Overview
Cheerio AI is an omnichannel SaaS platform designed to streamline customer communication for businesses. It empowers users to run campaigns through Email, SMS, and WhatsApp while offering a consolidated WhatsApp Team Inbox.
The WhatsApp Team Inbox allows businesses to send and receive messages seamlessly from a single WhatsApp Business account, enabling multiple agents to collaborate effectively within a unified platform. This solution bridges a crucial gap in the market by combining robust chat functionality with essential management tools.
Problem Statement
Customer support has shifted dramatically in recent years, with businesses increasingly moving to WhatsApp as their primary channel for chat-based interactions. However, existing platforms failed to provide a comprehensive solution to address the needs of industrial clients, especially those with dedicated chat support teams.
The main challenges included:
No existing platform supported multiple agents working on a single WhatsApp Business account in an organized way.
A lack of tools to help agents manage customer interactions efficiently, such as ticket assignments, saved responses, and user journey templates.
To address these challenges, our goal was clear:
Create a team inbox that supports WhatsApp messaging.
Integrate essential management tools to enhance agent productivity and customer satisfaction.
User Research
To ensure the product met real-world needs, we conducted extensive user research, focusing on support agents and their workflows. This involved:
Interviews: Over 15 in-depth interviews with support agents from diverse industries.
Observation: Shadowing agents to understand their day-to-day activities, pain points, and how they use existing tools.
Feedback Analysis: Gathering insights from companies already using WhatsApp for support.
Key Findings
Through this research, we mapped the entire lifecycle of a support query—from ticket creation to resolution. Here’s what we uncovered:
Agents often juggle between multiple tools to manage tickets and respond to customer queries.
There’s a critical need for features like saved responses and templates to speed up repetitive tasks.
Miscommunication arises due to a lack of centralized customer information, such as previous chat history or purchase details.
Tracking the status of each ticket is cumbersome without clear labels or filters.
Based on these insights, we compiled a list of essential features:
Ticket creation and categorization.
Detailed customer profiles with past interactions.
Ticket assignment for efficient workload distribution.
Notes and comments for context-sharing among agents.
Saved responses and message templates for repetitive tasks.
User journey templates for automation.
Status labeling (e.g., unresolved, follow-up, on-hold).
Design Approach
Our design philosophy revolved around simplicity, familiarity, and functionality. Inspired by Jakob’s Law, we aimed to create an interface that felt familiar to agents while solving their specific pain points.
Phase 1: Core Chat Functionality
We began by focusing on the core functionality—sending and receiving messages. The interface was inspired by WhatsApp Web to minimize the learning curve for agents. The layout included:
A chat list panel on the left.
The active chat view in the center.
A message input field with rich functionality at the bottom.
Phase 2: Adding Contextual Features
Once the basic chat interface was in place, we integrated additional tools and features to improve efficiency:
Right Sidebar for Contextual Data:
A collapsible sidebar on the right provided quick access to customer details, custom parameters, and notes.
Example: Agents could see if a customer was new, repeat, or VIP based on custom labels.
Enhanced Input Field:
Saved responses and templates were integrated into the input field for quick access.
Shortcut Feature: Agents could type a “Back Slash” (
/) to bring up suggested saved responses, reducing typing effort.
Chat Status Indicators:
Chat statuses (e.g., unresolved, follow-up) were displayed at the top of the chat view and next to each chat in the chat list for better visibility.
Example: Agents could see at a glance which chats required immediate attention.
Quick Filters:
Introduced customizable quick filters to help agents easily sort chats based on frequently used criteria.
Example: Filters like “Unresolved Tickets” or “Pending” could be pinned for one-click access.
Design Iterations
We tested the designs with a pilot group of 10 agents, gathering feedback and iterating on features to improve usability. For example:
The sidebar was redesigned to be collapsible based on feedback that it cluttered the interface.
The saved response suggestions were enhanced to include predictive text based on customer queries.
Mobile Responsive Design
With remote working facilities people are used to work on the go and to fulfil that required we made the inbox feature responsive. so that agent/user can login from anywhere or everywhere without the need of carrying a laptop on the go.
Impact
The WhatsApp Chat Inbox is now live on Cheerio AI and has transformed the way businesses handle customer support.
Key Results:
Increased Efficiency:
Agents save up to 4 hours daily through features like saved responses and template-based user journeys.
Example: A query that previously took 5 minutes to resolve now takes less than 2 minutes.
Faster Resolution Times:
Overall ticket resolution times have decreased by 30%, improving customer satisfaction.
Scalability:
Over 2,000 agents use the platform daily across various industries, showcasing its versatility and reliability.
Positive Feedback:
Agents appreciated the familiar interface and the integration of productivity tools that aligned with their workflows.
Conclusion
The success of the WhatsApp Team Inbox demonstrates the power of user-centered design and iterative development. By understanding the needs of agents and addressing their pain points, We have not only improved efficiency but also set a new standard for chat support solutions.
Overview
Cheerio AI is an omnichannel SaaS platform designed to streamline customer communication for businesses. It empowers users to run campaigns through Email, SMS, and WhatsApp while offering a consolidated WhatsApp Team Inbox.
The WhatsApp Team Inbox allows businesses to send and receive messages seamlessly from a single WhatsApp Business account, enabling multiple agents to collaborate effectively within a unified platform. This solution bridges a crucial gap in the market by combining robust chat functionality with essential management tools.
Problem Statement
Customer support has shifted dramatically in recent years, with businesses increasingly moving to WhatsApp as their primary channel for chat-based interactions. However, existing platforms failed to provide a comprehensive solution to address the needs of industrial clients, especially those with dedicated chat support teams.
The main challenges included:
No existing platform supported multiple agents working on a single WhatsApp Business account in an organized way.
A lack of tools to help agents manage customer interactions efficiently, such as ticket assignments, saved responses, and user journey templates.
To address these challenges, our goal was clear:
Create a team inbox that supports WhatsApp messaging.
Integrate essential management tools to enhance agent productivity and customer satisfaction.
User Research
To ensure the product met real-world needs, we conducted extensive user research, focusing on support agents and their workflows. This involved:
Interviews: Over 15 in-depth interviews with support agents from diverse industries.
Observation: Shadowing agents to understand their day-to-day activities, pain points, and how they use existing tools.
Feedback Analysis: Gathering insights from companies already using WhatsApp for support.
Key Findings
Through this research, we mapped the entire lifecycle of a support query—from ticket creation to resolution. Here’s what we uncovered:
Agents often juggle between multiple tools to manage tickets and respond to customer queries.
There’s a critical need for features like saved responses and templates to speed up repetitive tasks.
Miscommunication arises due to a lack of centralized customer information, such as previous chat history or purchase details.
Tracking the status of each ticket is cumbersome without clear labels or filters.
Based on these insights, we compiled a list of essential features:
Ticket creation and categorization.
Detailed customer profiles with past interactions.
Ticket assignment for efficient workload distribution.
Notes and comments for context-sharing among agents.
Saved responses and message templates for repetitive tasks.
User journey templates for automation.
Status labeling (e.g., unresolved, follow-up, on-hold).
Design Approach
Our design philosophy revolved around simplicity, familiarity, and functionality. Inspired by Jakob’s Law, we aimed to create an interface that felt familiar to agents while solving their specific pain points.
Phase 1: Core Chat Functionality
We began by focusing on the core functionality—sending and receiving messages. The interface was inspired by WhatsApp Web to minimize the learning curve for agents. The layout included:
A chat list panel on the left.
The active chat view in the center.
A message input field with rich functionality at the bottom.
Phase 2: Adding Contextual Features
Once the basic chat interface was in place, we integrated additional tools and features to improve efficiency:
Right Sidebar for Contextual Data:
A collapsible sidebar on the right provided quick access to customer details, custom parameters, and notes.
Example: Agents could see if a customer was new, repeat, or VIP based on custom labels.
Enhanced Input Field:
Saved responses and templates were integrated into the input field for quick access.
Shortcut Feature: Agents could type a “Back Slash” (
/) to bring up suggested saved responses, reducing typing effort.
Chat Status Indicators:
Chat statuses (e.g., unresolved, follow-up) were displayed at the top of the chat view and next to each chat in the chat list for better visibility.
Example: Agents could see at a glance which chats required immediate attention.
Quick Filters:
Introduced customizable quick filters to help agents easily sort chats based on frequently used criteria.
Example: Filters like “Unresolved Tickets” or “Pending” could be pinned for one-click access.
Design Iterations
We tested the designs with a pilot group of 10 agents, gathering feedback and iterating on features to improve usability. For example:
The sidebar was redesigned to be collapsible based on feedback that it cluttered the interface.
The saved response suggestions were enhanced to include predictive text based on customer queries.
Mobile Responsive Design
With remote working facilities people are used to work on the go and to fulfil that required we made the inbox feature responsive. so that agent/user can login from anywhere or everywhere without the need of carrying a laptop on the go.
Impact
The WhatsApp Chat Inbox is now live on Cheerio AI and has transformed the way businesses handle customer support.
Key Results:
Increased Efficiency:
Agents save up to 4 hours daily through features like saved responses and template-based user journeys.
Example: A query that previously took 5 minutes to resolve now takes less than 2 minutes.
Faster Resolution Times:
Overall ticket resolution times have decreased by 30%, improving customer satisfaction.
Scalability:
Over 2,000 agents use the platform daily across various industries, showcasing its versatility and reliability.
Positive Feedback:
Agents appreciated the familiar interface and the integration of productivity tools that aligned with their workflows.
Conclusion
The success of the WhatsApp Team Inbox demonstrates the power of user-centered design and iterative development. By understanding the needs of agents and addressing their pain points, We have not only improved efficiency but also set a new standard for chat support solutions.