From What Is Promised to What Is Experienced with Intelligent Bots

Abstract

Based on survey research, this study, aims to identify the gap between what is promised (usefulness) and what consumers experience (usability and enjoyment) from virtual assistants such as voice- or chat-based bots. Our empirical results compare these three factors applied to AI bots and their adoption for customer service. They were collected with a sample of 148 participants in the financial sector (utilitarian experience), and with an exploratory sample of 112 exposed to a tourism voice bot offering (hedonic experience). Interesting comparisons (similarities and differences) are highlighted to provide managerial user experience (UX) guidance for the design and evaluation of virtual assistants from a user/customer-centric perspective.