Imagine working with a co-worker who is always on time, who is available 24/7, and who never has to take a vacation. Well, this co-worker already exists. They might not be who you're expecting, because they are not human and come in machine form: they are a chatbot.

When chatbots were initially introduced, they were designed to answer simple customer inquiries. Since then chatbots have evolved quite a bit. With the use of artificial intelligence (AI), chatbots can now learn from their experiences. Below we are going to discuss how artificial intelligence chatbots are affecting the workplace, by looking at the customer and employee experiences.

AI Chatbots - Transforming the Customer Experience

A positive customer experience is an essential part of the success of a business. Customers today want an easy and convenient experience, that includes quick access to a customer service rep to answer their questions whenever they want.

AI powered chatbots have the potential to satisfy this need, as they are available 24/7 to answer customer questions. All a customer needs to do is go online and begin the chat for real-time interaction. AI chatbots provide answers to customer questions, but if they can't, they will be able to refer the customer to a customer service rep who will be able to assist. If the chatbot is communicating at a time of day where customer service reps are not available, they can easily schedule a meeting for the customer with a representative at a time that works for them.

Chatbots further enhance the customer experience by providing customers with added support and guidance. In a way, they can be seen as virtual assistants for customers as they can help answer inquiries about things such as: navigating the website, product details, payment options and more. This helps avoid customer frustration as well as reduces customer services calls with questions that can be extremely time-consuming. In turn, it helps the business as these customer service reps can focus on answering customer inquiries that the chatbots cannot help with.

Despite what you read above, we know that some of you may be feeling skeptical about AI powered chatbots, because you may think that customers would prefer human interaction. Well, don't be, as most customers view chatbots as being a positive experience, with 69% of consumers saying that they prefer chatbots for quick communication.

AI Chatbots - Transforming the Employee Recruiting and Onboarding Experience

When used properly AI chatbots can greatly benefit the customer service department. Additionally, AI chatbots can also be used to help in the human resource (HR) department. Chatbots that are used in this area are generally referred to as HR chatbots. These chatbots can be used to help businesses improve their employee recruiting and onboarding experiences.

The first start thing that HR chatbots can help with is the qualifying stage. Once the recruiters have found prospective candidates, they can set up a time for the prospect to talk with these HR chatbots. The HR chatbots can ask these prospects several different qualifying questions. If candidates qualify to get to the next round, the chatbot can set up an interview with the prospect to meet with the next person in the process.

It is important that the application process is smooth and responsive from beginning to end. This means that when a potential candidate has a question, it is important to respond quickly. Luckily HR chatbots offer a huge advantage, as they can respond to candidates' questions immediately.

In addition to helping with the initial screening process and answering any job-related questions, chatbots can also help with the onboarding of new hires through conversational interface. Chatbots can answer any employee questions about business policies, vacation time, benefits and more. By doing so, they are helping reduce the workload for the HR team by streamlining the process.

Chatbots are the Future

With the workplace constantly changing, it's important to stay on top of new tools that can help with the success of your business. Chatbots are one of these things, as they can help reduce the workload for different departments by streamlining time-consuming tasks that are repetitive.

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