Chatting with Citi Bot

Here are some projects I worked on for Citi Bot, which is Citi North America’s banking chatbot.

Persona Questions

The original version was a fallback response that prompted the user to choose a menu item. I wrote tailored responses to each question.

Before
Copy: Not sure what you mean. Here are some things I can help you with.
Menu: ThankYou® points / ABA routing number / Chat with a representative.

Ask
How might Citi Bot respond to these commonly asked questions: How do you learn? Will you marry me? Are you male or female?

Solution
Be playful, yet professional. Set boundaries around banter. Steer the conversation back toward banking.

Process
Reviewed bot persona guide. Collaborated with product, strategy, public relations, and legal to align on key messages. Wrote 3-5 bot responses per question.

Waive a Late Fee (Happy Path)

The original version was a fallback response that prompted a handoff to a customer service representative. I wrote tailored responses based on the user’s situation.

Before
Copy: Sounds like you need a representative. Hold tight and I'll connect you. Just FYI, there may be a short wait.

Ask How might Citi Bot waive late fees for eligible single-account customers?

Solution Once eligibility is determined, tell the customer how much was charged to what account on what date. Give them the option to have it waived. Provide confirmation and suggest autopay enrollment.

Process Reviewed the interactive voice response (IVR) script. Collaborated with design, product, strategy, operations, and legal to align on key messages, and adapted the IVR script into a natural language experience that sounds like Citi Bot.

Impact
Enables customer service reps to focus on more complex customer questions/requests and saves the customer time. During testing, users also perceived the bot as more objective in comparison to customer service reps who they believed had a say in whether or not their late fees were waived.