Most consumers are no strangers to sub-par service—whether it comes in the form of long wait times or complex forms. Organizations know that these lackluster experiences can drive customers away and stand in the way of loyalty and growth.

Soon, however, due to the customer service-focused “Time Is Money” initiative announced by the Biden-Harris Administration, businesses delivering poor experiences may have to answer to the government, too.

Teams who take the initiative themselves and respond proactively to newly proposed customer-service standards won’t just find themselves on the right side of any regulations. With the help of the right tools, like chatbot analytics, they can ensure their business remains at the forefront of delivering exceptional service.

Announced in August, the “Time Is Money” effort takes aim at everyday consumer pain points that can “add unnecessary headaches and hassles to people’s days and degrade their quality of life.”

As part of the initiative, the Administration will take action on a range of consumer issues, including making it easier to cancel subscriptions, requiring automatic refunds for airline tickets, streamlining health insurance claims processes, and ensuring customers can reach human agents without getting lost in automated, so-called “doom” loops.

“Time Is Money” and Customer Service Chatbots

Crucially, the initiative also singles out the use of customer service chatbots as an area requiring regulation. The government’s proposed actions seek to address chatbots that provide inaccurate information or prevent customers from reaching a live agent. According to the Administration’s release:

“The CFPB is planning to issue rules or guidance to crack down on ineffective and time-wasting chatbots used by banks and other financial institutions in lieu of customer service. The CFPB will identify when the use of automated chatbots or automated artificial intelligence voice recordings is unlawful, including in situations in which customers believe they are speaking with a human being.”

Potential regulation would come at a pivotal moment, as the emerging conversational AI market is rapidly expanding—and when many organizations are looking to their conversational AI chatbots to play an increasingly important role in their customer service operations.

To fulfill the promise of emerging chatbot technologies, deliver the experiences that customers expect, and avoid running afoul of new regulations, the ability to understand chatbot performance will be a critical area of focus.

This is not only a matter of taking the right strategic approach, but of having the right tools. Without a chatbot analytics solution that helps you measure the metrics that matter most, analyze the full breadth of your customer conversations, and quickly take data-driven action, your organization will struggle to keep up with the standards set by regulators and consumers.

To better align with the Time Is Money initiative and deliver exceptional chatbot experiences, equip your team with tools that can do the following:

1. Monitor Technical Metrics to Improve Customer Experience

Fully understanding the impact of your chatbot starts with being able to measure the metrics and KPIs that matter most. Your analytics dashboard should enable analysts to see where chatbots may be coming up short—and translate these insights into meaningful impact. By tracking chatbot performance metrics that capture response time, resolution rates, overall customer satisfaction, and more, companies can get granular about how their chatbots are performing and identify where improvements are needed.

Example: The “Time Is Money” initiative has its sights set on chatbots that waste customer time by preventing them from reaching a human agent, repeating themselves, or providing inaccurate information. Prevent these issues in your contact center by analyzing negative signals such as:

• “Bad containment,” or when a bot fails to escalate a topic it’s known to be poor at automating

• Cases where a customer requests escalation using any agent-like word but is not connected with a live agent

• A chatbot’s repetition rate, which can lead to informational loops

2. Analyze Comprehensive Conversations for Quality Assurance

Ensuring effective quality management means being able to see beyond individual chatbot interactions. Your analysis should be able to capture and understand full conversations—from the initial interaction with the bot to the final resolution with a live agent. It should also enable you to understand important and emerging topics of conversation. This comprehensive analysis enables businesses to more holistically assess the quality of their customer service, as well as zero in on specific aspects of the customer journey where the chatbot may be causing friction or confusion.

Example: Suppose your analytics reveal that customers frequently abandon conversations with your chatbot before reaching a resolution. This could indicate that the bot’s responses are unclear or getting people stuck in an automated loop. By analyzing these conversations in detail and being able to conduct intent discovery at scale, you can pinpoint the topics that are causing issues and refine your chatbot’s responses to ensure they are clear, accurate, and helpful—key principles of the “Time Is Money” initiative.

3. Use Real-Time Data for Swift Action

Conversational AI bots are an increasingly integral part of today’s customer service experiences. Your approach to data capture and analysis should treat them that way. To keep pace with today’s evolving industry and regulations, you can’t afford to have siloes—you need a single source of truth for all of your customer conversations. With direct access to transcripts from chatbots, voicebots, and live agent conversations together in one single view, you can eliminate unnecessary complexity and more quickly identify and address issues, without relying on external resources.

Example: If a significant number of customers are struggling to cancel subscriptions via your chatbot, you can immediately dive into the data to understand the problem. Whether it’s a confusing user interface or an overly complicated process, having instant access to customer interaction data enables you to take swift corrective action, ensuring compliance with new regulations and improving customer satisfaction.

Although the onus is on businesses to improve experiences, it’s clear that virtual interactions will become an increasingly preferred channel for consumers. Gartner expects that 14% of contact center interactions will be handled by AI by 2027, up from just 3% in 2023. And the “Time Is Money” initiative recognizes the potential of automation, encouraging’s the streamlining of processes like online health insurance claim submissions and subscription cancellations. Businesses must be ready to meet this growing demand with efficient and effective digital solutions.

Your own preparation for the shift to virtual cannot afford to wait. Take proactive steps and familiarize yourself with the systems and tools required to comply with potential changes—and help you seize a competitive advantage in the process.

At Calabrio, we offer comprehensive chatbot analytic tools and services that help businesses gain deep insights into the performance of their customer service chatbots, identify and correct issues before they escalate, and ultimately align with the initiative’s goals of reducing unnecessary time and financial burdens on consumers. As these new regulations take effect, those who invest in sophisticated analytics tools will be well-positioned to not only comply but to thrive in this new landscape.

Book a demo today and learn more about how Calabrio can help you get the best out of your chatbots.