Artificial Intelligence (aka ‘AI’) is a branch of computer science that focuses on developing ‘smart’ computers/machines. These smart computers are capable of performing tasks that have previously been done by a human or require human intelligence to complete. As AI technology continues to develop, we have started to see many everyday examples of AI replacing human interaction usually with the goal of creating efficiencies in a task.
Some examples include speech recognition on your smart phone, or search engines using your previous search data to predict what you’ll search for or purchase next. From a commercial perspective, AI has also become very important in commerce, from planning inventory and logistics through to optimising products.
As AI continues to find a foothold in many industries and applications, it has us wondering if AI will ever kill the call centre?
We believe that AI has the potential to enhance and streamline areas of the call centre industry by offering clients the potential to move through calls quicker and more efficiently. However, AI can never truly replace human to human connection, and in a membership-based connection environment that human touch is going to mean all the difference.
With technology always progressing, it can be daunting to think about where AI controlled voice messages may take the industry in the next 10-15 years. With people’s jobs potentially at stake, it’s important to ask whether talking to automated messages is truly the future of phone interaction? The simple answer is no.
While there is a place for AI in call centres, members will always be real humans, and at Optimum Contact, we believe that speaking to humans will always lead to the best results.
Where AI Can Help with Call Centres?
AI can eliminate tedious parts of the call centre experience, helping callers get to the important part of the conversation quicker, allowing workers to specialise more effectively in certain fields. Whenever someone picks up the phone or makes a call to one of their associations, automated voice messages can take over the responsibility of greeting the person and directing them to a specialised speaker.
This technology will enable a more streamlined experienced for the caller, which can be hugely beneficial to any members looking to make quick and direct contact regarding any subscription information. The use of automated voice messages also has the potential to reach callers instantly while they wait for a qualified speaker to pick up the phone on their end. They can save on waiting time and provide clear instructions to the caller whenever the call isn’t moving forward.
Where AI Can’t Replace Humans
There is a fundamental difference between talking to a real human being and talking to a recorded AI voice. The former offers personal interaction that allows for dynamic alterations depending on the direction of the conversation, while the latter is limited and can often feel disconnected. Members call their association to talk to like-minded, passionate people and not to have a robot talk to them for half an hour.
AI, at least with current technology, is also incapable of adapting itself to different emotions. Callers express all kinds of emotions over the phone, ranging from anger to joy to sorrow, and it takes a real human to pick up on those feelings and steer the conversation in an appropriate manner.
Furthermore, there is never any guarantee of what a caller will ask when he or she gets on the phone with their association. Left field questions or complex requests require multi-levelled, dynamic thinking, and those are qualities only a real person can exercise effectively. No matter how deep or varied an AI’s algorithm is, the human brain will always be able to make connections faster and pull from different areas to solve different problems.
The Human Connection
The main reason why AI won’t ever kill the call centre is that human to human interaction provides a personal touch which automated voice messages can’t truly replicate. At Optimum Contact, we pride ourselves on providing a tailored, strategic, and human link between associations and their members, and we believe that AI is unable to offer the same quality service.
Members are far more likely to trust the words of a real person compared to pre-recorded messages. It makes them feel assured to know that someone is actively seeking to solve their problem, answer their question, or offer them a reward. The human touch makes the connection between member and association feel all the more real, and we believe it’s an aspect that AI can never properly replicate.
AI and The Future
In order to create the meaningful connections with association members, it’s important to keep as much human to human connection as possible. One of the best uses AI will have for associations will be to cut down the number of interim calls made while the member is trying to contact the right person in the right department about their concern.
When the cost-effectiveness of AI increases in the future it may be more beneficiation for associations to implement an AI as a phone ‘receptionist,’ creating more room in their organisation for humans at the end of the phone with the knowledge and skillset their members are wanting to reach.
Get in Touch
Optimum Contact provides tailored call campaigns for associations and membership-based organisations. We create campaigns to better engage your members with regular calls and check-ins. By focusing on engagement campaigns, we can help you gain greater renewal numbers come renewal season. If you’d like to learn more about how we can help you create personalised campaigns with excellent results, get in touch with us on 1300 017 213 today.
