Advies.chat
Tailored web application
Innovative chat service advising Dutch people about sexual health and safety
Challenge
Create an approachable program that educates Dutch people on sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and gives advice on testing.
Outcome
An intelligent chat service that provides personalized information about STDs and helps users decide whether they should go for testing.
Impact
The use of advies.chat has doubled in 2018 leading to improved access to STD advice and an increased flow of patients to STD clinics. The chatbot is ranked number 1 by search engines.
Strategy
When in need of health advice, particularly about STDs, the modern customer journey starts online. Customer expectations surrounding health advice are changing and commercial players in the eHealth industry are making their mark.
To make sure Soa Aids Netherlands, a non-profit organization, remained the number one provider of information about STDs and testing, they needed a product that could build trust with users and offer an approachable and personalized experience.
Advies.chat gives users an anonymous space to talk about STDs and sexual health and offers the experience of talking to a healthcare professional at any time of the day. The chat service uses the same scientific questions that a healthcare professional would ask and reduces the fear of embarrassment that happens when talking to a real doctor. Ultimately, the service is aimed towards preventing the purchase of unreliable and unsafe STD testing kits.
Creative
Soa Aids’ chatbot had two important design features: trust and universality. Advies.chat builds trust through anonymity and is made accessible and understandable for any Dutch person concerned about STDs and sexual health.
Through extensive research, the chatbot was constructed using the UX and animation patterns from a variety of messaging apps and services and mimics natural speech intervals.
With a sleek speech bubble design, the chatbot imitates having a conversation with a professional from Soa Aids by incorporating personalized replies to users’ answers and enabling users to ask open-ended questions.
Technology
The platform is built as a tailored web application. The chat functionality is connected to a custom back end system where Soa Aids can tailor questions to suit different conversations.
The questionnaire software used in the chatbot is completely built in-house and is used by Soa Aids and their partners for a variety of other chatbots.
Highlights
- The use of Advies.chat has doubled in 2018, showing the success of the service.
- The development of an innovative chat service that improves the sexual health and safety of Dutch people.
Press
Nos.nl - Jeuk of branderig gevoel? Vraag aan de chatbot of je een soa hebt Trouw - Soa-risico online eenvoudig na te gaan Parool - Advies over soa's nu anoniem via chat RTL Nieuws - Met speciale app kun je dag en nacht anoniem chatten over hiv en soa's Nu.nl - Schaamte en kosten blijven obstakel bij laten uitvoeren soa-test 
