Call Center Abandonment Rate Cut from 15% to 2.5%: How Hokuriku Bank Built a Self-Service FAQ That Works Like Digital Customer Service

Hokuriku Bank, Ltd.

Banking·1,001+ employees·Customer Support

Call Center Abandonment Rate Cut from 15% to 2.5%: How Hokuriku Bank Built a Self-Service FAQ That Works Like Digital Customer Service

At a glance

• Call abandonment rate dropped 83%, from 15% to 2.5%
• FAQ articles reduced from 800 to 200 with better coverage
• Customers now self-serve asset management inquiries in real time, reducing call volume

The Challenge

Hokuriku Bank's call center was overwhelmed. Abandonment rates hit 15% at peak times, meaning one in seven customers calling for help got no answer. Many of those calls were about information already sitting in the bank's 800-article FAQ or chatbot, but customers weren't finding it. The FAQ had no search function, and the chatbot was just a scenario tree. Updates happened twice a year, meaning the content was always behind real-time needs.

Kurabayashi, who directs the bank's website and advertising, wanted more than an FAQ refresh. The goal was to turn the entire website into a "non-branch store" where customers could resolve questions instantly, online, without picking up the phone.

Why Helpfeel

Hokuriku Bank was looking for an FAQ that could function like digital customer service, instantly resolving whatever customers needed. When Kurabayashi tried Helpfeel's demo, the intent-prediction search delivered exactly that: results changed in real time with every character typed, converging on the right answer faster than any chatbot the team had tested.

Until then, the assumption had been that FAQs and chatbots needed to work together. Helpfeel changed that. The simplicity, speed, and breadth of financial services case studies reassured the team. What sealed the decision was Helpfeel's Customer Success support, responsive proposal process, and clarity around the long-term partnership.

What They Did

• Reviewed the existing 800-article FAQ with Helpfeel's team and migrated approximately 200 articles, eliminating duplicates created to cover different keyword variations
• Eliminated the need for exact keyword matches, compressing the FAQ to one-quarter its original size while improving coverage
• Focused post-launch operations on closing search gaps, adding and revising articles based on monthly data analysis
• Established a monthly PDCA cycle with Helpfeel's Customer Success team to prioritize improvements and track progress toward zero call abandonment

Results

The call center abandonment rate dropped from 15% to 2.5%, and raw call volume decreased alongside the rate, showing customers were successfully self-serving through the FAQ. Increasing staffing contributed, but the data confirmed the FAQ was working.

Beyond call reduction, data analysis revealed shifting customer needs. Searches for financial terminology spiked, driven in part by government promotion of NISA (Japan's tax-exempt investment scheme). Customers weren't just looking for NISA overviews, they wanted details: growth investment quotas, growth allocations, and step-by-step guidance for opening NISA accounts through the app. The bank responded by expanding FAQ coverage to match those needs.

Operationally, collaboration improved across departments. Kurabayashi now prepares question text and sample answers when requesting FAQ updates from other teams, reducing their workload and speeding turnaround. Communication with the call center improved, too. Staff now suggest FAQ ideas based on inquiry trends, and teams across the bank understand that a good FAQ is worth building for customers.

"The experience of search results changing with every character you type, converging on exactly what you want, was everything I'd wanted from a chatbot. It felt faster and more responsive than a chatbot. I thought of it as a superior alternative, not just an equivalent."

Kurabayashi, Senior Staff, PR & CSR Group, Corporate Planning Division

Looking Ahead

Kurabayashi doesn't want Helpfeel to function purely as an FAQ. The next initiative is improving search depth, getting customers to browse beyond their initial question and use the FAQ as a broader source of information. One approach: featuring important announcements and campaign information directly in the FAQ. The bank's website already sees substantial traffic, and Helpfeel offers an efficient way to deliver timely information to customers. Building toward true digital customer service through the FAQ is the goal at the end of that series of improvements.

“The experience of search results changing with every character you type, converging on exactly what you want, was everything I'd wanted from a chatbot. It felt faster and more responsive than a chatbot. I thought of it as a superior alternative, not just an equivalent.”

— Kurabayashi, Senior Staff, PR & CSR Group, Corporate Planning Division