Econet launches AI customer service enhancing Chatbot
TELECOMMUNICATIONS operator, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, has launched a customer service enhancing Chatbot called “Yamurai/Sizani”, to empower its customers and improve their customer experience.
Econet said in an update that the Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven Chatbot will give customers an additional digital customer support channel as the company steps up efforts to optimize efficiencies and manage the surge in caller-based customer queries.
The product will be useful amid the COVID-19 induced lockdown that has resulted in restricted movements.
“We are happy to formally introduce Yamurai/Sizani as another channel among our growing suite of convenient, customer support digital solutions,” said Mr Otis Makahamadze, the company’s chief customer experience officer.
“We believe Yamurai/Sizani will offer our customers much needed convenience at a time physical movement to access in-store support in our shops is restricted due to the national lockdown.”
He said the new product would have the intelligence to handle and address several customer queries, as well as to escalate certain issues to the relevant customer support representatives within the company’s support departments, including escalating queries to a live agent.
“Yamurai/Sizani will be able to help resolve customer queries so that customers can get ready assistance on routine issues such as phone PIN resets, airtime credit or top up issues, and queries relating to data bundle purchases resolved from the comfort of their homes,” said Mr Makahamadze, who also heads up Econet’s OmniContact, the company’s Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) division.
“Our customers may be pleased to know that Yamurai/Sizani is also smart enough to escalate queries for resolution to the relevant back office departments in Econet, and log trouble tickets to help follow up active queries until they are fully resolved,” he said.
Mr Makahamadze added that the Chatbot also possessed the intelligence to aggregate relevant data around customer queries, remember it and be able to better resolve their issues in the future.
“We are excited to onboard our customers onto our digital transformation journey designed to bring convenience and speed up service delivery,” Mr Makahamadze said.
Econet has experienced an increase in online and phone-in customer inquiries over the past year, as hundreds of businesses and thousands of individuals were forced to work from home due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.
The company has responded by accelerating its digital transformation drive, which has seen it launch a variety of customer-empowering, digital selfcare platforms widen its customer service channels during the pandemic.
Yamurai/Sizani, which in the vernacular means “help” will be accessible on the Econet’s website, said the company.-chronicle.co.zw
