Merlin Entertainments is a British-based entertainment company that operates various attractions, such as theme parks, aquariums, and museums. It is the world’s second-largest operator of visitor attractions, behind Disney, and operates over 130 attractions across 25 countries. Some of its popular brands include LEGOLAND, Alton Towers, SEA LIFE, and Madame Tussauds. The company is known for providing innovative and immersive experiences that entertain and engage visitors of all ages.
Locations: United Kingdom
Industry: Entertainment and attractions
Features Deployed: Web messaging, Facebook, FAQ Bots
Merlin Entertainment Project Overview
Challenge:
The challenge faced by Merlin Entertainments was the inefficiency of their customer service operations. The high volume of customer inquiries through phone calls, emails, and social media platforms was putting a strain on their customer service team, leading to delays and increased escalations. This was due to the limited resources available to handle these inquiries, with agents being held up with general enquiries and unable to address more pressing issues. The under-resourced customer service was causing dissatisfaction among customers, leading to negative impacts on the reputation and overall customer experience of the company.
Solution:
To address the challenge of under-resourced customer service, Merlin Entertainments deployed web messaging and FAQ chatbots as a solution. The chatbots were deployed across all websites and Facebook platforms for all 28 attractions over the course of one year. These were designed to handle general customer inquiries with quick replies and provide detailed answers to avoid customer escalations, promoting self-service.
The chatbots were equipped with natural language processing (NLP) capabilities to understand the questions being asked by customers and provide appropriate responses. This reduced the need for customer service agents to handle general inquiries, freeing up their time to address more pressing issues. The chatbots were also able to handle a high volume of customer conversations, reducing the number of phone calls and emails and improving the overall customer experience.
Chatbots provided an efficient and effective solution to the challenge of under-resourced customer service at Merlin Entertainments by improving the efficiency of customer service operations, reducing workload for agents, and enhancing the customer experience.
Outcome:
The outcome of deploying web messaging and FAQ chatbots as a solution to under-resourced customer service at Merlin Entertainments was positive and significant. The following were the key outcomes:
- Reduced Escalations: The chatbots were able to handle a high volume of general inquiries, leading to a dramatic fall in the number of escalations of these inquiries. This improved the overall customer experience and reduced frustration among customers.
- Increased Efficiency: By handling a significant portion of customer inquiries, the chatbots freed up customer service agents to focus on more pressing issues, leading to increased efficiency and improved workload management.
- Reduced Phone Calls and Emails: The chatbots were able to handle a high volume of customer conversations, reducing the number of phone calls and emails received by customer service agents. This improved their overall workload and reduced their stress levels.
- Enhanced Customer Experience: The chatbots provided quick and detailed answers to customer inquiries, leading to a better overall customer experience. The self-service nature of the chatbots allowed customers to resolve their issues quickly, reducing wait times and frustration.
The deployment of chatbots as a solution to under-resourced customer service at Merlin Entertainments was a success, leading to improved efficiency, reduced workload for customer service agents, and enhanced customer experience.
Merlin Entertainment Project Outcome
Conclusion:
Web messaging and FAQ chatbots by Merlin Entertainments was a strategic move to address the challenge of under-resourced customer service. The solution provided a range of benefits, including reduced escalations, increased efficiency, reduced phone calls and emails, and enhanced customer experience. The chatbots were able to handle a high volume of customer inquiries, freeing up customer service agents to focus on more pressing issues and improving their overall workload. The use of natural language processing (NLP) capabilities in the chatbots allowed them to provide quick and accurate answers to customer inquiries, leading to a better overall customer experience.
The deployment of chatbots at Merlin Entertainments was a success, providing a solution to the challenge of under-resourced customer service while improving the customer experience. The case study serves as an example of the effective use of technology in enhancing the customer service operations of a company.
