Helpshift, a provider of messaging platform delivered via the cloud that makes it simpler to embed artificial intelligence (AI) into applications in the form of conversational bots, has launched a partner program.
The Helpshift service is designed to be accessed from within an application using a software development kit (SDK) and associated application programming interfaces (APIs) that typically gets dropped into a mobile application running on Apple iOS or Google Android devices.
The partner program is currently designed to appeal to consultants, providers of business process outsourcing services and independent software vendors (ISVs) looking to embed AI capabilities into their applications without having to develop AI models themselves, says Chuck Coulson, vice president of business development for Helpshift.
Via this channel program Helpshift is providing access to a range of services spanning, for example, migration, implementation, change management and integration.
Helpshift also plans to extend its channel programs to include rewards for referrals as well as sharing margins with traditional VARs, says Coulson.
Helpshift is already installed on two billion devices worldwide and serves more than 820 million active consumers monthly. Existing customers include Xfinity Home, Microsoft, Virgin Media, Zynga, and Viacom.
Existing Helpshift services partners include 5CA, Goodbay Technologies, ModSquad, and Keywords Solutions. Technology partners include Directly, Limitless, Playvox, and Unbabel.
Most recently, Helpshift also extended the scope of its offerings to include SensAI, which leverages the company’s core technologies to address customer service applications. SensAI enables technology partners such as Unbabel to provide real-time translation between buyers and sellers that speak different languages, says Coulson.
All the Helpshift capabilities are delivered via a set of backend services residing on Amazon Web Services (AWS).
The degree to which customers want to engage with bots, of course, varies widely. Some customers prefer human interaction, while others are only too happy to have a bot resolve their issue just to avoid being on hold during a phone call to customer support.
The most important thing about any bot solution involving AI is to maintain integrity, says Coulson. Too many organizations these days are trying to pass bots off as though a customer is engaged with another human.
“Don’t try and fool the customer,” says Coulson.
Of course, the best way for IT services providers to gain proficiency with bots is to employ them within the service they provide. Only then will they have the firmest of handles of precisely what tasks a bot can more efficiently handle than a human customer support representative that in addition to a salary and benefits might also require sick days. The best thing about a bot is that not only do they never forget what they learn; they never quit to take a better job somewhere else.
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