ILC ARTICLE

ClaimsTech 2019: Speaker Insight – Dr Nicola Millard, Principal Innovation Partner at BT

3rd October 2019

We were delighted to be joined at our recent ClaimsTech conference by Dr Nicola Millard, Principal Innovation Partner at BT.

She explored the trends transforming digital customer experience highlighting the ‘3 Us’ test – useful, usable and used. However, quoting professor Alan Dix, Birmingham University, she declared ‘What is useful and usable isn’t always used!’

To watch her in action on the day click here 

Highlighting research – The Digital Customer 2017 – and the ever-increasing trend for digital customers, Nicola said, ‘Customers are seeking simplicity: digital customers want easy journeys – and that is likely even more relevant when it comes to insurance.’

Nicola went on to focus on how smartphones are becoming more important in the digital experience and how apps have previously provided a ‘solution’ yet often missed the mark. To this end, Nicola pointed at how micro-apps were now becoming the ‘go to’ customer engagement solution, providing quick, personalised, omni-channel, fully integrated interaction.

‘Omni channel solutions are important because customers make decisions on engagement at each stage of the journey based on their motivation, context and attitude,’ explained Nicola. ‘Customers in crisis do not deal well with complexity – they want a simple and straightforward service which is more often than not a phone call, and that’s regardless of generational behaviours.’

One area Nicola drew attention to as a real opportunity for customer engagement was video which she claimed can ‘transform the customer experience’. Referring to it as personalised video as a service, Nicola highlighted how one major financial services provider has achieved a 400% increase in loan sales by implementing such strategy.

For another video clip from her presentation just click here

BT itself has implemented SightCall, allowing it to deliver a ‘see what I see’ experience to the customer, saving on simple connectivity solutions.

Nicola then described how ‘chat is where it’s at’, citing how 65% of the research participants want chat support when faced with a problem.

She also referenced how 73% believe chatbots will help companies improve their customer service yet how 74% were in favour of human agents checking the more complicated responses.

‘Chatbots certainly have appeal but with checks and balances from human agents. They work for simple queries by steering customer through the ‘known knowns’ but currently struggle with complexity – intelligent routing is the key to customer experience,’ explained Nicola.

Nicola rounded her session by pointing to how consumers are impressed by proactive service and more open to sharing information if it is of benefit to them but warned: ‘engage with customers but do not annoy them – too much contact just becomes creepy.’

A highly informative and insightful presentation with some very positive delegate feedback post event.