Knowledge automation saves customer service representatives time otherwise spent looking for answers by automating the delivery of critical information in real time. And when at least 65% of interactions require knowledge to solve, the time that is saved really adds up. To automatically surface the most accurate information, MerlinAI pulls answers from anywhere (e.g. images, video, PDFs, wikis, audio), and automatically suggests them in real time, iin any language a company uses to communicate with its customers. Whether it’s minute 03:24 of a training video or page 17 of a policy, Shelf makes sure that remote workers have answers at their fingertips. This way, teams stay productive and efficient, the responses agents provide are correct and consistent, and new employees are able to contribute faster. Read on to see how Shelf automates answers through IVR, Agent Assist, and chatbots.

How to automate knowledge through IVR

shelf-ivr-steps A standard IVR can route calls to the right department, but agents still need to run manual searches to find the information they need to address each caller’s issue. This friction drastically increases Average Handle Time (AHT), and when even simple questions require agents to put callers on hold for minutes at a time while they research the answer, the impact on the customer experience can be significant. When an IVR is powered with knowledge automation—MerlinAI matches caller intent with relevant knowledge synced from across the company’s content repositories then pops the best answers directly into the agent’s desktop when the call begins. The agent can easily share the answer with the customer without spending time tracking knowledge down. IVR Knowledge through Shelf enables agents to get to information quicker so they can resolve inquiries faster—decreasing handle times significantly.

Automating Answers through Agent Assist

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Retrieving an answer typically requires multiple time-consuming steps: navigating tabs, running multiple searches, scanning documents, and repeating the process when the first attempt comes up short.

Shelf’s Agent Assist eliminates that unnecessary friction. Shelf integrates with any customer service solution and acts as the ultimate guide on the side helping agents navigate to the right answer.

Agent Assist is powered by MerlinAI which actively listens in real-time to customer messages across chat, email, or messenger apps, promoting accuracy, consistency, and speedy resolution. In 2021, Shelf will also support agent assist for live voice. This will be the ultimate compliment to IVR Knowledge.

How to Automate Knowledge Through Chatbots

Section III: How Shelf Automates Answers: image 3 Chatbots are often programmed to provide simple responses to common questions, but what happens if the answer isn’t so simple and complex responses from longform content are needed? That’s when the conversation is turned over to a live agent. But since 81% of customers try to resolve an issue themselves before reaching out to customer support—why force a conversation that is unnecessary, not to mention unwanted by the customer? Integrating knowledge automation into your chatbots provides a more sophisticated level of deflection. MerlinAI extends the scope and complexity of what chatbots can handle by suggesting FAQs and long form articles from your entire content library, and powerful feedback loops keep chatbots healthy by informing when content is working, and when it might need a refresh. Not only does Shelf help chatbots perform better, it helps customers get the answers they need without having to interact with a CSR – just the way that many of them want it!