The document discusses the rise of conversational interfaces and chatbots as a new form of search. It notes that search is becoming more conversational, with questions replacing keywords. Chat boxes are replacing or augmenting traditional search boxes by allowing users to ask questions and have natural language conversations to find information. Conversational interfaces help flatten navigation and allow multi-turn dialogs. The trends suggest voice assistants and chatbots will become more common, intelligent and integrated across channels in the future.

1. Chatbots & Chatboxes:
Will Chat Replace
Search?
Dan Cohn @dan_cohn
Big Design 2018 #bigd2018

2. How do people go about
finding information
and
getting answers?

3. In the beginning…

4. ?

5. Then came the “WEB” (World of Encyclopedias & Books)

6. …and these early “WEB” (why even bother) pages

7. Then we went “online” for answers…

10. (Remember this?)

12. Q & A sites that crowdsource answers became prevalent around 2009

13. And the
ever-
popular…

14. A little about me…
Dan

15. Search is now becoming conversational.
Enter, the chatbox…

16. What is a Chatbox?
q Mistaken term for a chatbot
q Popup window on a website that allows you to chat with
customer service
q Company in Seattle that makes Chatbox®, a software-
based solution for messaging with customers
q A new form of search bar
q All of the above?

20. The principle
behind conversational search is that a user can speak a sentence into a device, and that device can
respond with a full sentence.

21. In 2013, Google changed their search algorithm.
It now considers context and meaning and places
a greater emphasis on natural language queries.
Codename: Google Hummingbird

22. More and more, search
boxes are prompting users
to “ask a question” rather
than simply type in search
terms.

24. Conversational search is…
š More natural
š More specific in terms of a user’s intent
š Capable of providing crisper answers
š More conducive to voice-based interfaces
š More friendly?

25. Conversational interfaces also…
š Help users find relevant answers quickly, by
flattening navigation
š Allow for multi-turn dialogs to resolve ambiguity
and gather more information
š Enable seamless transitions between automated
and human customer service agents

26. A simple question
Does my health insurance provider have any
limitations around pre-existing conditions?

27. Does my health insurance provider have any limitations
around pre-existing conditions? Um, where
am I going to
find this
information?
Gotta
love this
Site search
might be nice,
but then I’d
have to browse
a list of results

28. Wouldn’t this be nice?
Does my plan limit or exclude coverage based on pre-existing conditions
What can I help you with today?

29. Wouldn’t this be nice?
Does my plan restrict coverage based
on pre-existing conditions?
What state do you live in?
Texas
Which of these plans are you on?
UHC Choice Plus
(selected from a list)
Great! This plan does not have
any limitations or exclusions for
pre-existing conditions.
Does that answer your question?

30. Erica flattens
navigation to
frequently
accessed
information, like
routing and
account numbers.
Bank of
America app

31. Erica also flattens
navigation to
functions such as
transferring
money to
someone.
Bank of
America app

32. Flattened navigation makes for a good
voice command-based experience

33. Chatbots are also good for
augmenting other input devices
(e.g., voice controls & dictation)

34. Conversational interfaces…
š Help users find relevant answers quickly, by
flattening navigation
š Allow for multi-turn dialogs to resolve ambiguity
and gather more information
š Enable seamless transfers between automated
and human customer service agents

35. Seamless handoff between bots and humans
š Ensures the best possible experience by avoiding user frustration or the
need to initiate a separate phone call
š Possible on both voice and text channels
š Handoff triggers range from a simple user request (e.g., “agent”) to…
š an unsupported intent,
š repeat of the same or similar request, or even
š deterioration of user sentiment

36. Front Desk Bot
Example
What time is check out?
Your check out time is 11 AM
tomorrow
Can I get a later time?
As a member of our preferred
guest program, we can offer
you a 1 PM check out.
Great! Where can I find
some Gucci loafers?
Yes
Sorry, I don’t think I can help
you with that. Would you like
to chat with our concierge?
One moment please…
Concierge
Hi, my name is Stewart. Looking
for a nice pair of dress shoes?
There’s a Saks Fifth Avenue
about 9 blocks from here. Would
you like me to call you a taxi?
Thank you

37. Trends & Directions
“Follow the trend lines, not the headlines.”
– Bill Clinton

38. Trend: Voice before text

39. Text will never replace voice, but…
sometimes it’s a lot more convenient.

40. Trend: Chatbots are getting more intelligent
and more ubiquitous

41. Today
š Bots tend to “live” on one channel or platform
š Most bots provide information rather than performing tasks
š Many bot interactions are “single turn”
š Bot behavior is pre-programmed and predictable

42. Tomorrow
š Many bots will be multi-channel, possibly including both voice and
text interfaces
š Bots will do more and automate more tasks
š Bots will seem more human?
š Bots will learn for themselves (with help from humans)
š Bots will interact with other bots

43. The future of customer service
“By 2020, 25% of customer service and support operations will integrate virtual
customer assistant or chatbot technology, up from less than 2% in 2017.”
Gartner Customer Experience Summit, February 19-20, 2018
https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2018-02-19-gartner-says-25-
percent-of-customer-service-operations-will-use-virtual-customer-assistants-by-2020
“By 2020, experts project that more than 85% of all customer
interactions will be handled without the need for a human agent.”
10 reasons why AI-powered, automated customer service is the future (October 16, 2017)
https://www.ibm.com/blogs/watson/2017/10/10-reasons-ai-powered-automated-customer-service-future/

44. Trend: Availability of platforms, tools, and
providers has exploded

47. Getting Started
Where to begin when considering conversational interfaces

48. Conversational channels
Voice Text Mobile-native
Phone Virtual
Assistant
Messaging Social
Media
Web Apps Text
Messaging
Alexa
Bixby
Cortana
Google
Assistant
Siri
LINE
Facebook
Skype
Slack
WeChat
WhatsApp
Chat
window
Full-page
web chat

49. Criteria
“Do it yourself” (DIY) “Do it for me” (DIFM)
Brand or marketing bot Customer service bot
General knowledge Industry or domain specific
Standalone bot Many back-end integrations
VS

50. DIY vs. DIFM
Do It Yourself
š Natural language processing, speech
recognition, and other cognitive (AI/ML)
services
š Bot platforms, frameworks, and builders
š Conversation analytics
Do It For Me
š End-to-end solution providers
š Professional services
š Consultants
š “Bot shops”

51. Prototyping and mockup tools
š Bot builder tools such as Chatfuel, Dialogflow, and Octane AI can work well.
š is a versatile, collaborative prototyping tool.
š Others include BotFrame, Bot Society, and Typeform Chat.
š Of course, there are also UI kits available for Sketch.

52. Summary

53. Key takeaways
š Finding information is becoming
conversational again (albeit digital
this time around).
š Questions are replacing keywords.
š Chat boxes are replacing or
augmenting search boxes.
š Conversational interfaces help flatten
navigation.
š Voice assistants have been trending
lately.
š Text-based virtual assistants (chatbots)
are getting smarter and more useful.
š Teams building bots have loads of
tools and providers to choose from.
š As with everything, good design is
what separates a friendly, helpful bot
from a maddeningly frustrating one.

54. A final thought
Is it time to retire
the old magnifier
icon and perhaps
replace it with a
speech bubble?

55. Questions & Discussion

56. Thank you!
Dan Cohn @dan_cohn
Big Design 2018 #bigd2018