Digital helper - Darcie
Our digital helper - Darcie
You may have noticed a new launch button when visiting our website. When you click on it, the webchat window will open and you can start a conversation with our digital helper: Darcie.
The digital helper is an additional service that complements the other ways you can contact us. Darcie uses conversational AI to understand what you ask and reply to you in a human-like way.
Using Darcie on the website
From anywhere on our website, click on the "Chat with Darcie" button on the left-hand-side of the screen. To start chatting, choose "Continue" to confirm you have read and understood our privacy policy. Ask Darcie a question you'd like answering or tell them something you're trying to do.
Darcie can answer best if your questions are written clearly. Use four words or more, but don't make them too long. If you don't get the answer you're looking for, try typing it a different way.
You can ask questions about things like:
- Streetpride
- Blue Badge
- Fostering
- Registrars
- Council Tax
- Benefits
- Parking Services
- Pest Control
- Clinical Waste
- Street lighting
Darcie will continually learn and improve on how well they answer questions. The range of subjects and related knowledge will also increase over time.
Why are we using AI?
Using artificial intelligence (AI) on our website means we can offer you 24/7, real-time support to answer your questions and get the information you need. It should mean you don't have to wait or need to know who to contact.
It also helps us improve efficiency. By automating how we deal with routine tasks and common enquiries, we can free up staff time to focus on more complex issues and provide a more personalised service to you when you need it
What is conversational AI?
Conversational AI is a form of artificial intelligence that allows machines to understand and interpret natural language and engage in human-like conversation with people. AI systems are trained on huge amounts of data, which then is used to teach the system how to understand human language and interact in a natural way.
It's an exciting new technology that allows you to communicate with us using an AI-driven digital helper. Think of it like having your own personal assistant who can help you in real time with common enquiries and tasks 24/7. It means you can get quick and accurate answers to questions and access information at any time.