The world of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to change rapidly, with recent announcements from major tech companies showcasing groundbreaking advancements (summarized in our previous post). These innovations hold significant potential for various industries, including real estate. In this series of blogs, we’ll explore how these latest developments can revolutionize the real estate sector, enhancing efficiency, decision-making, and customer experiences.
AI-Enhanced Customer Interaction and Support
Imagine a world with virtual assistants capable of understanding complex queries and providing detailed, context-aware responses. There are several companies already doing this, and you are likely to have conversed with an AI assistant without knowing it.
This is far beyond what we are used to - a robotic voice asking you what you want and unless you know the exact word or phrasing, you are suddenly yelling into your phone, “I want to talk to a human!”.
Nope, not anymore! The advancements in natural language understanding and generation by companies like OpenAI and Microsoft make talking to a virtual assistant feel quite normal. One of those advancements has to do with speed. GPT-4o, for example, can respond with a rate similar to the human response time of 320 milliseconds on average.
Real estate businesses can leverage these advancements to enhance customer interaction and support. This could streamline the process of answering customer inquiries, scheduling property viewings, and providing tailored property recommendations. While this can be done through a website, according to a Cogito survey, more than 50% of the consumers preferred talking to someone, while only 17% preferred to use technology like a live chat. In fact, in the same study, 46% of consumers reported that they were comfortable with AI being used for support of customer service agents.
See this in action with the AI updates to Siri below:
Not to mention, providing voice-enabled customer service in addition to interacting with bots creates a more inclusive and accessible experience overall. While being able to talk to a customer service agent (whether human or AI) for many is a choice, it is also important to remember that for others, it is essential. And while chatbots can be made accessible, there are some websites that do not always follow accessibility guidelines.
AI, like the technology of Project Astra by Google DeepMind, can now be someone's eyes. Imagine being blind, and having the ability to hold your phone up to a "For Sale" sign, then getting immediately scheduled for a showing. In these cases, if a human is not reachable, an AI-enhanced virtual assistant is the only way to ensure accessibility for all.
By harnessing the power of natural language understanding and rapid response times, real estate businesses can offer more personalized and efficient services. This not only improves customer satisfaction but also opens the door to a more accessible customer service experience.
As AI continues to evolve, the potential for further enhancements in customer interaction is immense. Stay tuned for our next blog in this series, where we will delve into Intelligent Property Search and Recommendations, and explore how AI is reshaping the way we find and choose properties.
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