barrons.com -
Automation strategy has historically focused on how machines can do the jobs that people do now. As artificial intelligence becomes more powerful, corporate strategists are asking the same question: can AI do work we now pay people to do?
What if this is the wrong question? When it comes to automating customer conversations with chatbots and AI-driven virtual agents, the real value of that automation may well be in generating revenue and growth, not in cutting headcount.
Already, there are a few notable examples of chatbots generating significant revenue. For example, the casual dining chain TGI Fridays decided to reach out to millennials with an irreverent, brand-appropriate chatbot available through
Facebook Messenger and
Twitter . As Fridays’ Chief Experience Officer Sherif Mityas explained...