As technology is becoming all pervasive in our lives, enterprises are moving fast to find newer ways of introducing technology-based solutions to remain ahead of competition.
Many organisations have started implementing virtual digital assistants based on machine learning algorithms that can help their customers’ queries answered and issues resolved. Chatbots present major opportunities for organizations to reach customers more efficiently and effectively than ever before. Chatbots provide instant response and respond to queries in an automated yet personalised way. The key is to create apps that can mimic human-like and relevant conversation. For this to happen, bots need to learn from previous conversations and draw conclusions based on that.
Chatbots are of two types; one that works on a rules-set, and the other that is based on a learning technology. The bots that work on a set of rules are simplistic and follow a guided path. The ones based on machine learning technology are able to execute complex commands, discern context and improve conversation as they go along. Some also have the ability to support multiple languages. User preference is moving from GUI (Graphical User Interface) to CUI (Conversational User Interface), which is a new and growing area but one which will lead to highly sophisticated and intelligent bot conversations.
There are multiple generic Use cases for which bots can be used by enterprises–
Customer Service
Lead generation
Customer On-boarding
Specific Use cases are as follows –
Insurance industry – claims processing
Online banking
Lending – customer intent classification
Wealth management – manage & optimise portfolio
Travel industry – booking flights & accommodation
“The 2018 State of Chatbots Report” by Drift, SurveyMonkey Audience, Salesforce, and myclever throws up some interesting statistics on Use cases, Perceived benefits, Usage blockers, etc. Among other things, the report infers that consumers expect to be able to find the information they’re looking for online quickly and easily. When they don’t get that experience, they become frustrated. The top three potential benefits of chatbots that are reported in that survey are:
24 hour service
Instant response
Answers to simple questions
The graphic below, from the report, lists all the benefits.
Take a look at the Chatbot industry landscape by ubisend:
In 2016, the chatbot market was valued at $703 million. (Marketsandmarkets, 2017)
Between 2016 and 2021, the chatbot market is expected to grow at a compound rate of 35.2 (Marketsandmarkets, 2017)
$4.5 Billion is expected to be invested in enterprise intelligent assistants by 2021. (Opus Research, 2017)
By 2020, over 80% of businesses are expected to have some sort of chatbot automation implemented (Business Insider, 2016)
In 2015, mobile messaging app usage has surpassed social media usage. (Business Insider, 2015)
By 2022, banks could automate up to 90% of their interactions with chatbots. (Foye, 2017)
96% of businesses believe chatbots are here to stay. (Mindbrowser, 2017)
My conclusion is that while we still do not have a Chatbot that passes the Turing test, that time is not too far away. Like any other app solution based on machine learning, bots will take a while to learn and mature, but once they do, they will have a huge impact on our lives.
