noHold Releases Next Generation of Albert

February 27, 2017, MILPITAS, CA – Last month, noHold announced SICURA™ QuickStart, the first platform designed to allow non-programmers to create a chatbot (Albert). Today, noHold is excited to introduce the next generation of Albert. There are many new features implemented to make creating a quality bot easy for anyone.

Here is a list of the new features offered on the platform:

• Phrases Digital Signature (PDS) – This is a new algorithm that allows Albert to no longer rely solely on the Headings to retrieve information. Now, Albert can analyze the entire document (headings and content) to determine what the end user is asking and provide the most accurate solution.
• Synonyms list – Directly within your document, you have the ability to create a list of synonyms for words that are specific to your business. For example whether Joe asks about “Droid settings”, or “Android settings”, Albert understands they are the same questions, because “Droid” and “Android” are set as synonyms.
• Albert Etiquette – This feature gives users the ability to add some personality to Albert. Simply add a few phrases and answers to your document that you would like Albert to answer in a certain way. For example, if someone asks Albert a silly question like “what is your favorite color?” or “why is the sky blue?” You can let Albert know exactly how you would want him to respond. This sort of one off phrase adds character to Albert.
•  Dialog configuration – Users can now manipulate the dialog settings. This includes changing greeting messages, escalation phrases when Albert does not know the answer, and escalation links for further assistance.

In addition to the new features mentioned above, noHold also introduces SICURA QuickStart PRO, making Albert available for commercial use. Features that are exclusive to PRO users include:

• Commercial Use – Companies are able to create and distribute business chatbots, either for external or internal use for little cost.
• Customization of the User Interface (UI) - The free version offers a standard UI that is not customizable. With PRO, account holders have the ability to easily change colors, add company logos, and more all without touching the HTML.
• Multiple Alberts – There are many advantages to having more than one Albert. For example, a company can leverage different Alberts to be knowledgeable about various business units. There can be one bot that knows all about support questions that is positioned on the website for external purposes. Then, another Albert can know about HR policies/company manuals used internally for employees.
• Key encrypted URLs – An extra level of security was added to ensure that Alberts that contain company sensitive information (particularly for internal use), stay private.

Diego Ventura, CEO of noHold says, “Companies are surprising us every day in how they are using Albert. A dealership uses Albert to train and onboard new employees. A technology company is connecting Albert to Near Field Communication (NFC) tags to activate Albert when a user phone gets close to a specific device. A design agency uses Albert to rapidly prototype new bots. We would have never thought about these applications if it weren’t for our customers.”

It is great to be able to offer a more dynamic option to users, still without needing programming skills, and for very little cost. To upgrade your personal account to PRO is as little as $100/month. To sign up for a PRO account, please click here.

About noHold, Inc.

noHold is a privately held company established in 1999 and is headquartered in Milpitas, CA, USA (Silicon Valley). noHold is the acknowledged leader in Web based Self-service solutions with a mission to deliver real answers to real questions – real fast. Simple to use, easy to implement and as close to human as you can get, noHold turns automated customer support into cognitive customer interactions. noHold customers include Cisco, Dell, Intel and a host of industry leaders. More information can be found at http://www.nohold.com or subscribe to noHold’s vlog to hear more from CEO, Diego Ventura. 

noHold Launches SICURA™ QuickStart

Empowering non-programmers to create their own Virtual Assistant (bot)

December 6, 2016, MILPITAS, CA – noHold announces SICURA™ QuickStart, a platform designed to make creating a Virtual Assistant (Albert) easy for anyone with a basic understanding of Microsoft® Word or Google® Docs.

Now, if you are a small business owner you can create a Virtual Assistant out of the manual for your product(s). If you are a large enterprise you can create a Virtual Assistant out of an Employee Handbook. Personal use is possible, too. For example, students can create a Virtual Assistant out of their last research paper.

According to Business Insider, in April of 2015 the number of messaging application users surpassed the number of social application users.  Given that the interaction paradigm of a messaging application is very similar to the paradigm of a Virtual Assistant (bot), the popularity of Virtual Assistants has increased exponentially. Recognizing this growing trend, noHold engineered SICURA QuickStart as a way to make creating and managing AI simple for anyone.

To make your own Albert, go to www.albertai.com, and click sign up in the top right navigation bar. Follow a few simple instructions to get a free personal account, and once you have access you will be ready to start teaching Albert anything you want. Upon completion of training Albert (a process that takes seconds), a mobile-friendly URL is provided. This URL can be placed anywhere you like, making integrating with websites, social media, and collaboration platforms easy. Metrics are also available to monitor weekly usage and identify exactly what users are asking your Albert.

CEO of noHold, Diego Ventura, goes on to say, “I don’t believe the next generation AI will be built by one single big company, instead, it will be the result of the collaboration of millions of people who have created their own Virtual Assistants and are able to connect them together. Who knows, maybe a lot of them will be called Albert.”

Customer Journey Mapping Toolkit: Do It Yourself Exercise

A couple weeks ago, we shared with you the scoop on a popular customer experience trend, Customer Journey Mapping. We went over what it is, why its important, and how to do it yourself. Click here to get a reminder of the information that was presented in that blog. 

To complete the customer journey mapping toolkit, we want to provide you with a sample story to test out your new journey mapping skills. The story we used is based on a company in the consumer electronics space, but once you get the hang of the exercise you can apply the skills you've learned to any industry. 

Take a moment to go over the 'how-to' presentation to re-fresh your memory on the 11 step process. 

Once you feel comfortable, print out the story presentation below and discuss with colleagues/peers what pain points you see as major issues and how you can improve the customer experience. Remember: the main goal of any customer journey map is to identify key touch points a customer has with a company and how they were feeling at those specific moments.  

 

 

If you have any questions or comments, please let us know in the comments below. Or for more information follow the link to the website and contact us via the contact us form. Feel free to share your experience designing your own map and what ideas you have come up with to better the customer experience.

Cheers!

www.nohold.com 

Throwback Thursday: Small Business Owner Launches Virtual Assistant to Aid with Customer Service

In light of small business week (May 12-16), this press release announcing one of noHold’s first small business customers to utilize a Virtual Assistant (circa 2011), seems fitting. 

Jessica Rust of Rust Designs creates personalized dinnerware that can be purchased online or be found in stores all over the US. As with many small business, it was hard to keep up with customer questions about products/services. To try and reduce the volume of email/calls Jessica was getting about FAQ’s, she opted to implement a Virtual Agent. With only a few hours of training, she was able to build her own Virtual Agent, customize the avatar, and is still able to manage/maintain the Virtual Agent on her own.    

Small businesses, such as Rust designs, are at the core of a healthy economy. By making the cutting edge technology that corporations use, accessible to companies that employ less than 25 people, it can contribute to the companies success and the growth of the economy. 

Click the link provided to view the full press release, noHold Offers Recession Buster to Small Business: A Do-It Yourself Virtual Assistant for Rust Designs.

www.nohold.com

The Evolution of Self-Service

Photo Credit: www.flysas.com

As you may know, noHold recently attended the TCS Co Innovation Forum which was held at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, CA. As I was walking around the hotel I noticed there was a self-service kiosk used for checking in. It really inspired me to write a blog about how much self-service has evolved and how much more common it is now compared to just a few year ago.

Now-a-days there are self-service machines virtually everywhere. They are at the grocery stores, restaurants, hotels, airports, banks, and self service beer taps that turn customers into bartenders. Click here to view the article. And how many people actually go inside the bank anymore, I know I use the ATM more often than I decide to go into the bank. Gradually, self-service machines are integrating into our society and generations to come are ONLY going to be familiar with these self-service kiosks.  

Photo Credit: selfserviceworld.com

 We started with vending machines and now there are self-service kiosks in locations you never would think they would be placed. For example, in the food industry. The places where people would usually go to be served are now reaping the benefits of launching a quick, self-service restaurant kiosk. 

I remember going to blockbuster to rent movies with my family every Friday. The next generations are not going to know such a thing because Redbox and Netflix are quickly taking over. Whether the increase in self-service kiosks is good or bad, we can all agree that they are quickly becoming the norm and stores that don’t have them want them, and stores that do have them, want more of them. Being able to adapt to change is a part of life, and it seems like self-service is a big change for most people, but accepting and embracing the change can lead to great innovations.
We realize how much we try to speed up the little things in life that we find to be a waste of time. In this era of technology, every second counts and convenience is key.   

I want to leave you with an infographic I found that goes through the evolution of self-service, dating all the way back to the 1880’s! To view the infographic, click here.

Cheers!