Chatbot Sam speaks for Grand Union

Background

GUHG owns and manages around 12,000 social housing properties across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Hertfordshire. GUHG's digital channel shift, delivered in partnership with FourNet in recent years, has improved efficiency and customer service, with an Enghouse omni-channel integrated contact centre enabling customers to get in touch via various channels of communication, day or night, including via phone, online or social media. GUHG wanted to push its digital transformation further over the last year, becoming one of the first Housing Associations to offer a personalised chatbot customer experience - not just for FAQs but real-world customer enquiries.

Solution

A pioneering Converse 360 chatbot, named Sam, is integrated into GUHG's systems enabling customers to receive a personalised service. Sam handles rent balances, repair appointments, charge information etc, without customers speaking to an agent or logging into their portal. Because it's linked to GUHG's data lake, answers to questions can come from any system in use - including Finance and Asset Management systems. Workplace efficiencies have been significantly enhanced, and there's been a significant reduction, for instance, in the number of calls which require to be handled by agents. The total number of calls into the contact centre has dropped by more than 10%. Fewer calls into the contact centre frees up agent capacity to handle longer calls which have more value for customers that need enhanced support. It also brings about greater job satisfaction and staff retention, as mundane tasks are filtered out. Average call length for those customers with more complex enquiries are, on average, up by around 12% meaning better customer service.