Best Western launches online assistant

Best Western launches online assistant

Press release – 27 August 2008 – Best Western-Synthetix Synthetix have deployed another Virtual Assistant solution in the travel and tourism sector. Best Western hotels group launched ‘Ask our experts’ on the UK site to improve customer experience and reduce routine inbound enquiries to their call centre. Users can choose to receive assistance from one…

Press release – 27 August 2008 – Best WesternSynthetix


Synthetix have deployed another Virtual Assistant solution in the travel and tourism sector.


Best Western hotels group launched ‘Ask our experts’ on the UK site to improve customer experience and reduce routine inbound enquiries to their call centre.


Users can choose to receive assistance from one of two Virtual Assistants, Lucy or Tom. The conversational, natural language interface provides straight answers to straight questions.


Tom and Lucy are interacting with people every day of every week, answering their queries about Best Western Hotels and navigating them around the website. The Virtual Assistants have a wealth of knowledge, they know which hotels have golf courses, leisure facilities or even if they are near airports.


Best Western is using the Synthetix.info analytics service to analyse visitors wants and needs by looking at the questions they ask. The conversation logs also allow them to make sure that Tom and Lucy always have up to date information.


The Best Western implementation has followed hot on the heels of the work Synthetix have done with Bourne Leisure for Butlins and is another successful deployment of smartAgent technology.


The Virtual Assistants, Tom and Lucy, can be found at bestwestern.co.uk.



  • What smartAgent is hoping to achieve for Best Western

  • Answer customer queries without having to phone or e-mail

  • Reduce CRM costs

  • Improve customer satisfaction and loyalty

  • Provide a feedback mechanism for customer wants and needs

Jo Ogden, head of e-commerce and distribution at Best Western, is aiming to answer more queries online with lower CRM costs and to improve customer loyalty. “It’s designed to make sure our customers have an enjoyable experience and improve conversions”, she said.


Peter McKean, managing director of Synthetix, said: “Travel and Tourism is a sector which demands high levels of customer service. We are confident that the SmartAgent deployment will achieve what it set out to do by lowering customer service costs and increasing customer satisfaction, as it has done for our other clients.”