Knowledge for Self-Service

Customer support is the foundation upon which corporate profitability and sustainability can depend. AI-powered knowledge management is the future of business. And knowledge for self-service is what every competitive organization needs to survive.

Consumers have responded positively to the do-it-yourself service since it was introduced:

• The first vending machine (1883) dispensed postcards and stamps.
• In 1967, Barclays of London installed the first automated teller machine (ATM).

As the Information Age continues its 21st-century technology march, “Don’t care how; I want it now,” could be the theme song for self-service customer support. A positive customer experience (CX) is guaranteed when users access information faster and more easily than ever before.

What Is Knowledge for Self-Service?

Self-service has become the first choice of most consumers. Studies show that nearly 90% of customers expect a brand to have a self-service portal. And they overwhelmingly prefer knowledge bases such as FAQs over other self-service channels. Knowledge management is critical for self-service success, but it’s challenging to get it right. It can be done, though, and the payoffs . . . can be enormous. –KMS Lighthouse

When you invest in a next-generation knowledge management platform, you empower employees. The single-source hub unifies company processes and provides current and true need-to-know intelligence for every department. Employee experience (EX) is positively impacted.

Self-onboarding saves time and money, plus it moves at the employee’s pace. New hires grasp a better understanding of processes and enjoy more comprehensive learning. A knowledge platform with intuitive troubleshooting, interactive scenarios, and easy-to-follow guidance has been proven to benefit onboarding new hires as well as veteran employees.

External users want control and independence in addition to speed. Your AI-powered knowledge base will empower customers seeking fast, accurate information. They can search by topic, generate chatbot solutions, and browse by keyword using a mobile-friendly platform that seamlessly integrates with your company’s customer relationship management (CRM) software (HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Zoho, etc.).

Human assistance and customer wait times will be measurably lowered. When customers can DIY, your support and helpdesk expenses will decrease. The proof is in your dashboard: Operational costs are lower.

Types of Self-Service Knowledge Resources

The best self-service portal delivers instant information across all business platforms. The AI-driven omnichannel approach eliminates isolated silos and connects them, transitioning seamlessly to a searchable, unified hub. It doesn’t matter if the user is mobile, stationary, or physically in-store; your brand and all information remain consistent and up-to-date.

The most common self-service knowledge resources include:

• AI-powered chatbots – Chatbots intuitively analyze diverse human language styles and understand user intent. The software goes beyond fixed answers to intuitive responses, and machine learning (ML) retains text and tone from previous conversations and conversational flows. Natural language processing (NLP) uses predictive algorithms for context-specific responses.
• Community forums – These discussion boards are available to serve customers or are employee peer-to-peer question-and-answer portals.
• Customer account management portals – User-specific interfaces connect customers to their account information, orders, subscriptions, or support request statuses.
• FAQs – FAQs eliminate researching volumes of documents and have become a popular source for fast answers to frequently asked questions.
• Help centers – Users must create accounts and login to view personal orders, purchases, subscriptions, etc.
• Knowledge bases – Anyone can access company articles, processes, and product information without a login.
• Tutorials/product info/help – New hires can access contextual processes and tips.
• Videos for tutorials, processes, visual documents – Infographics, podcasts, walkthroughs, and webinars provide easy-to-follow visuals that help users with difficult, multi-step procedures.
• Virtual assistants – Like chatbots, AI-powered virtual assistants use ML and NLP to answer questions. But AI-driven virtual assistants can multitask; they can schedule meetings and interact with smartphones, for example.

• Chatbots are used in a single window; virtual assistants integrate with other apps and electronics.
• Chatbots are usually text-based only; virtual assistants can respond to voice commands.
• Virtual assistants understand more complicated topics.

9 Reasons Why Self-Service Knowledge Reduces Contact Volume

Nearly 90% of customers expect businesses to offer a self-service option. Self-service knowledge portals reduce contact volume by giving customers a solution that resolves routine issues without the need to explain their problems to helpdesk personnel. Customers frame their queries using their own language. Wait times are reduced for users, and live support is freer to work with more complex issues.

Well-designed, AI-powered self-service platforms reduce the number of contacts and increase customer satisfaction:

1. Approximately 67% of customers preferred self-service to waiting for a representative. When customers choose self-service, 40%-60% of personnel support volume is diverted.
2. Automation speeds the process. AI-driven knowledge management automates password resets, order tracking, and other common support-ticket requests.
3. Chatbots provide intuitive, conversational interfaces, accessible for real-time responses and guidance. More than 50% of customers would rather interact with chatbots than humans.
4. Data from self-service assists can identify pain points. If customers repeatedly have the same uncommon issue, managers can flag the product or service for review.
5. FAQs and searchable knowledge bases are easily accessible. Wiki-like libraries of DIYs, tutorials, and product documentation are easily accessed in one central location.
6. Problem resolutions are faster and easily searchable. Customers skip phone queues and hold times by finding answers themselves.
7. Self-service managed by an AI platform environment reduces personnel assists; this lowers operational costs.
8. Support team time becomes more effective. Representatives are free from routine questions and answers. They will appreciate the challenges of managing high-priority problems and resolutions that require more professional, advanced thinking skills.
9. There are no time constraints with 24/7 access. Self-help solutions are available anytime, and customers never have to wait for standard business hours.

What Makes a Self-Service Knowledge Base Effective?

Strategic knowledgebase optimization enhances CX and EX. “By moving the client to KMS Lighthouse, we gave associates a database they could search much more easily,” recalls TTEC, “Lighthouse has enhanced search capability that lets associates find content anywhere within the system, regardless of where it is housed. Lighthouse also makes it easier for associates to find content because it uses keyword searching to fetch results…”

Great Answers, Fast

Unassisted issues resolution is one of the cornerstones of your ongoing digital transformation. Tracking usage and search successes, content quality, and self-service ratings are the metrics that will support knowledge base effectiveness.

The future begins today. You have nothing to lose and so much to gain when you request a free demo of cutting-edge, scalable AI-powered knowledge management for self-service solutions. Why wait?

FAQs