A user interface for IVRs?

Ux case study for VIsual IVR application

Overview

A quick read for a quick UI project that I worked on in Jan 2022. I work at Simpragma, an IT services company undertaking customer service automation projects. In this project, we worked with a nationalized and overseas bank merger of providing Term plans plus life covers to their customers. They wanted to build something special for their HNI customers waiting in the queue while calling the customer care helpline. We developed a web app with OTP and date of birth verification system which could fetch data from servers for policy etc and provided on the app in just 3 months.

Firstly, what is Visual-IVR?

When I first heard the idea of an interface for traditional IVR my reaction was similar to yours right now. Let me explain why it made sense and has a scope for a better app as well. The Industry name for this kind of app is Visual IVR.

The world of digital technology is evolving very fast but millions still have not adapted to a lot of new content. Yes, I am talking about the older generations who acquired the skill of using digital mediums much later in their age as compared to Gen Z. many still call customer care numbers to resolve their queries despite the IVR telling them to try out their designated application. You can call Airtel, Jio, or any bank or credit card company and try it yourself.

These brands want people to use their applications to be self-sufficient but somehow people find it difficult to understand. One design cant fit all sometimes. The applications somewhere lacked empathy for older generations or nontech savvy users.

Visual IVR helps in the transitioning of users from a phone call later shifting to using customer service apps.

Secondly, why did we build Visual-IVR?

I think there are some apps specifically for some time. The use case for Visual IVR made sense when Canara-HSBC life insurance approached us. They were looking to launch something specifically for their HNI customers parallel to their full-fledged application as well.

The HNI customers were not the ones who heavily invested but were also related for a long term with these Banks. These customers would include a lot of hard-working professionals, C-level executives, and visionaries who have a tight schedule while working. They would require certain information like the fund value of a policy etc instantly and did not want to go through the whole app with too much information.

As these customers relied on calling customer care for queries and did not have much time to wait, a visual interface was built for the same. Customers would not have to remain in the queue and they would get the relevant information as well quickly. The information architecture was kept the same as the IVR system and with the most important and urgent options. Thus the navigation was super quick and relevant.

Thirdly, when will the customers use Visual-IVR?

Customers of this company would usually call customer care for urgent requirements. They would usually inquire about the following things related to their policy

1 Fund-related query- The customer would like to know about the total fund that he has invested and where was it allocated like among different funds.

2 Policy related- The customer would like to know about the total fund that he has invested and where was it allocated like Large, mid, or small cap investments, etc.

3 Premium related- Frequently asked questions like how much premium has been paid and what is the due date for premium etc.

Some of the queries seem obvious but HNI customers take multiple policies from multiple sources and thus sometimes need to check the details.

Customer journey

The HNI customers would get an option to use the web app when they reached the customer care IVR. A link was sent to their registered phone number.

Authentication

Like many other apps, Visual IVR requires OTP verification from the customer. It would prompt if the OTP was entered incorrectly giving a maximum time limit of 2 minutes for the customer to enter it correctly. An SMS can be re-sent in case OTP is not received via SMS.

The date of birth had to be verified by the customer as an added layer of security protocol.

Home Screen

The customer lands on the main screen with options similar to IVR. If you notice the menu options are places like a phone dial pad. It is governed by UX laws where I did not want customers to think much. After using the IVR multiple times customers can remember which number to press on the dial pad for their query. It might not be always true but seemed like a better option than creating a completely new structure for them.

Some options were included in the app whereas some would lead them to the website links as well.

My Policy

I would take you through the most important tree which is related to customer policies. Customers might have more than one policy and queries related to them. Unlike an IVR customers do not have to listen to multiple options and remember the option key as well.

Query type

Once the customer selects which policy they want to inquire about they can choose their query type. Queries are summarised into 3 groups for convenience as per the user's need.

Buy new policy

If a customer wants to buy a new policy they have to submit a form with their query. The form is similar to the form on clients' websites making it easy for their customers to recognize. A sales representative calls the customer and helps them with the purchase of a new policy.

Downloads

Similar to an IVR the web app does not have a section to save a downloaded file. Moreover, most of the customers demanded that the documents should be emailed to them for their sense of satisfaction and documentation.

Call Back

In case a query is not resolved and the customer doesn't want to wait in queue for talking to a customer service representative, they can opt for a callback. A call-back form was created for customers where contact details are pre-filled but the customer can change them if needed. They can also type in the query for the customer representative to be prepared to resolve the query.

Testing the hypothesis

Well, before we get to usability testing of the application, we need to test our hypothesis. The nature of the project did not allow time for user research earlier, as most of the project was driven by the client in the initial phase. I took an approach where we built the MVP quickly to test out clients’ assumptions. As our test engineers collected some data, I would take up the testing and iterate for the second phase. Users can only benefit from a successful idea if they enjoy it. So far the app has shown positive results. We would add more features if the customer can get the desired results, otherwise, we may have to make changes for basic goals first.

Next Steps

1. User testing
2. Make the options more advanced and not just hyperlinks.
3. A visual IVR can run parallel to a call in queue for a customer care representative to attend it as well.
4. An option to store downloaded data and view it later.

Note This is just a prototype of the MVP. An actual MVP fetches data from client servers in real-time.