Virgin Media O2 Releases New AI Tools to Boost Telco Service

Virgin Media O2 has unveiled a new AI-powered tool designed to enhance customer support and reduce complaints, reinforcing its commitment to digital transformation in the telco sector. 

Lumi AI, the company’s own conversation analysis tool, is now being trialled by frontline teams, with wider deployment set to follow in the coming months.

The launch forms part of Virgin Media O2’s four-pillar customer service transformation strategy, announced earlier this year. 

Lumi AI supports customer-facing staff in real-time by analysing conversations and drawing on insights from millions of previous interactions. This enables agents to resolve queries more efficiently while personalising the service based on each customer’s needs.

Lumi AI supports super-agent strategy

Lumi AI is being piloted across care, telesales and retention teams. It uses contextual prompts to help agents identify the best solution based on similar past cases. 

It also suggests additional information that may be relevant, or recommends products and services aligned with customer preferences.

Virgin Media O2 is integrating the tool into its newly established 500-strong team based in Manchester, which focuses on handling complex or sensitive issues. Lumi AI will enable these agents to act quickly on personalised insights, reducing call durations and increasing first-time resolution.

Alan Stott, Director of Customer Contact at Virgin Media O2, says: “We know that when a customer needs to contact us – whether over the phone or online – they simply want to get through to us without long delays, they want to ensure we understand their issue and they want a satisfactory resolution as quickly as possible.”

AWS powers next-gen call routing

The Lumi AI deployment follows a series of previous investments in AI by the operator, including a customer contact centre platform built on Amazon Web Services (AWS). 

The AWS-powered tool enables the company to route calls based on customer intent expressed at the start of the conversation. This reduces unnecessary transfers and helps match callers to the right agent more quickly.

Since its introduction, first-time resolution has increased by 8%, with 70% of complaints now resolved within 24 hours.

The platform also gives agents a complete view of customer history, ensuring that any past service issues are taken into account. This improves the sensitivity and relevance of interactions, particularly for returning or vulnerable customers.

“Through investing in new digital tools and leveraging the expertise of partners, we are making real strides in improving the Virgin Media O2 customer experience,” says Alan. 

“Far from replacing our human workforce, AI technology is helping to create a team of super-agents better equipped and more empowered to resolve customer issues first-time.”

Auto call summarisation and vulnerable customer support

Another new addition to Virgin Media O2’s customer support platform is an auto call summarisation tool. 

This system listens to calls in real time and captures the main points discussed. Summaries are presented to agents at the end of the call and also sent to customers, removing the need for manual note-taking and freeing agents to focus on the conversation.

Feedback from staff indicates that the summaries are highly accurate and reduce call wrap-up time. This allows agents to move on to the next query more quickly, lowering overall waiting times.

In parallel, the company is rolling out software to flag customers who may be vulnerable or have additional needs. 

By using AI to identify these cases, Virgin Media O2 can offer tailored support and ensure that customers receive the attention their circumstances require.

Alan adds: “With complaints falling, and call transfers and waiting times down as well, our transformation strategy is well under way and making good progress, but we can’t afford to stand still. 

“Technology is evolving more rapidly than ever before and we’ll continue to work with our partners to explore new and innovative solutions that deliver a consistently exceptional, industry-leading customer experience.”