How Al Hilal Houri Medical Equipment streamlined support and achieved 60% growth with Gallabox

Based in Abu Dhabi, Al Hilal Houri Medical Equipment LLC is a premier provider of high-quality medical equipment and supplies across the UAE. Specializing in hearing aids, laboratory equipment, diagnostic instruments, and medical consumables, they serve healthcare facilities with products sourced from reputed international manufacturers in Europe, Japan, and the USA.

With over 43 years of experience in the hearing solutions segment alone, they've built their reputation on delivering products of the highest standards while adhering to stringent quality and safety regulations.

The challenge: When WhatsApp messages become overwhelming

As Meera Nicholas (NetSuite Administrator at Al Hilal Houri) explains, the medical equipment company faced a critical customer service bottleneck: "We struggled to handle customers' WhatsApp messages. We were not able to reply back to customers on time." For a medical equipment supplier where timely responses can impact patient care, delayed communication isn't something they could overlook.

The volume of WhatsApp inquiries had grown beyond what their team could manage effectively. Healthcare facilities needed quick responses about equipment availability, specifications, and urgent orders. But with messages flooding in across different team members' phones, important inquiries were getting lost or delayed.

From templates to frustration

Before Gallabox, Al Hilal Houri attempted to manage the chaos with WhatsApp Business's basic features. "We had the business account, where there were short message templates," Meera recalls. While templates reduced typing time for common responses, they couldn't address the core problem — "it still didn't help to answer them properly where human intervention was required," she explains.

"It still didn't help to answer them properly where human intervention was required," she explains. Medical equipment inquiries often need detailed, personalized responses – something that basic templates couldn't provide. The team was stuck between giving quick but inadequate responses or taking too long to provide proper information.

Choosing Gallabox over AiSensy and Respond

Al Hilal Houri evaluated both AiSensy and Respond before choosing Gallabox. The decision came down to three crucial factors: "Feature parity, pricing, and more importantly a hands on support and success team", as Meera puts it succinctly.

In the medical equipment industry, where margins can be tight and customer service is paramount, finding a solution that balanced cost-effectiveness with functionality was essential. Gallabox's responsive customer support also resonated with a company that understood the importance of timely assistance.

Implementation: Chatbots to automate the busywork of customer support

Al Hilal Houri kept their implementation focused, deploying Gallabox with two primary objectives: streamline customer communication and automate customer support. They leveraged chatbots as their primary feature.

Chatbots now handle initial inquiries about medical equipment, directing customers to the right product categories, providing basic specifications, and capturing detailed requirements for complex orders. The bot can differentiate between urgent medical facility orders and individual patient inquiries, routing each appropriately.

The results: Healthy growth metrics

The impact of Gallabox on Al Hilal Houri's business has been substantial:

• Business growth improved by 60%: The company transformed its customer service from a bottleneck to a competitive advantage.
• New conversion rates grew 25%: Quick, accurate responses to initial inquiries mean more healthcare facilities and patients choose Al Hilal Houri.
• Employee productivity increased 50%: Staff can now focus on complex medical consultations rather than repetitive inquiries.

The scaling rewards of responsive service

In the medical equipment industry, trust is everything. Healthcare facilities need suppliers who respond quickly to urgent needs. Patients seeking hearing aids or other medical devices want knowledgeable support throughout their journey. The 25% improvement in first-time conversions shows how automated yet personalized responses build this trust from the first interaction.

With chatbots handling routine inquiries about product availability, specifications, and order status, the team can dedicate more time to complex consultations. This is particularly valuable for their hearing aid division, where patients often need detailed guidance on selecting the right solution for their specific needs.

As the UAE's healthcare sector continues to grow and modernize, Al Hilal Houri's investment in communication infrastructure positions them well for expansion. Their partnership with international manufacturers requires efficient communication to manage orders and specifications. Gallabox ensures nothing gets lost in translation – or in a flood of WhatsApp messages.