Impact of chatbots on jobs and society

There is nothing more frustrating than running into a chatbot on websites promising support. Poor implementation with no get out has to be the absolute worse use of chatbots. They’ve been put there to save money by reducing the number of inbound calls. You are, of course, going to get 100% call avoidance if you put your customers into a never ending loop, but this is not the point!!

AI as an aid is the next great shift for the internet. AI is fantastic for reducing effort on simple and repetitive tasks but they won’t be a replacement for people’s jobs just yet. The tech needs corralling, training, prompting and curating to give whatever it outputs the ‘human touch’ that it can’t manage by itself. Until AI becomes sentient, people needn’t worry about their jobs.

As a semi-famous author, I thought it would be interesting to "ChatGPT" myself (the chatbot equivalent of googling oneself). The response was instantaneous, comprehensive - and utterly wrong.

"John started his career in the tech industry, working for Hewlett-Packard and Cisco." Nope. I was a civil servant, who could barely turn a computer on.

"In 2005, he founded his first business, a software development company called Big Idea Marketing." Nope, not me.

"John has written several books on marketing, entrepreneurship, and personal development, including "Big Ideas for Small Businesses", "Routine Machine", and "The Money Tree"." Only two of those books were written by me!

If this is the best the bots can do, then I think we humans are safe - for now.

It will be interesting to see how ChatGPT copes with the introduction of Google Bard later this month. Generally, we do not see ChatBots and Voice Bots as a threat to employment, we see them as a way of resolving the UK's current recruitment crisis. The challenges in finding people to fill roles that are both repetitive and mundane are increasing and this is no more important than within companies that focus on providing services on a b2c basis or indeed the public service sector. The capability of AI tools to fill these roles will allow organizations to focus their employees in areas where machine learning and automation cannot operate, i.e where human interaction is key and the general public needs the reassurance of human contact. We believe that any customer communication strategy needs to combine AI with a Human Touch to be effective

ChatGPT and tools using this technology need to be seen as an opportunity. The technology has the potential to speed up and assist existing processes, however, it is unlikely to put people out of jobs in the short to medium term. For example, ChatGPT will not end the content creation industry. The tech is unable to produce a completely trustworthy finished article. Content writers will need to learn the tech and evolve into a more editorial role, structuring articles, and ensuring consistency in tone and accuracy of information.
Will people use Google and Bing differently? AI will be able to help you compare products, but can't tell you about its' lived experience with a product. The information it presents looks believable, but is it all true? Will people trust a robot completely - rather than decide for themselves? The jury is out.

As a marketeer, I think chatbots can automate tasks like lead qualification and appointment scheduling, freeing up time for strategic work. With chatbots handling routine tasks, marketeers can spend more time building relationships and creating content.

They can provide instant, personalised support to customers, enhancing their experience and building loyalty. They can also help gather data on customer behaviour and preferences, allowing for tailored marketing messages and improved campaigns.

Regulation will need to ensure that chatbots comply with ethical and legal standards, such as data privacy and anti-discrimination laws.

All in all, advances in AI and natural language processing make chatbots more sophisticated, creating a competitive advantage that cannot be ignored.

The future of work is here, and chatbots, including AI tools like ChatGPT, are at the forefront of this technological revolution. But before you panic, it’s worth remembering these AI tools are not here to replace us. In fact, by handling repetitive tasks, chatbots free up humans to focus things that really matter. And while they may be getting smarter every day, chatbots can't replicate emotional intelligence and creativity. By working together with chatbots, we can streamline business processes and improve the overall quality of our services. In this rapidly changing world of work, soft skills like flexibility and time management are becoming increasingly important. These human skills enable us to excel in areas that machines cannot replicate. So let's not be afraid of the bots, let’s embrace them and create a more efficient workplace.

There will never be a replacement for actual peoples opinions. Chatbots are simply regurgitating facts and figures already on the web. What if you need to speak to someone properly? I think that we will see a bit of a dip in the freelancer content creator work (and income), while companies try to cut their costs by using AI. But I then think it will bounce back when each company is churning out the same rubbish, formatted in the same way! Nothing can compare to the human touch. Its a helpful tool, but if you rely on it, you may end up looking a bit rubbish and unbothered.