Creative Virtual Ltd has announced that a new V-Person™ (virtual assistant) solution was launched for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) back in 2011. A V-Person is capable of holding conversations with digital users in real time, 24/7. For users it means the sensation of communicating with a ‘real’ person able not only to answer their questions, but also to understand the context of those questions and even hold entire conversations.
Ask Annie, the RSPCA’s new online virtual assistant, has been available on the RSPCA website since June 2011 and is helping users find a variety of information and advice on topics such as general pet care, animal rehoming and animal welfare law. Annie provides a list of local vets, police and fire and rescue services based on the user’s postcode. Implementing a V-Person on their website has helped the RSPCA further their mission to “prevent cruelty, promote kindness to and alleviate suffering of all animals” by giving website visitors a quick and easy way to find answers to their questions on all main species of domestic and wild animals without having to make a phone call.
Current trends show that by January 2013 Ask Annie will be handling in the region of 175,000 conversations per year, 250% above the expected volumes needed to prove a virtual assistant is a valuable addition to the RSPCA’s customer service experience. On average 30% of people using the service say it saves them from calling, and it’s expected that low-priority advice calls handled by the charity’s 24/7 national control centre will reduce by over 50,000 in 2012. This will allow controllers to focus on emergency calls about animals in most need of the RSPCA’s help.
In addition to being available to website visitors, Ask Annie is also being used in the RSPCA’s control centre. This version of the system presents controllers with both answers designed specifically for them as well as the answers given to website users which means callers can be provided with the most appropriate and complete answer to their query. The V-Person allows controllers to find information much easier and quicker than the previous system, with the potential for reducing call waiting times. Creative Virtual has also set up the install so controllers can use Annie to access their internal guides and task management guidelines. This set-up means staff can easily find and access all the information they need on a daily basis, in a clear and concise format, all in one place.
Related Chatbot: Annie
