Augmented Intelligence Chat Boosts Virtual Leasing

Virtual Leasing is here to stay, and it most certainly will grow in importance. COVID-19 made it a necessity for the multifamily industry. Months of use by property management companies proved its power. At the same time, it is new territory for many, and its possibilities are still in the process of being discovered. But properties need to know how to make the best use of virtual leasing now. They face the pain point of the unknown, a result of COVID turning the market topsy-turvy. And they face the pain point of learning a new technology while trying to maintain the personal level of service their teams are known for. Essentially, this all comes down to people and technology working together. That would be the specialty of Paige, a new virtual leasing solution from RealPage. Paige features Augmented Intelligence, which combines an AI chatbot with live support to increase prospect engagement. A typical AI chatbot can answer a prospect’s questions about price, availability, scheduling a tour, amenities, pet policies, etc. Paige’s difference is that, if the AI chatbot is not able to answer a question, it warm transfers over to a live agent from either the property’s leasing team or RealPage’s Contact Center, who can then handle the rest of the conversation. Warm transfer means the agent has all the communication history available to them in order to pick up the conversation seamlessly. It’s a fluid experience. Additionally, Paige can direct prospects to a live agent at any time they ask for one. According to Jennifer Cashier, RealPage VP of Contact Center and AI solutions, “Paige answers 95% of the types of questions that come in and the other 5% transfers over to a live agent. So, 100% of your communication is addressed. And the cost is actually 30% less than a traditional live agent chat and text solution. I’m excited to say that we expect to be launching voice by the end of this year.” The Power of Now Owners a...