One of my early freelance projects took me to Seville, a bustling city in Spain, where I had the opportunity to work with a significant client on developing a chatbot for their subway system using WhatsApp.
The idea was refreshingly straightforward. WhatsApp was the primary messaging app in Spain, so the client wanted a chatbot that allowed users to ask about train arrival times at specific stations. They provided access to their private API, and the chatbot's role was limited to handling a few types of user questions.
I didn't waste any time and jumped right into the project. I had a basic version ready in less than a week. The client was thrilled with the initial results, and after making a few improvements to enhance its performance, we were ready to launch. While it wasn't the most complex or advanced chatbot, it was fast, efficient, and, most importantly, it proved to be genuinely helpful to commuters.
My freelance work with the agency lasted less than a year. I moved on to other exciting projects and momentarily forgot about the Seville subway chatbot. However, to my surprise, I later discovered that our chatbot had received recognition as the best customer service solution at the 2021 Global Light Rail Awards. It was a pleasant surprise and showed that simplicity in design can often lead to the best results, especially when creating solutions that truly meet people's needs.
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