10 examples of AI automation in e-commerce contact centres

Level: Intermediate

Artificial intelligence applied to e-commerce does everything from automating conversations, to providing 24/7 support, to extracting data to optimise the customer experience.

Here are ten ways AI can transform the service your online store provides:

1. INTENT CLASSIFICATION

If we want to prioritise questions about problems or address unhappy customers first, the quickest and most efficient way is to use artificial intelligence.

Conversational AI can analyse the words used by the customer to determine their needs and feelings, and act accordingly, either by automating the service through a virtual assistant or transferring the conversation to an agent.

2. EXPERT ROUTING

In addition to routing based on skills and prioritising queues like an advanced routing system (ACD), contact centre AI can take into account the customer’s interaction history when routing the call to an agent.

This allows us to route the call to the same agent who opened the ticket if a customer has an open case. This small change can have a significant impact on our NPS and provide a better customer experience.

3. CUSTOMER IDENTIFICATION

To provide a personalised experience, we can use AI to identify the customer. When they contact us with an issue, as in the previous cases, AI can request the customer’s ID or phone number, access our database and check any open tickets.

4. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

AI excels at providing specific answers, so for all those customers who ask us about the process for returning a package or the customer service phone number, we can use a bot to automate the answers, freeing up agents for more complex questions.

In addition, using a bot with generative AI, you can help users with their post-sale queries, such as providing tips on how to remove stains from clothes or restore furniture.

5. PERSONALISED RECOMMENDATIONS

As we have seen, AI can analyse historical data to identify consumer buying patterns. This information can help you recommend products and improve your up-selling and cross-selling.

It is now very trendy to select clothes based on skin tone, so you can use a bot with generative AI to act as a personal shopper for your online users.

6. SHIPMENT TRACKING

With the rise of phishing emails and text messages posing as couriers, we can build trust with our customers by allowing them to track their package from our website.

A chatbot can provide automatic updates on the status of the shipment, informing customers of any delays or changes to the delivery.

7. RETURNS MANAGEMENT

This is probably the most common reason for a call to your contact centre. The good news is that you can streamline this process with a conversational AI bot.

When the bot detects this type of query, it can send the necessary instructions, open a ticket to process the return, and even send the label to the customer.

8. SATISFACTION SURVEYS

With AI, we can automate the sending of NPS or CSAT surveys. If we only want to send a survey when a case is closed, we can train it to send an email/SMS (if by call) or a link (if by chat) to increase the number of responses.

We can also use it to help us analyse responses and identify areas for improvement.

9. REAL-TIME ANALYSIS

Since its inception, Artificial Intelligence has been used to identify patterns, allowing us to answer the most common questions asked by supervisors, such as the main reason for calls in the last three hours.

This allows us to gauge the sentiment of conversations, identify common issues and provide better responses to customers.

10. PROACTIVE SUPPORT

One of the most remarkable qualities of artificial intelligence is its proactivity. Externally, with customers, it can detect if a user is spending a lot of time on a product page and offer a pop-up message with additional help or a discount.

Internally, with agents, it can help manage a complaint or defuse a problematic situation.

WANT TO INTEGRATE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE INTO YOUR CONTACT CENTRE?

A minimum of artificial intelligence maximises human intelligence. Harness the talent of your agents by allowing them to focus on tasks where they can add real value, and use AI to automate the processes where they cannot. Contact our team of experts for a personalised consultation.