How To Create a Positive Chatbot Experience in Customer Service

When it comes to customer service, it’s crucial to use every tool at your disposal to create the best experience possible. But what if the tool itself is an impediment to a positive customer service experience?

Chatbots have become a prominent tool in customer service across a wide range of industries, from retail to banking. Chatbots can provide a broad array of useful and time-saving features—yet many UK customers remain sceptical and ambivalent about the technology.

According to the 2024 Voice of the Consumer report, as many as 35% of adults in the UK feel that the customer experience they’ve received with chatbots and other automated systems is less than satisfactory. Many customers prefer to interact with human agents rather than automated systems, believing that chatbots often lack the necessary empathy and nuance to provide an effective customer experience.

Regardless of these concerns, however, chatbot technology is here to stay and will likely only grow in popularity and implementation across the UK. So, how can businesses ensure they’re giving their customers the most positive experience possible? Let’s start by examining the reasons behind the public’s distrust of chatbots.

Why UK Customers View Chatbots Negatively

One of the major reasons UK customers dislike or distrust chatbots is also one of the acknowledged weaknesses of AI chatbot software: their perceived inability to handle complex issues with the same nuance and accuracy as human agents. Admittedly, chatbots excel at providing quick and accurate answers to simple queries and requests, but if a customer has something more complicated to deal with, the pre-programmed answers of a chatbot may not be able to adequately address the issue.

Another reason customers tend to dislike chatbots is their perceived lack of emotional intelligence. An AI can be programmed to simulate empathy, but it is incapable of truly feeling it and may struggle to convey a sense of “humanity.” Chatbot responses can feel very robotic and impersonal because, at their core, they are. This can leave customers feeling undervalued, and frustration is soon to follow.

Speaking of frustration, another major source of customer ire is when they find it difficult to escalate an issue to a human agent. If a customer cannot get an effective solution from a chatbot and there seems to be no way to speak to a person, the customer is likely to feel trapped and at a dead end, with no solution in sight. This is a short road to customer frustration, and the customer experience is sure to deteriorate rapidly.

How to Create a Better Customer Service Experience with Chatbots

So, what can UK business owners do to ensure the worst doesn’t happen when it comes to chatbots and the customer experience? The secret lies in having a robust and well-planned customer service strategy.

Define the Chatbot’s Purpose

The first step to implementing an effective chatbot is to define its purpose—and keep it narrow. For example, a chatbot might be used to help customers find specific policies or information on products, or to track orders and provide shipping updates. A business should also determine whether a chatbot will handle basic queries and FAQs, or engage with more complex issues. Having this objective clearly defined means customers know what to expect and won’t be relying on an automated service to provide assistance it’s not capable of delivering.

Choose the Right Software

Not all chatbot software is created equal, and if you want to provide the best customer experience possible, it’s crucial to choose the right software. While there are numerous AI chatbot platforms available, not all of them offer the same feature set.

For example, many modern chatbots use natural language processing (NLP) technology to better understand and respond to human language. Others integrate easily with customer relationship management (CRM) software, which allows them to access customer information (such as past purchases, ticket history, etc.) and personalise their responses accordingly.

While not strictly necessary, some chatbot features are highly desirable, such as multichannel capabilities, so that customers can get help on a wide variety of platforms, from SMS and websites to social media.

Testing, Training and Feedback

Of course, no software—chatbot or otherwise—is likely to work perfectly on day one. There will naturally be areas where the chatbot will need work. The best way to shorten this process as much as possible is to solicit customer feedback and implement any suggestions to the greatest extent practicable.

For example, if customers frequently mention a particular question or query that the chatbot is struggling with, take the time to fine-tune the chatbot’s responses to more effectively address those specific concerns.

Don’t Forget Human Agents

Finally, it’s vital to ensure your customers always have an easy, accessible way to escalate their issue to a human agent if necessary. An AI chatbot is a powerful supplement to a human support team, but it’s not a full replacement for one. Ensure that delicate or complex issues are still handled by human agents to maintain a high level of service.