00:00Yeah, and I'm glad you brought up AI because that's another major disruptor, let's call it, within business in all
00:07sorts of levels, and particularly the rise of AI agents.
00:11And I'm sure you've seen them.
00:13You're in the industry.
00:14I mean, I see them as in my logistics industry where there's all these robocallers that sound so real, and
00:20you can train them up to have conversations and whatnot.
00:23But like you said, it's different than a real person.
00:28But how have you managed to navigate those waters, given it's all so new and the value prop for business
00:38owners is just cut costs and you can outsource to robots and that sort of thing.
00:43How have you been able to navigate that as a call center owner?
00:48Well, for an example, let's just say somebody fills out a form online instead of me being on the phone
00:52with you for 25 minutes asking you every single question.
00:56And then it's better off that if somebody shows that interest, it's like double opted in data.
01:00So, A, it's an extremely qualified lead.
01:02They give you all the stuff.
01:03You can do some due diligence prior to the phone call.
01:06You can prepare it.
01:07And so when I do call you, Dave, I am more than prepared to follow up on that, and it
01:13could save me time depending on the volume because let's say you have three to five people making the outbound
01:18calls.
01:18You could have the omni-channel non-voice of the filling out the forms of the chat or the email
01:26support as automated just to tee it up for you.
01:32So, is it replacing jobs?
01:36Sure it is.
01:37But I tell you what, let's call it straight.
01:39There is fatigue, and sometimes when it comes to finding an address or last name spelled correctly, people have a
01:48difficult time with that too.
01:51And the amount of speed it takes to be able to convert these leads.
01:55And so I see the good and the bad of it depending on how long it needs to be in
02:00intricate.
02:00But when we do get these filled out forms and then we make that outbound call within a certain period
02:05of time, it's phenomenal for us.
02:08But what else has AI done for us?
02:10Well, now that people are only expecting emails, okay, or let's just say they don't pick up and you have
02:18to leave a voicemail.
02:19Fortunately for us with AI, you can get some goodies in regards to the client.
02:23They might give you a quick summary of how long Dave has been in business, Beyond Fulfillment Podcast, how many
02:29episodes, people that he's interviewed, what's my man up to?
02:33And so they can give you that cliff note summary.
02:35So if I have to send a custom-made email or leave you a specific type of voicemail, that will
02:44save you time.
02:45That's like skip tracing for you, in a sense, could be looking up that information.
02:49And so I see that as extremely valuable.
02:52It's like those fishermen with the huge nets that they throw out and just pull it right back.
02:56I mean, I love that sort of stuff.
02:58It's great working smart, but it's also very intimidating.
03:01People kind of see the writing on the wall in some sense.
03:04But how about this, my man?
03:05If you have skills and you're marketable, you'll always get a job and get hired.
03:13It's those that just coast and do the maximum of minimum and try to just blend in with the rest.
03:20Of course, you're going to be replaced.
03:22There could be a computer that can do it better than you.
03:24And if it saves my client money and makes them more money, it's as Flavor Flav says, that's just the
03:29way the ball bounces, gee.
03:31So, I mean, there's really nothing more I could say about that.
03:34Well, and I love your perspective towards it in terms of particularly being in your industry where AI in some
03:41respects can be like a competitor, but you're looking at all the positive aspects.
03:45And I love that mindset to where if you're just doing the maximum of minimum, of course, you're at risk.
03:54But quality people always are going to be attractive to business owners because we all need people.
04:02That's right.
04:03Definitely.
04:04Okay.
04:06All right.
04:06So, Richard, with everything you've built and what you've scaled out to now here in 2025, what's next for Costa
04:14Rica's call center?
