20.03.2019 |
Today, chatbots are already an established part in the digital communication strategy of many companies. Which is often completely disregarded: Using bots for text-only communication holds a huge unused potential. Once the intelligent assistant has been configured, it can also be used for voice interfaces thanks to text-to-speech and speech-to-text.
With the TENIOS VoiceBot Connector, bots can be integrated into TENIOS cloud telephony in just a few steps. This also allows them to answer telephone inquiries.
Service Automation on the phone
The hot topic “Service Automation” is also very popular this year. In the field of customer service, for example, this is reflected in the increasing number of chatbot systems and self-service solutions. According to a study by Unymira, in which 130 experts in the German-speaking region were surveyed, 70% believe that chat and mailbots play an important role within the Digital Strategy in customer service. The launch of knowledge databases for customer self-service is considered to be essential for 90% of the respondents.
But service automation not only works in a text-based way. Every second company surveyed (52%) considers voice control to be an important future topic in customer service. This is where the telephone comes into play: automated processes such as the use of IVR menus to query customer concerns are already established, but the telephone is still regarded as a primary personal communication channel. The use of voicebots could change the traditional call experience, as complete customer dialogues on the phone can be handled in the future with the help of intelligent voice bots.
Bot integration into TENIOS cloud telephony
The TENIOS VoiceBot Connector enables exactly this: Thanks to open interfaces, APIs, the connector enables the linking of TENIOS IP telephony with a freely selectable cloud-based bot engine. The connection of the bot system takes only a few steps. Afterwards, the voicebot can be inserted at any point of the call routing – whether for pre-qualification or to solve the entire issue. An example routing in the TENIOS cloud portal:
The figure shows the integration of the voicebot into the call routing. After the welcome announcement has been played, the caller is forwarded to the voicebot. The big advantage of the integration into the flexible cloud infrastructure: A switch between bot and agent is possible at any time. In case the bot does not know what to do, the caller can be forwarded to a target number that connects the customer with a human employee. This ensures that the customer’s request can be resolved in the call process for sure.
TENIOS currently offers an interface to Dialogflow. Dialogflow is the Google AI and Google Cloud based development environment for human-machine interactions, which is also the basis of the Google Assistant. It integrates Google Cloud Speech-to-Text, Text-to-Speech and Natural Language Understanding (NLU) for the implementation of natural language dialogues. Thanks to continuous streaming, voice transmission between TENIOS and Dialogflow takes place in real time and ensures a smooth flow of the conversation.
TENIOS also provides an interface to RASA. For further information on how to connect the Open Source platform with TENIOS visit this article.
Chat AND Phone: The All-in-One Bot
As mentioned at the beginning: A voicebot for the use in telephone customer service does not have to be new configurated. Existing chatbot systems can also be used for voice dialogs on the phone. In addition to the elimination of new configuration costs, there is a clear advantage in the available data basis: Whether for text-based or voice-based communication – chatbot and voicebot use the same data basis. This is essential in times of intelligent bots, as the assistants are constantly learning thanks to methods such as machine learning and are continually optimizing customer service. As a result, no data silos are created during parallel bot usage. Efficiency and optimization of the bot are even improved by multi-channel usage: The higher frequency increases the resolution rate of customer inquiries and at the same time leads to a higher First Contact Resolution Rate – a development that 35% of the respondents would like to see, according to the Unymira study results.
Another benefit for the multiple use of botsystems: The multi-channel offer. According to Unymira, an Omni-Channel service is a clear goal of the digital communication strategy for 44% of the interviewed entrepreneurs. PIDAS also defined Omnichanneling as one of the top topics in the digital age in the context of a benchmark study last year. By a broad offer of contact channels also a broader (age) target group can be addressed automatically.
Ready for the digital strategy of the future?
- Multi-channel: Allow your customers to choose the contact channel they want to us
- Service Automation: Not only automate your messaging service, but also your customer support by phone
- Voice Service: Give your chatbot a voice and use the full potential of your digital assistant
Start now with our VoiceBot Connector!
Not using a chatbot (yet)?
No problem. We are happy to support you with the selection and setup of the appropriate botsystem.
