Top 5 things to consider when choosing a virtual agent
According to our definition, a virtual agent's primary purpose is to help end consumers of a service or a product by resolving their issues faster and being available around the clock. Before choosing a virtual agent, there are a few important attributes to consider. We list the top 5 here.
1. Multi-channel support
For an ‘always on’ generation, it is important to reach them where they are. This means your virtual agent should be available across websites, mobile apps, messaging platforms, and more. Such an omnichannel experience not only guarantees customer satisfaction but also increases your agent productivity and reputation with your clients.
2. Customization
The experience of customer support or self-service should be a seamless one. This can be achieved only when the end-user relates to your brand and can interact with it much like they would with a human rep from your company. A virtual agent that comes with a customizable set of features is much more likely to work than an agent that looks like a third-party service.
3. Multilingual support
In the business world where geographical boundaries are quickly losing their meaning, especially in the technology space, there is a need to cater to a global audience. That means language or culture can no longer be a barrier to entry. Fortunately, the currently available technologies help bridge this gap effortlessly. A virtual agent that provides support for multiple languages offers immense value in choosing it. This feature can help cut costs while also enabling easy scalability of services.
4. Contextual support
While using a virtual agent, it is imperative to put your best foot (code?) forward. In other words, the end-user should not feel they are interacting with a computer program. Thanks to Natural Language Processing & Machine Learning, a virtual agent can replicate a human conversation to an appreciable level. Therefore, it is important to keep an eye out on the technologies used under the hood. Also, learning about the virtual agent’s use cases can be a deciding factor in the final decision.
5. Analytics & Reporting
There are a few virtual agents that come with an in-built analytics feature. This will help study the behavior of the agent, vis-a-vis its conversations with end-users. It goes a long way to refine the problem-solving capability of the virtual agent. It will also serve to optimize conversations efficiently. This can go a long way in reducing dependency on human agents while enabling them to work on mission-critical operations.