Exploring Opportunities for Practical AI Applications in Contact Centers

By Nick Morris, Senior Director of Data Analytics, LiveVox

Imagine your contact center operating at peak performance: customer questions are answered quickly and accurately, issues are resolved on the first call, and communication is an effortless and satisfying experience regardless of channel. This scenario showcases the power that AI can bring to contact centers.

Automation is the primary driver of productivity in any industry, and contact centers are no exception. By leveraging technologies like machine learning (ML) and natural language processing (NLP), AI can improve customer interactions and operational efficiency. But instead of looking for pie-in-the-sky solutions, the key to truly unlocking AI’s potential lies in augmenting the tools you already use.

In other words, don’t think of AI as a replacement for your current applications but as a co-pilot that enhances your existing systems.

Take auto summarization, for example. This function uses AI to analyze large volumes of data and automatically generate concise summaries highlighting the most critical information. Besides significantly reducing after-call work, auto summarization ensures that agents can quickly access all the relevant information to provide high-quality service.

Or consider real-time agent assistance tools, which use NLP and ML algorithms to suggest responses in real-time as agents communicate with customers. These tools help agents improve accuracy and efficiency while lowering average handling time. It’s like having an experienced agent by their side, guiding them through each conversation.

Taking proactive to the next level: Predicting customer intent and behavior

While AI tools designed to enhance efficiency and productivity significantly improve the immediate customer service experience, AI-powered predictive tools take this a step further. They anticipate customer behavior and intent even before customers can express their needs or engage with the service.

Future behavior prediction

Future behavior prediction tools analyze data from past interactions, including chat logs, emails, phone calls, and social media interactions. They use this data to identify patterns and predict customers’ future actions and preferences accurately.

For example, next best action prediction can suggest the best course of action for an agent to take with a specific customer based on their past behaviors. This could include recommending relevant products or services, offering discounts or promotions, or sending a personalized communication. For instance, if a customer calls about a delayed order, the AI may prompt the agent to offer them a discount on their next purchase or provide free shipping for their current order as compensation. 

The ultimate goal of next best action recommendations is to equip the agent with this information even before the customer voices their concern, enabling the agent to respond proactively and efficiently.

Outbound campaign generation

Another useful application of predictive tools is generating outbound campaigns targeted at specific groups of customers. AI systems can analyze customer data and identify patterns to segment the customer base into different categories based on their preferences, behavior, or purchase history. Then companies can use this information to create tailored marketing campaigns for each group.

By analyzing your customers’ preferences and behaviors, AI also can assist in creating engaging content, resulting in higher audience engagement rates. For example, AI can suggest the best subject lines for email marketing campaigns or recommend specific content based on the target audience’s interests. This level of personalization is crucial in today’s highly competitive market where customers expect companies to understand and cater to their individual needs.

In addition, predictive tools can optimize campaign timing by leveraging data insights. For instance, AI algorithms can determine the best time to reach out to customers for maximum impact, whether it be through email, phone calls, or social media ads. This way, companies can achieve better results and higher conversion rates with their outreach efforts.

Customer churn prevention

Minimizing customer churn is a critical priority for businesses. AI can help predict and prevent churn by analyzing data patterns and identifying customers at risk.

By identifying the factors that contribute to churn, such as low engagement or negative sentiment, AI systems can alert contact center managers to reach out to these customers proactively. For instance, when a customer’s purchasing frequency declines and they start calling more often with complaints, AI can identify this customer as being at risk of churning. Contact center agents can then offer solutions or incentives to retain the customer.

The contact center agents’ role in enhancing AI performance

To understand the true potential of AI in contact centers, it’s essential to recognize the foundation of what makes these technologies effective: reliable data and continuous model training by human agents. We need contact center agents to actively participate in the data labeling process, drawing upon their understanding of customer needs to improve the quality and relevance of AI training data.

As the primary point of contact with customers, contact center agents are instrumental in gathering the data necessary to drive AI models. Through their daily interactions with a wide range of customer queries and issues, they can provide valuable insights essential for data labeling and machine learning initiatives.

Human agents are also necessary for the ongoing training and refinement of AI models. They can help validate the output of AI systems by cross-checking it against their own knowledge and experience, and identify gaps or areas for improvement. This not only helps improve the accuracy of AI predictions but also builds trust in the technology among both customers and employees.

Final thoughts on navigating the contact center AI journey

Integrating AI into contact center tools holds great promise for boosting agent productivity and enhancing customer satisfaction. We see considerable opportunities for companies to leverage AI as a support tool to optimize operational efficiency and improve customer interactions. By implementing features like auto summarization and agent assistance, AI has the potential to reduce after-call work and equip agents with the necessary tools for delivering exceptional service.

AI goes beyond solving problems by accurately predicting customer behavior and anticipating their needs. With future behavior prediction tools, businesses can offer proactive customer service and expedite issue resolution, resulting in substantial advantages.

In addition, AI’s data analysis capabilities can be harnessed in various areas such as creating outbound campaigns, generating personalized content, optimizing campaign timing, and even preventing customer churn. These applications demonstrate the transformative potential of AI in redefining contact center operations and customer interactions.

However, it is important to note that AI is not a standalone solution. It requires human agents to oversee and continuously refine its performance for the best outcomes. The effective integration of AI in contact centers hinges on an ongoing collaboration between agents and the AI systems they work alongside. 

Are you ready to start your AI journey? Contact one of our experts to take the first steps toward practical AI in your contact center.