waiting in long lines or digging through websites just to find the answer to a simple question. Customers can find out when their doctor’s office is open, fill and refill prescriptions, and receive payment reminders through an IVA. They can even ask an IVA how to enrol in a new or different insurance programme or to provide updates on their personal coverage. Travel and Food For customers booking a vacation or an employee placing a catering order, an IVA eases the concerns of ensuring reservations are confirmed and orders are delivered punctually. IVAs can help find a flight, reserve a seat, and inform customers of any delays or travel alerts that may affect their journeys. Food orders can be placed ahead of time and restaurant reservations made, all with an IVA. Utilities Like the support they provide to other industries, IVAs act as the first line of contact for utilities customers reaching out to customer service. IVAs can answer many of the questions consumers pose, only passing the more complex questions to customer service representatives. They can also alert customers to information regarding their accounts, such as upcoming bill payment due dates or account balance information, as well as information on the service itself, such as updates on outages, necessary repair work, and starting or stopping the service. Overall, regardless of industry, IVAs conserve both time and finances. IVAs save the customer time, perhaps from waiting in line at the pharmacy or from trying to figure out how to place a catering order, and save the business money. Even better, as consumer questions are answered effectively with an IVA, the customer experiences will improve. And yet, there is more to come with IVAs. There are future trends to look out for and challenges companies may face. Author: Robyn Coppell Published On: 14th Dec 2017 - Last modified: 21st Dec 2017 Read more about - Archived Content, Interactions Contact Centre Reports, Surveys and White Papers Get the latest exciting call centre reports, specialist whitepapers and interesting case-studies. Choose the content that you want to receive. Contact Centre Reports, Surveys and White Papers Invites to exclusive Webinars & Events Weekly Newsletter Editor's Pick 21 Tips to Make Your Customers Feel Truly Valued Top 10 Use Cases for Speech Analytics How to Improve Forecast Accuracy 5 Things Creative Leaders Do Differently Latest Resources White Paper: How to Empower Your Agents and Elevate Customer Experience Guide: Work From Home vs Return To Office Upcoming Events Advancing CX With GenAI-Powered Innovation – Webinar Tue 02 Apr 2024 Introducing EnghouseAI – Practical AI for Smarter CX – Webinar Thu 04 Apr 2024 Latest Insights How Did Remote Work Revitalize Collaborative CX? 5 Signs You Need a VoiceBot Featured Articles 21 Ways to Say “I’m Sorry” and Apologize to a Customer for Bad Service The Key Elements of a CX Lifecycle and Ways to Improve It What is Attrition Rate and How to Calculate It The Top 10 Call-Closing Statement Examples Popular Pages The Ultimate List of Positive Words, Phrases, and Sentences to Brighten Your Customer’s Day The Top 50 Words to Describe Yourself on Your CV in 2024 Contact Centre Dashboard Excel Template Alpha, Bravo, Charlie… What is the Phonetic Alphabet and How Does it Improve Call Centre Service? Popular in Category The Threat of Voice Ageing in Voice Biometrics Security How to Activate the Agent of the AI-Fueled Future – Webinar