Report: 80% of consumers will talk to a bot if they can transfer their lives to a human

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Chatbots have become a ubiquitous feature on consumer websites. But what makes for a “good” chatbot experience? According to a new report commissioned by Simplr, the answer, perhaps paradoxically, is the ability to talk to a live human: 80% of consumers become much more willing to use a chatbot when they know they can easily and quickly can transfer to a living person.

Live transfer from a bot to a human can have a major impact on long-term customer loyalty. The report also found that 60% of consumers are more likely to do business with a brand if there is a seamless transfer to a human agent. Meanwhile, when a chatbot fails and no live transfer is available, 60% of consumers say they are less likely to do business with that brand.

Despite chatbot use having doubled since the start of the pandemic, with 18% using a chatbot in the past three months, compared to just 9% in 2020, the majority of consumers still have a neutral approach to interacting with a chatbot.

Clearly, consumers aren’t convinced yet that chatbots can deliver the high-quality customer service interactions they’re looking for. This is a great opportunity for a company that designs chatbot experiences that meet the expectations of today’s consumers.

The report is based on a quantitative survey of a sample of 1,000 adult U.S. consumers ages 18-75 who regularly purchase products and/or services online. Data for this survey was collected from February 24 to March 3, 2022 to measure awareness, attitudes and use of chatbots compared to other customer service channels.

Read Simplr’s full report.

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This post Report: 80% of consumers will talk to a bot if they can transfer their lives to a human

was original published at “https://venturebeat.com/2022/04/22/report-80-of-consumers-will-talk-to-a-bot-if-they-can-live-transfer-to-a-human/”