The most suitable psychic for the client. At Wengo, the use of speech analytics

‘I manage and develop a platform for remote psychics. And why not?’

Anne-Fleur Saraux, Associate CEO of Wengo, the leading online psychic platform, captivated the audience at yesterday's French Customer Experience Forum. How do you ensure that you connect a customer with the psychic who best suits their profile? Speech analytics, combined with AI, helps. Wengo has put this into practice using a tool developed in-house.

How can you restore agility and performance to your customer acquisition and customer service processes? Sometimes by reviewing your rates and replacing your specialist service provider, even if they are one of the world leaders. "You can choose to maintain good relations with a partner or take the necessary measures to ensure that salaries are paid at the end of the month. I chose the second option."

Gathered for a day of intense discussion, ECTFF participants listened to testimonials from engineers, tourism specialists (Paul Roll), neighbourhood bakery owners (Léonie Bakery) and Gary Anssens, founder of Alltricks.  

Anne-Fleur Saraux kicked things off in the morning and set the bar very high with her detailed and sincere contribution. The high standards she sets for herself are evident in her daily life. Is high standards the key to survival in an unstable environment?

Wengo, from Skype-like telephony software to an online psychic platform, 
Wengo has Uberised the psychic market and operated intermediary activities in renovation, legal advice, tutoring, health, etc.

The company initially designed Skype-like telephony software that made it easier to connect people. Anne-Fleux Saraux is the associate managing director. She started there as an intern. Twenty years later, her experience in multiple marketplaces has led her to advocate the alignment of interests as an essential value; and sometimes you have to dare to change in order to realign yourself.

What Wengo did recently, leaving Concentrix, one of the world leaders in customer relations and BPO, for a pair of modest and agile players: BestCall Portugal and Onepilot.

Anne-Fleur accepts the market in which she operates, recognises that there are deviations, and stresses the importance of monitoring and supporting practices. She remembers the words of her first shareholder, the boss of Vivendi, when this first category emerged: ‘Psychics are doctors of the soul. We're not going to run away from business where it is.’ 

Wengo is a kind of Doctolib for astrology. 
The platform connects individuals who want to consult a psychic or astrologer with a professional or celebrity in the field. It takes a commission. For example, if you want to benefit from the listening skills and advice of Charline de Savoie, a medium and couples therapist, it will cost you £3.50 per minute to get help and perhaps achieve a fulfilling relationship. 99.8% of Charline's clients are satisfied. Recommendations are key here too.

The use of speech analytics
"In our business, repeat business depends on customer satisfaction, on both of our customers: the one who comes to the platform to choose a psychic or medium. They can choose directly using the information available on the home page or they may need the help of a telephone advisor, who, after a conversation, is able to better understand the person's profile, their expectations and the context of their search. Many people consult psychics to find love or for reassurance. I am an engineer, and yet I have noticed that thanks to these consultations, clients are often happier and more at peace. They leave us when they have found love, we don't see them anymore, we don't hear from them anymore, and then... they come back (..)

Over time, we discovered that setting up a telephone support service, with a number clearly displayed on the website, doubled the conversion rate of prospects. The next obvious step was to use a speech analytics tool to verify that the match was correct. Connecting the customer with the most suitable psychic (..)

At the same time, our other client, the fortune teller, also needs to be listened to. If and when she generates slightly less revenue in a given month, or if and when we change our pricing or commission practices, the change may be misunderstood or cause concern. We called them all after these changes, mobilising our internal teams.

Thanks to speech analytics, I was able to obtain a summary and key graphs of objections and feelings within an hour. I can then respond or discover that a customer service advisor based in Portugal, for example, is having trouble understanding the new arguments, or, on the contrary, hear that they are using appropriate words and arguments that hit the mark. There is no longer any bias or concern about the sample of conversations we have listened to and analysed: it's 100%!"

Change, the pace of change 
"The start of 2025 was very difficult for us. We had to take action to restore margins and were in serious danger. Acquisition costs had skyrocketed and consultations were shorter. The Urssaf (social security contributions collection agency) initiated audits to try to reclassify the relationship we have with our clients. In our business, the law is written with case law.

So we reviewed almost everything at a rapid pace: rates, the first few minutes of consultation included in the package. BPO and customer service providers. You can choose to maintain good relations with your provider or ensure that salaries are paid at the end of the month. I chose the right option.

We changed call centre and BPO specialists, deployed speech analytics, reviewed rates, and things started moving in the right direction. Concentrix's representatives were fair when we left them after eleven years of collaboration. And we are now ramping up in five countries with our two new partners. Both use independent agents. This is a radical break with previous practices.

Excerpts from the speech by Anne-Fleur Saraux, CEO of Wengo, on 15 October. Details to be found in the next issue of En-Contact.

Who is Anne-Fleur Saraux?  Find out in ‘Les pizzini de...’
Speech analytics practices and French specialists. Read here.