Customers want easy problem resolution, so make your self-help channels smarter

customer self-service

When your website has a knowledgeable and efficient technical support feature, powered by AI, you can deliver rich, detailed self-help that can solve complex problems, deflect low-level support calls, and boost customer satisfaction

By Andy Chinmulgund

If you’ve been on hold for technical support in the last couple of years, you were probably repeatedly reminded that the company’s website is a terrific source of helpful answers to many common questions. And that’s the way it should be, of course. Intuitively, we’d rather figure out a problem for ourselves than ask someone. Besides, we all have better things to do than wait for a customer-service agent who may (or may not) be able to resolve your problem.

But directing a customer to your website to solve their problem makes little sense if what they then need to search through dozens of documents and online resources to find what they need. In fact, they may have started their and given up, which is why they’re dialing in for help.

Done right, customer self-service has the potential to replace many live calls. Resolution through self-service is a win for both customers and companies. Time-consuming live interactions, even when only one step in the resolution journey, can mean that resolution will cost 80 to 100 times the cost of a self-service fix and take more of a customer’s valuable time (and goodwill).

After studying more than 8,000 customer journeys, Gartner found that 70% of customers are using self-service channels at some point in their resolution journey. Unfortunately, only 9% can fully resolve their issues via self-service channels. Clearly, companies need to focus on improving their self-help offerings. AI offers a path to achieving that.

AI-powered triage can help improve your ability to deflect in-bound calls and improve customer satisfaction by helping customers resolve issues with less effort. When we consider why customers contact a company for technical support, they likely want to resolve a technical problem, get confirmation on a maintenance procedure, or discuss something that is puzzling them. These are all topics that can be integrated into a chatbot.

When embedded into a website chatbot, Bruviti’s latest triage capabilities can ask the ‘right’ questions to identify and diagnose the problem, and then deliver contextually relevant self-help videos and tools. How does this work in the real world? Here are some recent use cases where Bruviti’s customer self-help technology empowered customers to resolve their own problems:

Pre- and post-sales updates

  • Scheduling and rescheduling service appointments
  • Check warranty entitlement
  • Repair estimates
  • Confirming new appliance delivery status
  • Product registration for model and serial number identification

Problem triage

  • Noise issues related to improper installation
  • Water leaks due to damaged inlet pipes
  • Appliance Connectivity
  • Instructions on rebooting or resetting factory settings
  • Ice maker malfunctions due frost accumulation
  • Redirection to video links for troubleshooting

Automated service

  • Easy Dos and Don’ts for appliance operations
  • Care and maintenance tips and procedures
  • Check whether an appliance qualifies for a recall; schedule a repair or replacement

If you have any questions about how AI-powered self-help can empower your customers,  schedule a call with Bruviti’s customer success team to chat about your unique needs.