AI Chatbots: Helpful Assistants or Frustrating Black Holes?
Weโve all been there. You message a restaurant to make a quick booking and get the instant automated reply:
โThank you for contacting us, please let us know how we can help you.โ
Great start. But thenโฆ nothing. Hours, days, sometimes foreverโlike tossing your request into a digital black hole.
Or worseโwhen youโre stranded at an airport, trying to reach an airline about a missed flight or canceled booking. Instead of a human, youโre forced into a chatbot loop that repeats the same irrelevant options. By the end, your frustration level is higher than your altitude.
Sound familiar? Youโre definitely not alone.
When Chatbots Actually Help
Letโs be fairโchatbots do have their place. They shine when:
- You need quick info (stock checks, flight timings).
- You want instant acknowledgment of your message.
- You reach out after office hours.
- Businesses face repetitive FAQs.
Example: Tokopedia and Shopee use bots well for order tracking, returns, and payments. Gojek and Grab also resolve small issues quickly with chatbots. In these cases, they work like smooth assistants that save everyone time.
When Chatbots Drive Us Crazy
The real trouble begins when chatbots overstay their welcome:
- No follow-up: The bot replies instantly but no human ever gets back.
- Endless loops: You keep typing your issue but get redirected to irrelevant FAQs.
- Blocking humans: The system makes it nearly impossible to talk to a real person.
๐ โA chatbot should be a filter, not a fortress.โ
Batik Air is a cautionary tale. Many travelers say contacting the airline via WhatsApp is a nightmareโitโs entirely chatbot-driven. When flights are delayed or canceled, the lack of human access turns an already stressful situation into pure chaos.
And hereโs the irony: chatbots could actually help businesses more if they alerted staff to step in. Instead, they too often just leave customers hanging in the void.
Breaking Through the Maze
So, how do you escape chatbot purgatory and reach a real human? Try these hacks:
- Trigger words: Type โagent,โ โhuman,โ โrepresentative,โ or โcomplaint.โ Many systems escalate on these cues.
- Switch platforms: Go straight to email, call centers, or social media DMs (Twitter/X works wonders with airlines).
- Zero trick: On phone systems, press โ0โ repeatedly or say โoperatorโ to bypass automation.
- Public escalation: A polite post on the companyโs social media often prompts a faster responseโbrands donโt like unresolved complaints in public view.
The Bottom Line
Chatbots should be assistants, not roadblocks. Theyโre fantastic for FAQs and after-hours queriesโbut when urgency, money, or emotions are involved, customers deserve a human touch.
Because at the end of the day, no AI bot can replace the relief of hearing:
โDonโt worry, weโll fix this for you.โ
