In this article, we spoke with NR Inc. about their implementation of all BOTCHAN products—“BOTCHAN Payment,” “BOTCHAN Engagement,” “BOTCHAN Keeper,” “BOTCHAN Relation,” and “BOTCHAN AI”—and the concrete benefits of unifying these tools, as well as the initiatives made possible through their integration. As their customer base changed, NR faced a challenge: cancellation requests became concentrated on phone calls, leading to an increase in complaints that calls were not getting through. By integrating “BOTCHAN Keeper” with “BOTCHAN AI,” they were able to reduce the burden on their call center and cut the number of complaints by approximately 40%, significantly improving operational efficiency on the front lines. We also discussed the attentive support provided by the CS team that underpinned these results, and the future possibilities that NR envisions in partnership with BOTCHAN.

wevnal Inc. Sales: Dan Baba / BOTCHAN Payment CS: Naoto Kishi / BOTCHAN Engagement CS: Maho Maeda / BOTCHAN Keeper CS: Hiromasa Matsuda / BOTCHAN AI Division Director: Ken Hirasawa / CS: Sara Yokomizo / BOTCHAN Relation CS: Shuko Watanabe (hereafter, collectively “—”)
To begin, could you please introduce your company’s business and yourselves?

Mr. Koizumi, Registered Salesperson, General Manager of Business Division, NR Co., Ltd. (hereinafter, “Mr. Koizumi”)
NR Co., Ltd. offers products that address the concerns of customers across a wide age range, from their 20s to their 90s. Our lineup includes a broad range of items, from pharmaceuticals that help resolve customers’ health concerns, to skincare products that address issues such as dark spots and wrinkles, as well as various daily goods.

We place great importance on not merely delivering products, but on supporting the “things you want to do” and the “dreams you want to achieve” that lie beyond solving our customers’ concerns. For example, even when we deliver pharmaceuticals, we work every day with the aim of providing comprehensive support, such as advice on diet for maintaining good health and simple stretching exercises, in addition to the medicine itself.

In that context, I handle a wide range of responsibilities as Head of Business Operations.
I am in charge of areas such as CRM, customer support, and fulfillment (the entire series of operations from order receipt to packing, inventory management, shipping, and payment collection).

Mr. Kawasaki, Registered Salesperson, Leader, Marketing Department, NR Inc. (hereafter, “Mr. Kawasaki”)
I’m Kawasaki, leader of the Marketing Department.
I am primarily responsible for all initiatives related to new customer acquisition.
Within BOTCHAN, I mainly oversee “BOTCHAN Payment,” “BOTCHAN Engagement,” and “BOTCHAN Relation.”

Mr. Minami, Leader, Marketing Department, NR Inc. (hereafter, “Mr. Minami”)
My name is Minami from the Marketing Department.
Like Kawasaki, I am primarily responsible for acquiring new customers.

Mr. Yoshida, Marketing Department, NR Corporation (hereafter, “Mr. Yoshida”)
I am Yoshida from the Marketing Department as well. Thank you for having me.

— Thank you very much.
Please tell us about the challenges you faced before introducing BOTCHAN.

Mr. Kawasaki
The first solution we implemented was “BOTCHAN Payment.”
At the time, we were actually using another company’s chatbot.
We were creating everything in-house, including scenario updates and creative assets.
However, because we were working with limited resources, we felt that the quality of the images and scenarios was not sufficient.

In this context, we heard about your company from several different firms. We concluded that there are essentially no disadvantages to conducting A/B testing with our existing chatbot, and therefore contacted you via your website.

After that, we conducted an A/B test, and the results showed that your company’s chatbot achieved a higher CVR.
In addition, we saw the greatest benefit in the fact that, after implementation, your CS team would be involved in operations and could execute a variety of initiatives for us, which led to our decision to introduce the solution. We are now using your company’s chatbot across all of our products.

— Thank you very much!
I believe our sales representative, Baba, has already made some proposals regarding the other products. May I ask, candidly, what prompted you to consider implementing them?

Mr. Kawasaki
“BOTCHAN Engagement” was the proposal you made after “BOTCHAN Payment.”
At the time, we were interested in using LINE for new customer acquisition, but in reality we weren’t doing anything concrete with LINE. In the midst of that, when we consulted with Mr. Baba, he introduced us to “BOTCHAN Engagement.” One major advantage was that we could work on a performance-based model at a lower cost per acquisition than advertising. The same was true for “BOTCHAN Relation” as well.

Mr. Koizumi
Next is “BOTCHAN Keeper.”
At the time, we were using a tool from another company, but because we were handling everything in-house, including scenario creation and operations, we were stretched too thin and could only manage the bare minimum.
In the midst of that, your company approached us with the proposal, “We will support everything.”

Everyone at the kickoff meeting for the implementation was genuinely wonderful, and to be honest there were some difficult aspects in switching over and configuring the system, but you responded with great sincerity, and I truly feel it was the right decision to implement it.

We recently implemented “BOTCHAN AI.”
To be honest, AI had never felt very familiar to me, so I did not have a high level of trust in it. The main reason was that, as a new technology and a service that had only recently been launched, it was difficult to gauge how effective it would actually be.

At the time, our call center was under heavy strain, and it was suggested that “BOTCHAN AI” could also be useful in that area. Since a trial period was offered and we saw no particular downsides to implementation, we decided to introduce it.

In addition, due to a sharp increase in elderly customers for our product “Shivilittle,” the cancellation procedures that had been handled by “BOTCHAN Keeper” shifted to phone calls, which in turn led to more complaints that customers could not get through on the phone.
In this situation, having “BOTCHAN AI” address the points that made customers anxious, and working in conjunction with “BOTCHAN Keeper,” has allowed us to reduce these issues before they turned into complaints, which we truly appreciate.

— Thank you very much.
I’d like to ask you about the story behind how you actually came to implement it.

Mr. Kawasaki
Yes, that’s right.
I believe the implementation went smoothly.

We had received proposals from other companies as well, but the main reason we chose BOTCHAN was that the person in charge would manage the operation thoroughly, and that Mr. Baba and everyone else were very approachable and easy to consult with.
To be honest, there are many similar services out there, and I do not believe there will be a major difference in the numbers just because of the service itself. From my perspective, running the PDCA cycle with a strong sense of speed is more likely to produce results, so I felt that your company’s quick response made it the easiest to work with.
Because of that, I do feel we may have placed quite a burden on our representative, Mr. Kishi… (laughs).

— Not at all!
I’m also pleased that you value “BOTCHAN” for its friendliness and human touch.
How has your experience been since actually implementing it?

Mr. Kawasaki
“As for BOTCHAN Payment, our CVR (conversion rate) improved after implementation. I believe the biggest factor was running PDCA cycles through A/B testing and, in the course of our communication, establishing a shared understanding between your company and ours.

Recently, I have felt that even when you apply the same chatbot measures, the numbers vary depending on the product, and even if you add coupons, you do not necessarily get the same results as in other successful cases.

However, your company responds carefully and thoroughly to each of these detailed requests. You handle areas that, frankly, we would not have been able to manage on our own, and I believe that is what has led to these results.”

Mr. Koizumi
“BOTCHAN Relation” has been proactively conducting far more hypothesis testing than we initially anticipated, so we have essentially entrusted the work to them.
It has been a tremendous help. Even though our customer base is quite diverse and we have asked them to handle multiple products, key figures such as continuation and retention rates have been steadily improving. We feel that the initiatives taken from the early stages are now bearing fruit.

The initiative involving “BOTCHAN Keeper” was the one we wanted to prioritize above all.
Because our call center operations had not been running in a fully stable manner, having you operate “BOTCHAN Keeper” for us has been extremely significant. It has been a great help that you are able to respond reliably to the rapid pace of change at our company.

In terms of numerical results, we still want to aim much higher, but you have been carefully working through everything from the design of a single button to detailed hypothesis testing on user flows, so we are just as grateful for this as we are for BOTCHAN Relation.

In terms of cost, we have been able to keep it to less than half that of a call center.
Of course, not all customers use “BOCHAN Keeper,” but by using it alongside phone support appropriately, we believe we are operating with a well-balanced cost structure.

As for “BOTCHAN AI,” our own website is the main place where it is implemented. By introducing it, we have been able to clearly understand what customers are looking for when they visit and what kinds of questions they are asking. For example, we can now see customer attributes such as which products they are interested in and whether they want information about cancellations. We plan to make further use of it when enhancing our website in the future.

Also, during the period when our call center was under heavy strain, you successfully guided users from our website to “BOTCHAN Keeper,” which helped reduce the burden on our support team. As a result, I believe the number of complaints dropped from around 100 to about 60. I still see plenty of room to make further use of the tool, so I would like to continue working with you on this.

— Thank you very much!
You are currently using all of the “BOTCHAN” products. Was there a particular reason or background for deciding to consolidate them into a single solution?

Mr. Koizumi
To be honest, it’s not that we set out thinking, “Let’s consolidate everything into one,” but rather that we realized after the fact that everything had ended up consolidated. We already had proven results using your company’s services, and we had built a relationship of trust with the representative in charge, which gave us a sense of reassurance. As a result, it was a natural progression to ask you to handle the other products as well.

Recently, we have also been holding our regular meetings jointly, and within those we have been collaborating in various ways, such as deploying the scenarios used in “BOTCHAN Relation” to “BOTCHAN Keeper.” By working together, we can properly streamline the entire customer journey from purchase through cancellation, making it easier for customers to experience a sense of consistency when using our services.

— Thank you very much!
What does BOTCHAN represent for your company?

Mr. Kawasaki
I see your company as something like an “in-house partner.”
Our team is small, and we all work together in a setup where everyone sits on the same floor, but I feel that the sense of distance with your company is just as close.
Through our weekly meetings and chat communications, it honestly feels as if you were working remotely from within the same company. (laughs)

Of course, the high quality of the service itself is a major factor, but I also feel that the personality of the person in charge, their quick thinking, and their dedication are key points that make them highly trustworthy. We are surrounded by people who make us genuinely want to work hard together, which is very reassuring.
Although they are a business partner, they are also someone we can immediately turn to whenever we face a challenge, and we frequently consult with them in a candid, back-and-forth manner.

— Thank you very much!
Please tell us what you expect from BOTCHAN going forward.

Mr. Kawasaki
We look forward to seeing your company pursue new initiatives that go beyond the current framework of chatbots.
Right now, many companies are locked in price competition and repeated A/B testing using chatbots, but we hope you will create new value that breaks out of that mold.

Mr. Koizumi
I would very much like to see centralized management of customer information and optimization of user flows realized in the future.
For example, it would be excellent to have a mechanism that links distributions and step emails in “BOTCHAN Relation” with customer data, so that we can grasp the overall flow of our e-commerce operations. If we can consistently track customer behavior, I believe the impact of our initiatives will become much clearer.

— Thank you very much!
Please share a message for companies facing the same challenges.

Mr. Koizumi
To be honest, I do want more people to know about your company, but at the same time there’s a frustrating part of me that wants to keep you all to myself (laughs).
For a mail-order company, the numbers are extremely important, so I truly appreciate that you make proposals based on solid figures.

If you are unsure, I would first like you to meet with them at least once. I would also recommend trying one of your company’s services. I believe this will allow you to experience firsthand the quality of the service and the excellence of the people in charge.
We work with many different companies, but I feel that everyone at your company is highly capable and operates at a very high level. I would very much like many people to have the opportunity to experience your services at least once.

— Thank you very much for your kind words.
Thank you for taking the time to meet with us today.

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If you would like to confirm whether BOTCHAN can be implemented in your organization, or if you would like advice tailored to your situation, please feel free to contact us with your questions or inquiries.

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