Virtual agents / Chatbots
in United Kingdom

Nicki's primary job is to answer questions about the dangers of smoking and the smoking cessation aid, NicoBloc. However she has an extensive knowledgebase and can hold a reaaonable conversation and can play some unique games such as Mastermind and Roulette which are not available anywhere else.

Main purpose is to answer questions about giving up smoking in general and about quit smoking aid, NicoBloc, in particular.

Nicki is based on an enhanced Alice/Pandorabot knowledgebase and so will engage in general chatter if asked off-subject questions.

She was originally set up around 2008 but not shown to the public and has recently been updated and brought out of retirement to engage with web visitors.

NHS East of England have welcomed Dr Dunn to their Strategic Projects website. Dr Dunn is available 24/7 to answer questions about the Foundation Trusts at Hinchingbrooke, Luton and Bedford. This V-Person™ features static photographs of a real person that change depending on the question entered by the user.

Website visitors just type a question into the question box; the system then sifts through the vast amounts of data on the site looking for possible answers. Once an answer has been found it appears on the screen along with links to further information. It is hoped 'Ask Alex' will become the first port of call for people looking for answers, providing instant response and feedback and reducing the need to call the Customer Service Centre, providing a faster more responsive service and saving both time and money. New questions will continue to be added to further improve customer satisfaction. User input is vital, if a question is not being answered there is a facility which allows the user to submit the question for inclusion.

This new interface has allowed Lincolnshire to optimise their online content, by making the information more customer focused and easier to find, therefore creating a solution to both, online and offline customer service issues. At the moment the technology is only available on the 'I am a Parent' section of the Lincolnshire site, however in time it will be widened out to other areas, to further enhance service delivery. To see "Ask Alex" in action, please click here to visit the Parenting section of the Lincolnshire website.

Peter Barton, Head of Web and Information Services at Lincolnshire believes the Synthetix customer service technology gives them a solution to both their online and offline customer service issues;

"People like talking - or writing - to people. And that's how they see it. We anticipate this being a big win for our customer service.

Mothercare is improving the customer experience on its website with the launch of Ask Carrie, an interactive virtual assistant. Ask Carrie delivers fast, accurate answers to queries across the Mothercare website. Customers are able to ask questions directly using the system without the need to call or email the Mothercare contact centre. Ask Carrie also ensures faster access to the wide range of parenting information and resources on the Mothercare website. By allowing customers to search using everyday language it ensures that the Mothercare website remains a primary destination for parents.
The Ask Carrie persona was created to provide an approachable and engaging figure for customers and was launched as part of the major redesign of the Mothercare website. This also includes improved online product search, a wider range of content, and bigger, brighter product images all designed to deliver an improved customer journey.

The Talk to FRANK Bot is a fully automated Windows Live Agent designed to give young people information on drugs from content supplied by FRANK, the national drug information and advice service. Information.