Planning

EOL AI Customer Chat Bot

  • British Council

F01: Prior information notice (prior information only)

Notice identifier: 2025/S 000-004226

Procurement identifier (OCID): ocds-h6vhtk-04dcea

Published 7 February 2025, 3:45pm



Section one: Contracting authority

one.1) Name and addresses

British Council

58 Whitworth Street

Manchester

M1 6BB

Contact

Aung Thein

Email

aung.thein@britishcouncil.org

Telephone

+44 01619577162

Country

United Kingdom

NUTS code

UK - United Kingdom

Internet address(es)

Main address

www.britishcouncil.org

Buyer's address

https://in-tendhost.co.uk/britishcouncil

one.3) Communication

Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address

one.4) Type of the contracting authority

Body governed by public law

one.5) Main activity

Other activity

Registered Charity


Section two: Object

two.1) Scope of the procurement

two.1.1) Title

EOL AI Customer Chat Bot

Reference number

BC/03768

two.1.2) Main CPV code

  • 48445000 - Customer Relation Management software package

two.1.3) Type of contract

Supplies

two.1.4) Short description

British Council English Online offers personalized language courses to help learners gain confidence and improve their speaking, pronunciation, and vocabulary skills. Our platform provides small group classes and private one-to-one sessions, allowing students to customize their timetable based on their goals and interests. We cater to all proficiency levels, from beginner to advanced.At any point during the student’s journey, they may need assistance and guidance for:Getting started and where to go next, how to navigate the siteGuidance through the sign up/registration processAnswering common questions on services, policies, offersBeing able to handle questions in different languages and to respond in that languageProduct suggestions based on history and user preferencesPersonalised promotions/discountsAllowing the user to provide feedback and to also include short surveysCurrent monthly website traffic: ~800,000 visitors

two.1.5) Estimated total value

Value excluding VAT: £200,000

two.1.6) Information about lots

This contract is divided into lots: No

two.2) Description

two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)

  • 48445000 - Customer Relation Management software package
  • 48481000 - Sales or marketing software package

two.2.3) Place of performance

NUTS codes
  • UK - United Kingdom

two.2.4) Description of the procurement

Last year the British Council led 9M new users to the English Online website. Users take longer to make their decision: While we are increasing conversion rate to transactions through A/B testing, we have seen an increase in time in which the users decide to purchase. Different cultures, different needs: We also concluded onsite surveys to understand what information users need and to adapt content accordingly. We realised that depending on where users are from, they might need different information on the website. Best practice is to provide language pages and using a chatbot to personalise information they need to make their decision (provide answers to different questions).Lack of attention: The attention span of a user has dropped down to 8 seconds and they are looking for quick answers to their questions.Quick solutions: In today's fast-paced digital environment, customers expect quick response to their questions. They do not really look at the FAQ pages (don’t look around to search for an answer) but rather want to be presented with an answer as quickly as possible. If they don’t, they move on to the competition.Therefore we are looking at how we can use AI powered Chatbots which can handle multiple inquiries simultaneously and allows for scalability. With personalized recommendations and responses based on user data and behaviour, to enhance overall customer experience

two.2.14) Additional information

If you are interested in expressing an interest and/or bidding for this project, please go to https://in-tendhost.co.uk/britishcouncil . You may then have to register your company before you can express an interest for this project and get access the documents.

two.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice

7 February 2025


Section four. Procedure

four.1) Description

four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)

The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes


Section six. Complementary information

six.3) Additional information

If you are interested in expressing an interest and/or bidding for this project, please go to https://in-tendhost.co.uk/britishcouncil . You may then have to register your company before you can express an interest for this project and get access the documents.In-Tend Project Reference: BC/03768Project Title: PIN: UK_446 - EOL AI Customer Chat Bot