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ePLDT’s AI Solution Drives 222% Boost in Account Processing
In general, Filipinos like to be reminded about their payment deadlines. For PLDT and Smart, the challenge was finding the right solution to service 4.5 million Postpaid plan customers, as training human agents was time-consuming and costly.
In November 2022, PLDT and Smart worked with ePLDT, the ICT subsidiary of PLDT, to roll out an advanced solution that supercharged their collections process: the Intelligent Virtual Collections Assistant (VCA) program. The program utilizes Artificial Intelligence (AI) conversational bots that automate the collection reminder process without diminishing the customer experience.
Seeming as human as their names, Cindy, Celine, Cassie, and Chloe, the bots listen and respond like a local, speaking approachable Taglish and answering questions without any trace of mechanical choppiness. In fact, customers’ typical reaction upon interacting with the bots is to politely hang up then ask disbelievingly, “Wait a minute, was I really talking to a robot?”
“What’s more impressive is that [the] AI is so efficient that both our productivity and collections have increased substantially since we rolled out the service,” remarked Dianne Blanco, PLDT and Smart VP of Consumer Credit and Collection Account Management. The division reported a 222% increase in processed accounts and an 82% increase in productive calls per day.
Besides its incredible results for both the customer experience and the bottom line, part of what makes the AI solution remarkable is how quickly and easily the technology was implemented with ePLDT’s support. Despite the advanced workings of the solution, ePLDT’s expertise, partnerships, and existing telephony system enabled the VCA program to be implemented in just six months, compared to the usual implementation time of up to several years for ICT projects of similar scale.
“Working with ePLDT has allowed us to pioneer this AI- powered collections initiative,” said John Palanca, PLDT and Smart SVP for Sales and Development. “They collaborated with us from the start until full deployment. They continue to help ensure the success and efficiency of the Talkbot solution in production.”
ePLDT’s role did not end after the bot got off the ground. ePLDT’s project managers continue to monitor the bot’s analytics and are ready to shift strategies depending on the business needs.
