Digital channels
Trend 8: Conversational channels become more immersive and personalized
A large part of the world has already experienced chatbot interactions and voice AI such as Amazon's Alexa. These communication platforms blend natural language processing (NLP) and AI to create humanlike interactions. But they respond to every user the same way and lack personalization. Nevertheless, these technologies are already undergoing a makeover to become more immersive and personalized — expect tailor-made, humanlike conversations.
Another challenge is that biases make their way into these systems because humans train them across geographies. So, organizations with a global audience are investing in solutions that treat all interactions the same way. Some governments have also mandated neutrality. These significant trends will aid in large-scale adoption of conversational channel technology and facilitate better customer service and experiences.
An American telecommunications company wanted to improve its customer experience and engagement by reducing the dropout rate. It also wanted to minimize customer service operating expenses. The company collaborated with Infosys to develop an in-app chatbot with 1,000+ intents on Google Dialogflow (an AI/ NLP engine).
Digital channels
Trend 9: Immersive experiences are increasingly turning humanlike
Immersive experiences are a step closer to near-humanlike interactions, as they help bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds and present a multidimensional, multimodal experience. But this technology is expensive and only now gaining a foothold in the business world.
There are several areas where immersive experiences can help. It becomes easier to repair a complex machine because the maintenance person can receive real-time instructions from experts anywhere. They can facilitate interaction-rich experiences such as hosting clients on a virtual 360-degree tour of an office or running a high-tech design meeting.
Design teams, along with business stakeholders and innovation teams, must examine how to make this paradigm shift more acceptable to users and anticipate the barriers they must overcome.
Infosys conducted its flagship sales leadership event, Connect 2020, virtually on its EPOC Platform. EPOC is a state-of-the-art collaboration platform that helps conduct online events and supports immersive experiences. It uses WebVR and XR technologies. Connect 2020 was powered by 3D booths, a 360-degree immersive tour of Living Labs with 20+ showcases, and an immersive navigation console.
