If industry leaders are trepidatious about chatbots, the consumer outlook is even more skeptical. There is a significant discrepancy between the way businesses and customers feel about chatbot effectiveness, according to a survey conducted throughout 2018 by NICE inContact. While 63% of contact center decision-makers in the US, UK and Australia felt that chatbots and virtual assistants make it easier for customers to get their issues resolved, only 33% of consumers in those countries felt the same.
Despite these frustrations, adoption rates of chatbots are expected to soar in the next 18 months, according to a survey conducted by Salesforce in November and December 2018. When the firm polled 3,500 multinational customer service agents and decision-makers, it found that 23% were using chatbots, but an additional 31% said they planned to adopt the technology in the next 18 months—indicating a projected growth rate of 136% in that timeframe.
However, if chatbot technology fails to meet and keep up with key aspects of customer service success, adoption rates could slow.