V-retail- A Virtual sales assistant tool
My Role
Research, Competitive Analysis, Ideations and User Flow, Hi-fi Prototyping and Delivering to client
Tools
Duration
6 Weeks
Location
Ink in Caps, Mumbai (Internship Project)
Client
Real-estate
About
Context
Why we introduced Emotional AI in V-retail?
Let's delve into Sarah's journey, a Travel Agency Owner
To understand this
That’s where V-retail’s AI analytics steps in:
A groundbreaking Emotional AI-powered platform designed to transform customer interactions into meaningful, personalized experiences.
V-retail is revolutionizing the sales landscape for industries like travel, retail, automobile, finance, and real estate.
Sarah manages a thriving travel agency that offers bespoke travel packages.
Her goal is to provide personalized services that cater to each customer's unique travel dreams.
However, with a growing customer base, it became increasingly challenging to understand and meet the diverse needs of her clients.
Problem Area
Difficulty in real-time customer preferences hampers conversion rates
Challenges in identifying high-potential leads reduce sales opportunities
Inaccurate sentiment analysis impacts personalized interactions and engagement
Research Observations
Finding Structure Amidst the Confusion
To better understand the problem space, my manager and I were presented with critical observations and insights gathered by the founders and development head. These insights were derived from a comprehensive six-month research period involving in-depth conversations with salespeople. Our task was to brainstorm ideas and solutions to address the identified challenges.
It’s difficult to understand all businesses before selling our products to them as we always have a overview of the business but need to know all the ins & outs of the platform in order to know their pain points & serve them better
There are many competitors out there and people tend to buy from the platform where they can get maximum offers, benefits and discounts specially the Indian market
In industries like real-estate it’s not about trust, customers will go there where they will find most suitable properties in very low price. It’s all about convincing people and making them confident about all the benefits the company is providing is the best
Next big challenge is to follow up leads. Salesperson face problem knowing when to follow up and how to follow up without irritating the customers.
Think of a bad-fit prospect as a person who is sure to become an unhappy customer. They might have the money and the inclination to buy, but the fit just isn’t right.
Maybe they have unrealistic expectations. Maybe there’s a cultural misalignment.
Today’s gen always wants something unique, and customized that they can show out and recommend other to gain more followers in this case it’s very imp to know their style and preferences.
It sometimes becomes difficult to empathize with customers and handle them sensitively at the time of crisis or unpredictable circumstances.
Customer: “I'm not interested"
I’ve seen many salespeople getting frustrated by the most common objections: Blow-offs.
But luckily, this challenge has a solution.
From my experience, the best way to deal with blow-offs: do not contradict them. Instead, empathize, relate, and offer a solution.
First, empathize with the customer by telling them that you understand how they feel.
Persona
To fully grasp the needs and challenges faced by our target users, we created detailed personas, one of which is Sarah, the Travel Agency Manager. This process was crucial in visualizing the customer journey and tailoring our solutions to meet real-world requirements.
Competition from online travel agencies
Lot of effort goes into focusing on understanding and meeting customer needs to build long-term relationships.
PAIN POINTS
Increase in positive reviews acknowledging timely and accurate crisis-related information.
ABOUT
Sarah is a travel agency executive based in Mumbai, known for her passion for curating unique and personalized travel experiences. With over a decade of experience, she has built strong relationships with clients who trust her to make their national/international journeys memorable.
Something that could help us capture and interpret customer preferences on the go.
Language translation, culture and tone understanding
NEEDS
To offer tailored support and suggestion during her client’s trips as she faces certain barriers due to not being present there in real-time
Quickly identify and prioritize high-potential leads.
GOALS
Measure client satisfaction levels through feedback and ratings to gauge the effectiveness of support provided during trips.
Provide personalized, empathetic interactions to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Sarah
USER PERSONA
Mumbai, India
LOCATION
Tourism
INDUSTRY
Executive in travel agency
OCCUPATION
It’s difficult to gauge the emotions of clients, as each one has different sentiments about their dream visits to specific places.
Dealing with cancellations and disruptions
Research Opportunity
Identifying Direct and Indirect Competitiors
After primary research, we expanded our insights with secondary research—competitive analysis, usability analysis, and heuristic evaluation. This ensured our solutions were both innovative and aligned with industry standards.
-a glimpse of secondary research
Insights
Lack of In-Depth Emotional Sentiment Analysis
Sales tools often miss out on understanding customer emotions deeply. By using AI to better analyze emotional sentiment, we can connect with customers more meaningfully, enhancing their satisfaction and loyalty.
Many tools don't offer the flexibility businesses need. We can stand out by providing highly customizable features, making it easier for clients to tailor the solution to their unique needs and improving their overall experience.
Limited Customization and Personalization
Many platforms have rudimentary lead scoring. With AI that looks at various factors to score leads, V-Retail can help users focus on the most promising prospects, making their sales efforts more effective.
Very Basic Lead Scoring
Sales tools often overlook optimizing sales activities. By using AI to analyze call sentiment and manage sales pipelines better, V-Retail can help users close deals more effectively and improve their overall sales process
Inefficient Sales Activity
Our stakeholders, leveraging their industry connections, provided valuable insights into current purchasing processes and their simplification needs.
Through discussions, we captured the voices of our actual users. We also spoke with previous V-Retail clients to understand their desires for enhancing their sales tools with AI. This helped us move ahead with the final user flow.
Stakeholder Interviews
Core Value Propositions
Make Smarter Sales Decisions
Focus on High-Potential Leads
Better Analysis of Customer
Sentiments
Shopping Just Got More Personalized
User Flow
The client was eagerly waiting for the final product, so the pressure was on!
My manager and I had hours of meetings with our founder and dev head—think endless coffee and late-night brainstorming sessions.
We finally nailed down the user flow, making sure it was smooth and exactly what the client wanted.
Then came the content—tailored to perfection, just as the client requested.
Design Direction
We maintained the existing design system for consistency and branding, only adding some highlight colors to emphasize critical data for AI analysis.
Impact & Takeaway's
It’s always been a dream of mine to work with big brands, and I’m incredibly grateful to the IIC team for giving me the opportunity to do just that through my work on V-Retail.
increase in lead conversion rates with AI-driven sentiment analysis.
boost in customer satisfaction scores by gauging their sentiments
reduction in time spent per client by presenting personalized content.
improvement in user engagement by highlighting critical data
THE END
