bots

The 2019 Customer Interaction Management Landscape Part 1: Market Shifts

Shift in the Playing Fied by Ranganath Krishnamani - Rolling Tire

Image credit: Shift in the playing field by Ranganath Krishnamani, rolling tire

Contact Center Week took place last week in Las Vegas. It is one of the largest events focused on customer service and customer experience and a perfect opportunity to refresh my industry landscape. A lot has happened since last year's update. Several trends have accelerated and are provoking significant market shifts.

Good Robot, Bad Robot, You Robot, iRobot, meRobot,

The “fact” that we stand to lose the artificial intelligence (AI) race to the Chinese, Russians, North Koreans, et al seems omnipresent in tech media buzz these days. It has jumped into national discourse because of its centrality to cyber war preparedness. While I appreciate our need in the U.S. to “win,” I am circumspect about AI hyperventilation and its touch tool, BOTs. 

In this Industry Buzz podcast, 

Bots Are Here To Stay

The bot space has been changing rapidly. A few years ago, bots were automated chat agents. They would aim at replacing customer service representatives in case of traffic spikes or when all were busy. Very rudimentary, they usually left consumers frustrated. Bots are now enjoying an incredible momentum. As they reach the peak of inflated expectations, one can wonder if it is a temporary fad. I believe bots are here to stay and here is why.