Retail bot for Philip Morris call centre
Philip Morris International Inc. is a multinational tobacco company based in Switzerland and the United States, with products available in more than 180 countries. Background: In 2020, due to the global pandemic, Philip Morris's retail outlets were closed, leading to a significant increase in customer calls to their contact center. The company encountered two primary challenges: 1. They needed a solution to help customers address their queries quickly from home, while also aiming to reduce customer service expenses and alleviate the workload of call center agents. 2. The pandemic resulted in a rise in requests for purchasing or testing devices, necessitating a way to manage these inquiries without requiring agent involvement, in order to lower financial and personnel costs. Goals: • Automate FAQ handling • Decrease average handling time • Streamline the processing and validation of requests • Reduce financial and human costs. Solution: The chatbot, Mark, was introduced in February 2020. To define its minimum viable product (MVP), the company evaluated customer inquiries and pinpointed the top five topics. Following this, the callbot named Christina was developed to manage the verification of existing requests for purchasing or testing devices, particularly for clients who either missed their appointments or declined their orders. After a successful pilot phase, the company opted to expand this solution across both internal and external processes. Now, Christina manages call center duties, including making initial calls, processing device purchase requests, and gathering customer information. Results: • Average handling time reduced by up to 30% • Automation of incoming requests via text channels increased by 17% • Costs associated with incoming contacts decreased by 27% • The profit margin from Christina is seven times greater than that of a hotline agent.