An AI assistant can answer most routine questions faster than any person. But some conversations need judgement, empathy or authority that an assistant should not pretend to have. Planning for those moments is what separates helpful automation from frustrating automation.
When the customer asks for a person
This is the simplest rule and the most important. If someone asks to speak to a human, let them. A visible "Talk to a human" button saves customers from arguing with a bot.
In Selo Assist, customers can press it at any time, and the chat is flagged for your team.
When the answer is not in your information
If the assistant cannot answer from what you gave it, it should say so and offer a person rather than guess. These chats are also your best clue to what your information is missing.
Complaints and emotional conversations
An unhappy customer wants to be heard by someone who can fix things. Hand complaints, cancellations and disputes to a person quickly.
Anything sensitive or specific to one customer
Medical, legal and financial advice, payments, refunds for a particular order, changes to an account: these need a person who can see the details and take responsibility.
Make the handover seamless
The worst handover makes the customer start again. The person taking over should see the whole conversation. In Selo Assist, the team member opens the chat in the inbox, presses take over, and replies in the same window; the assistant stays quiet until the chat is handed back.
If nobody is available, tell the customer when they will hear back and collect a way to reach them.
