TruStone Financial Credit Union has significantly improved its member service capabilities through the implementation of an AI-powered chatbot using Eltropy’s Unified Communications platform. The chatbot, named “Ruth” after the credit union’s first bookkeeper, now handles nearly half of all member conversations independently and has reduced contact center call volume by 20%.

Before implementing the Eltropy solution, TruStone staff faced overwhelming message volumes, with approximately 5,500 conversations weekly and backlogs of up to 1,000 messages each Monday morning. The credit union needed a way to better manage inquiry flow and gain insights into member communications.

“We were running at about 5,500 conversations a week. We’d get caught up on Saturday and then come into a thousand more Monday morning, because we couldn’t turn off the service,” said Jill Shaffler, leader of TruStone’s enterprise applications team.

TruStone’s results since implementing Ruth demonstrate dramatic improvements:

• Member satisfaction scores reached 9.4 out of 10
• Average wait times dropped to just 34 seconds
• Contact center call volume decreased by 20%
• Ruth now independently handles 46% of all member conversations

The improvements keep coming: Missed member inquiries plunged from 1,300 to just 72 in five months, and overflow contact center support is now only needed for after-hours fraud reporting.

“TruStone’s results demonstrate the clear value of combining AI technology with a thoughtful, member-centered approach,” said Ashish Garg, Co-founder and CEO of Eltropy. “Instead of just dropping in an AI chatbot, they took the time to give Ruth a real connection to their credit union’s history. The results speak for themselves – their teams are more efficient, and members are getting the quick, personal service they want.”

The credit union took a strategic approach to implementation, beginning with an employee contest to name the chatbot and creating a backstory that connected Ruth to TruStone’s history.

“We heavily focused on member experience. The technology comes second to us,” said Kate Alter, who manages the unified communications team. “We asked ourselves, ‘What are the other things that we can do to make it a success?’”

TruStone launched Ruth first on their website in July, followed by digital banking integration in November. Within the first week of digital banking integration, conversation volume doubled, indicating strong member acceptance of the new communication channel.

Looking ahead, TruStone plans to enhance Ruth’s capabilities by exploring generative AI integration through Eltropy’s platform to further improve member service.