EBO’s AI Redefines Customer Service Excellence at APS Bank

 
 
 
 

EBO’s AI Redefines Superior Customer Engagement at APS Bank

 

APS Bank partnered with EBO to implement an AI solution that would provide automation to enhance customer engagement, reduce wait times and increase operational efficiency. Today the Virtual Agent (aptly named AVA, short for ‘APS Virtual Assistant) autonomously handles 80% of all chat interactions end-to-end, whilst upholding exemplary customer interaction standards and without requiring any human intervention. This has saved staff time, reduced load on customer care and provided customers with a 24/7 digital touch point that addresses their needs. 

 
 

About APS Bank

APS Bank is a leading provider of financial services, with a legacy of over a century. Offering personal, business and investments solutions, the Bank’s distribution channels consist of a network of branches and ATMs complemented by a versatile electronic banking platform which serves both a retail and commercial customer base.  

 

What Goals Did APS Have?

 
 
Reduce Customer Wait Times

Increase customer retention, deliver 24/7 uninterrupted customer service and reduce loss of leads during out-of-office hours.

 
Improve Operational Efficiency

Mitigate reliance on manual processes and reduce load on customer care service agents which was leading to backlog and business inefficiency.

 

 
Enhance Customer Experience

Signpost and direct customers to the bank’s rich digital resources seamlessly without overburdening human resources.

 
 

The Challenge

Leading banks, such as APS, are facing new economic realities as markets rapidly change and new customer needs emerge. As a result, the bank encountered escalating demands on its customer care centre, resulting in operational inefficiencies and increasing costs. APS approached EBO seeking an efficient solution that enabled the bank to offer human interaction at scale, alleviate the strain while upholding exemplary customer care standards at the same time.  

 

The Solution

EBO introduced its advanced AI technology into APS Bank’s customer journey, to overhaul its customer service system, presenting a scalable solution that would adapt to evolving customer needs and preferences. Recognising the power of EBO’s AI in enhancing customer service, APS Bank’s Voice of the Customer Manager, Scott Lee Holloway, highlighted that:

"In today's world, technology plays a pivotal role in our daily lives. It's essential to approach the matter by prioritising your users' needs and consider AI as a tool to meet and fulfil those needs. Businesses that successfully embrace emerging technologies and utilise them toward customer success, will undoubtedly unlock key competitive advantages in their markets.” 

EBO's team of product and AI conversational design experts worked hand-in-hand with the APS team to build a tailor-made AI Virtual Agent, named AVA. Surfaced on the bank’s website, today AVA can instantly address and handle incoming customer enquiries, round-the-clock. Its capabilities include:

 
 

Capabilities

 
24/7 Virtual Agent

AVA functions as an intelligent Virtual Agent, adeptly tackling a diverse range of queries encompassing internet banking, account opening, loan processing, and more. By automating routine tasks and providing instantaneous support, AVA reduces wait times, enhances customer satisfaction, extends service accessibility beyond conventional business hours and gives staff back time to focus on more complex tasks at hand. This also allowed the bank to capture leads that would usually be lost during out-of-office hours. 

 
Streamlined Lead Qualification

AVA has been trained to answer a vast range of customer intents, from booking appointments to opening loans. AVA efficiently captures necessary data from customers, vets leads and channels them to the appropriate service channels, optimising resource allocation and enhancing operational efficacy. Should a conversation require human takeover, the Bank's staff can easily access the backend interface to handle the chat and continue the conversation seamlessly. 

 
Insightful Customer Analytics

The solution comes with a user-friendly backend interface which provides staff with a vast range of data, captured from the customer dialogues. Not only does this do away with the need for complex Business Intelligence software but it also provides the bank with a deeper understanding of its customers, enabling staff to make informed strategic decisions based on analysis and predictions 

 
Continuous Improvement

Leveraging its NLP and machine learning capablities, the VA applies self-learning techniques to keep its language library updated. This allows it to continoiusly learn and gain more capacity to adapt and handle a wider range of tasks and enquiries. At the same time, EBO's NLP engineers carry out performance reviews on an ongoing basis to optimise the VA and ensure that its NLP recognises the user's intents effectively.    

 
 

The Results

In the second half of 2023 (H2 2023), AVA autonomously handled 80% of all chat interactions end-to-end, without requiring any human intervention. This has saved staff time and increased operational efficiency. Furthermore, AVA achieved 93% of its predefined goals, facilitating account openings, appointment scheduling, loan applications and more. In turn this has relieved staff of repetitive duties, enabling them to concentrate on more intricate business demands.  

Thanks for its NLP and machine learning capabilities, AVA is continuously learning, and its language library is constantly updating. As a result, the recognition rate at which AVA understands customer’s requests and queries is 86%. This continues to improve as more conversations occur ensuring that effective communication and resolution takes place. 

By implementing AVA, APS Bank has achieved significant improvements in customer experience, operational efficiency, and staff productivity. The AI-powered solution has not only addressed immediate challenges but also provided a foundation for future innovation, scalability, and growth in the rapidly evolving financial services landscape.

 
 
 
 

Results

 
 

93%

of AVA's predefined goals achieved

 

86%

recognition rate

 

80%

of all chat interactions handled end-to-end

 
 

Empower your banking experience with EBO’s AI

Since we integrated EBO’s Virtual Assistant, Bovey, at BOV Bank, our customer service has greatly improved. Bovey provides instant, personalised support around the clock, making our clients feel valued and understood. It efficiently handles technical queries, allowing us to focus on building stronger relationships. The positive feedback from our customers speaks volumes about how EBO’s technology has transformed our service. Partnering with EBO was a game changer for us!
Daniel Caruana
Head of Customer Service Centre at Bank of Valetta

As a global Fintech leader, Exinity is dedicated to providing innovative trading and investing solutions tailored to our clients’ diverse needs. When we sought to enhance the efficiency of our customer service operations, we needed a solution that could integrate seamlessly across all communication channels while maintaining the highest standard of customer engagement. EBO has been a true partner in helping us achieve this vision. EBO’s AI-powered Virtual Agents have transformed how we interact with our clients, managing over 45% of customer chats across multiple languages and platforms. The results have been remarkable – not only did we meet our 12-month goal in just three months, but we also significantly reduced operational costs and improved response times.

Rachel Carliss
VP Customer Service at Exinity

EBO is a fantastic supplier to work with, they are hands-on and very supportive. They become part of the project team and take on activities to ensure tasks are completed on time. I have really enjoyed working with EBO. They are a pleasure to work with. No problem or question was ever too much. They were very patient and responsive to all queries. They take their time to talk through the solution and actively work with you to find solutions to workflows that fit our 
organisation’s needs.

Pam Pahal
ICS and PCN Digital Transformation Programme Lead at Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust

At APS Bank, improving the customers’ journeys is integral to the success of our business strategy. We’ve been by our customers’ side since our foundation in 1910, and the project with EBO has allowed us to leverage the power of AI, in keeping with our mission, to make the banking experience simpler and more personal. Our customer-first approach, coupled with EBO’s wealth of knowledge in customer engagement automation, enabled the Bank to offer 24×7 assistance on our recently relaunched website. APS Bank’s Digital Innovation and Voice of the Customer Teams worked as one with EBO to reach our business goals with a strong focus on secure technology deployment and excellence in data science, while enriching our customers’ experience.

Daniel Cassar
Head of Project Delivery and Digital Innovation at APS Bank

If a solution like EBO is implemented across the NHS, it can revolutionise access to maternity care for the majority of service users. The point is to release capacity in Health systems by using innovation and technology that supports that.

Charlotte Clayton
Clinical Academic Doctoral Midwife at RM Princess Anne Hospital, University Hospital Southampton

At GasanMamo, we’ve been in business for over 70 years. In this period, we’ve seen the rise of many exciting new technologies that are aligned to our core belief: that of constant improvement. However, none of these have been as radically transformative as Artificial Intelligence and automation. We believe that AI will provide a better service to support our customers and will transform the digital journey they will take with us. We’ve chosen EBO as the solution provider to help us with this next step.

Mark Mamo
General Manager at GasanMamo Insurance

Working with EBO is like ‘a breath of fresh air’. They have a deep-seated ‘can-do’ ethos to delivering successful solutions and our collaboration functions as a true partnership. The EBO Virtual Assistant is a new technology for us with great potential as it integrates directly with our Electronic Patient Record. We initiated a pilot with EBO on e-Consent and are already lined up for rolling out pre-assessment and appointment modules.

Andy l’Anson
IT Programme Manager at Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust

The experience of working with EBO on our Virtual Assistant has been very positive. EBO and Servelec listened to our feedback and helped design AI solutions that benefit our patients by providing an alternative way they interact with the trust.

James Mariott
Digital Change Manager at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust

I think where we really found the stress is on the admin. A lot of our service users are calling us, which means that our lines are continuously busy and admins miss some of the calls, as they are on the phone with another service user at the time. It means that people are trying to get in contact till the late evening when the services are closed. It really opened up our eyes to see that there are other ways our clients can communicate with us and there are other ways that we can communicate with the clients. It actually works for them.

Shona Richards
Digital Transformation Project Manager at East London NHS Foundation Trust

Our booking officers absolutely love our Virtual Assistant Alex, since it does the legwork and they can focus on the patient. Over the last six months, Alex has helped save 24 hours of staff time every week. Our callers come from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds, so we worked with our communication to make sure Alex understands all our patients and the different ways they communicate.

Kim Hale
Digital Change Lead at Somerset NHS FT

EBO is a trusted partner of Microsoft, because a lot of what we see with thousands of customers that we work around the world is very much aligned with EBO’s mission and vision. They empower caregivers; they empower administrative staff, and they empower patients to have better access to information. 84% of Healthcare Executives believe that AI will revolutionise the way we obtain information.

Ruthy Kaidar
Director, Healthcare Industry Sector at Microsoft

We are at a pivotal moment in the banking sector. Digital banks are on the rise with savvy cross-platform services that challenge the nature of our industry. At BNF we pride ourselves in being adaptable and ambitious, we forge lasting relationships with customers through tailor-made products and services. Most importantly, we listen to their needs. We are investing in technology that helps us get closer to the community that we serve, offering improved customer experiences. We’ve chosen EBO as a partner to support our journey of incorporating Artificial Intelligence into our core business offering.

Mark Micallef
Chief Financial officer at BNF BANK

Insurance companies are at a pivotal stage of the industry’s development. AI technology is starting to disrupt the orthodox nature of business processes. MAPFRE Middlesea is a customer-centric organisation and we continually seek new and better ways to serve our customers. We’ve chosen EBO as a partner to help us adopt innovative technology that allows us to scale and deliver services more efficiently and effectively for our customers.

Peter Bugeja
Head of Technology Solutions & Digital at Mapfre

We love the results! As a data-first company, working with our Virtual Agent Claire has helped us increase productivity, cut running costs and achieve positive levels of customer satisfaction. We have reduced customers’ waiting time and automated entire workflows to provide a quick resolution to specific customer queries.

 

Dalia Pecingina
Head of CX at StanleyBet Group

It is indeed a pleasure to work hand-in-hand with EBO in developing our AI profile and competence. Apart from providing excellent technical expertise, EBO has consistently supported, trained, and maintained a close relationship with all of our team whilst overseeing the development, deployment, and successful marketing of our AI platform. Such support is unique and provides us with the confidence and motivation to further develop this exciting Artificial Intelligence revolution together with EBO, and be able to provide a holistic and efficient experience to our clients.

Jean Claude Muscat
CEO at Saint James Hospital Group

We have a growing backlog and we have patients whose conditions are just getting worse as their appointments are delayed. We have people in the community who cannot even get their first appointment, they cannot get diagnosed and they cannot receive early treatment. Covid has accelerated our adoption of virtual appointments and remote patient monitoring, so there is some efficiency gained there.

Jenny Chong
Associate Non-executive Director at Medway NHS Foundation Trust

“AI creates endless opportunities in customer experience optimisation. Our ongoing investment in technology is a strong differentiator within the mobility industry. This implementation lifts workload off our customer service centre, reduces the customer wait-time and provides a new touch-point with our clients. Booking a cab has never been easier, let alone more efficient.”

Matthew Bezzina
CEO at eCabs

EBO is facilitating us with additional artificial resources which enable us to use our time in a better way. The dedication and professionalism during the project were outstanding and those are the key for a successful cooperation.

Tal Zamstein
CEO at Rabbit Entertainment

A modern telco looks for AI that…understands the customers to the point that it’s able to predict what they are about to ask. Secondly, that the data provided allows us to learn from each interaction. And thirdly, that it speaks to our customers in a natural way that doesn’t sound robotic at all.

Karl Galea
CMO at Epic (EBO Webinar, 3rd June 2021)

Covid helped us. It helped us to develop a global understanding that people are not willing to come to the shop anymore. So, we created a process that is super sound, super safe, super digital and of course Covid friendly, and customers love it.

Antonio Ivancovic
CCO at Go (EBO Webinar, 3rd June 2021)

What I love most about Virtual Agents… (they) don’t have bad days, so you get that smooth experience. Also, they don’t get tired and they are there for your customers 24/7.

Margarita Areteou
SMB Lead at Gr/Cy/MT, Microsoft (EBO Webinar, 3rd June 2021)

It is a lot of pressure to give the customer enough information as quickly as possible. I can see the advantage of the Virtual Agent: if it is a standard question it is good to have an answer ready in hand. The faster we get information to them, the more likely they are to continue with their application form or trading. It also puts us in a good light.

Milica Nikolic (EBO Forex Webinar, June 2021)
Director at FxView

Virtual Agents save the one thing that nobody has anymore – time. And time is money. This is how we can help our Forex customers to be more agile, save money and be more profitable.

Paris Savva
at Microsoft

For us, an ideal solution is a hybrid model. We still would like to have human interaction when our customers can pick up the phone and call, but we also believe that Virtual Agents can be very helpful. They can facilitate specific issues and make response times faster.

Anna Ilukhina (EBO Forex Webinar, July 2021)
CMO at Orbex
 

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