How the financial services industry should use a virtual agent to save time and money

In the financial services industry, customer service can either make or break your business.

It’s the very service that either convinces customers to go with your company, or sends them running wallet in hand straight to your competitor.

If customers are met with a dissatisfactory experience (bearing in mind humans make impressions in just 8-seconds), it’s virtually impossible to undo that experience and the associated brand damage.

In fact, marketing agency Moz found that one negative review can lose a company as many as 22 percent of its customers. Just four negative articles or reviews online can drive off 70 percent of potential customers – something any business would find difficult to bounce back from.

But the reality is, human beings come with error and it is completely unrealistic to expect every customer service representative to be able to perform perfectly with 100% accuracy in every single scenario.

So what’s the answer?

Your very own virtual agent! Otherwise known as the easiest customer service agent you’ll ever train.
Virtual assistants are popping up left and right, with studies reporting that more than 25% of companies will use this new kind of customer service agent by 2020.

So why should you consider this new kind of customer service agent?

Let’s look at an example.

A customer is interested in getting some financial advice and lands on your home page.  They want to understand the insurance types available to them and their growing family. They are time poor and need assistance fast.

When they arrive on your homepage, they are greeted by Claire, a 3D animated virtual agent representing the company.

Claire asks the prospective customer some questions about their current financial and personal situation, in-line with their product interests and offers clarification and further information about the areas they aren’t sure about.

She collects valuable data for the company and is able to act as a sales representative by selling the various services that they offer as well as providing reassurance that they are making the right choice by engaging with accredited advisers to handle their financial affairs.

Amicable and accurate, Claire provides the customer everything they need, helping him or her locate the relevant product information in a fraction of the normal time.

Claire then prompts the customer to create their own account on the website at the end of their happy experience so that they can return at any time and she will remember their previous responses and resume the conversation to provide other useful pieces of information that they can access.

Claire then passes this information on to a broker from the company who is then able to follow up with with the prospective customer, before she adds their email address to an email funnel sequence to ensure become raving fans of your company.

Without a single human intervention, your customer has received immediate and friendly support.
The obvious advantage is that the broker now has a comprehensive understanding of the customer’s financial situation and can use their time as efficiently as possible.

But the most important benefit is that the customer is happy with the service provided. This has been proven in various health studies we’ve conducted which demonstrated patients enjoy interacting with their virtual agent more than they do with their doctors.

When it comes to customer service in the financial services industry,  Claire has not only met but exceeded all customer service KPIs.

Promptness is essential in the financial services industry and Claire works 24/7.

Accurate advice is also paramount when talking to customers about their money and financial circumstances and Claire is the most reliable and accurate employee you’ll have on your books.

By now you’re starting to see just how powerful a virtual agent can be in today’s customer-centric world.

In case you need further evidence, here are five reasons you should be incorporating a virtual assistant into your operations today.

Train them once and set and forget
Simply train your virtual agent once per year, or whenever you want a script changed, and that’s it.

You don’t have to invest in reoccurring training and constant educational support or contend with staff shortages as a result of turnover.

100% repeated accuracy
Virtual agents are more accurate and reliable than regular humans.

These virtual agents can engage consumers in repeated conversation with 100% accuracy, freeing up time for your staff and mitigating risk.

24-7 reliability
Virtual agents work 24-7 and are never tired, or require sick days.

They are able to perform at every second of the day, even if you are sleeping – and they don’t need to check-in along the way.

Motivational and trustworthy customer service
Virtual agents are effective in engaging consumers.

Motivational, trustworthy, and behavior-changing, they are consistently positive every single day. Daily experiences do not affect them.

Plus, we know from extensive research that consumers enjoy engaging with them.

Frees up your team to grow your business
Virtual agents allow your real-life customer service agents to focus on the most important tasks at hand.

As a result, your team can be more innovative and work with you to expand your service or product offering.