Case Study — SHACADEMY · Consultancy • Systems • Technology
Ask Matt
An intelligent guidance platform developed and implemented by SHACADEMY.
SHACADEMY is the consultancy, implementation partner and ongoing support provider. Ask Matt is the technology platform — the intelligence that understands visitor objectives, asks thoughtful questions and guides people towards the right outcome.
The SHACADEMY implementation is branded "Ask Matt" because the name reflects the philosophy behind the platform. Future client implementations can be branded however those organisations choose.
The Challenge
Information isn't the same as guidance
Organisations receive the same questions again and again. Visitors often don't know:
- which service is right for them
- whether their situation fits
- what they need to prepare
- where to begin
- who they should be speaking to
Websites, search engines and booking systems provide information. Information alone doesn't help people make decisions. Ask Matt is designed to close that gap.
Our Approach
Designed to guide, not just answer
Ask Matt is not a chatbot, a search engine, a booking system or a CRM. It is an intelligent guidance platform. Every conversation follows the same underlying process.
01
Understand the objective
Listen first. Establish what the visitor is actually trying to achieve.
02
Ask only what matters
Ask the pivotal questions needed to make a confident recommendation — nothing more.
03
Apply approved knowledge
Reason using the organisation's approved rules, policies and procedures.
04
Recommend a solution
Guide the visitor towards the most appropriate activity, service or solution.
05
Direct to the right place
Hand off to the relevant page or process for detail, booking or next steps.
Websites provide information. Booking systems handle transactions. Ask Matt provides the guidance in between.
How Ask Matt Learns
Powered by approved knowledge, not the open internet
Ask Matt has been designed to consume approved information from organisation-specific Knowledge Packs. Organisations retain full control over the information it uses to reason and recommend.
Every rule, policy and answer is reviewed by a human before it goes live — ensuring recommendations stay consistent with the organisation's own standards.
- Organisation Knowledge Packs
- Organisation Resource Libraries
- Operational Decisions
- Approved procedures
- Eligibility rules
- Policies
- Frequently asked questions
How Ask Matt Behaves
Guidance that behaves like an experienced adviser
Ask Matt isn't trying to replace people or automate transactions. It is designed to give every visitor consistent, informed guidance — the kind an experienced adviser would offer.
- Listens first
- Asks only the questions that matter
- Explains options clearly
- Applies approved organisational knowledge
- Recommends the most appropriate solution
- Knows when to direct people elsewhere
Current Capabilities
What the platform does today
Guided conversations
Natural dialogue that moves the visitor forward with every exchange.
Objective-led recommendations
Answers built around what the visitor is trying to achieve, not the first matching rule.
Approved knowledge only
Educated using organisation-approved information rather than the open internet.
Organisation-specific guidance
Adapts to each organisation's services, procedures and policies through its Knowledge Pack.
Website integration
Hands visitors off to the correct page for detail, booking or next steps.
Resource Library
Approved links, pages and materials surfaced only when relevant.
Structured decision making
A consistent process behind every recommendation.
Controlled recommendations
Suggestions stay within the organisation's approved boundaries.
Human-reviewed knowledge
Every rule and answer is validated before it goes live.
Structured evolution
Every enhancement is validated through structured testing before becoming part of the core platform.
Where Ask Matt Sits
Guidance layer, not a replacement layer
Ask Matt is not a booking system, a CRM or a replacement for existing organisational tools. It sits alongside them as a guidance layer — recommending the most appropriate activity, service or solution before directing the visitor to the right page or process.
This creates a far more natural visitor journey while letting existing websites, booking systems and back-office tools continue to do what they do best.
The Long-Term Vision
A reusable platform for many organisations
The long-term vision is a reusable guidance platform that can be adapted for multiple organisations, sectors and customer journeys without changing the underlying principles. The same conversation engine loads organisation-specific inputs, so each deployment stays tailored while the core platform continues to evolve.
- Knowledge Packs
- Resource Libraries
- Operational Decisions
Future Capability
Ask Matt Voice
The same intelligent guidance. Now over the phone.
Many customer journeys still begin with a telephone call. Ask Matt Voice is being designed to bring the same objective-led guidance and approved Knowledge Pack to voice conversations, so organisations can deliver the same consistent experience whether a visitor contacts them through the website or by telephone.
Rather than a phone menu or automated receptionist, Ask Matt Voice is intended to have natural conversations — asking thoughtful follow-up questions, understanding the caller's objective and guiding them towards the most appropriate activity, service or solution using the same approved information as the web-based Ask Matt platform.
Ask Matt Voice is a future capability currently under development. It is the natural evolution of the platform rather than a separate product.
One Knowledge Pack.
Every Conversation.
Approved knowledge is managed once and delivered consistently across every supported channel. One source of truth across websites, telephones and staff-facing tools.
A Multi-Channel Guidance Platform
The conversation may begin in different places. The intelligence stays the same.
Ask Matt is designed as a scalable, multi-channel guidance platform — not a website chatbot. The same approved Knowledge Pack powers every supported touchpoint.
Today
Website guidance
Live on the SHAC website and available for client implementations.
In development
Ask Matt Voice
The same intelligent guidance delivered through natural telephone conversations.
Roadmap
Internal staff guidance & further channels
Approved touchpoints that help staff and partners access the same guidance visitors receive.
One Knowledge Pack. Every Conversation. The conversation may begin in different places, but the intelligence behind it remains the same.
The Evolution
From guided enquiry to intelligent guidance platform
The first generation of Ask Matt is already operating on the SHACADEMY website as a guided enquiry experience. The original objective was straightforward — help visitors identify the right SHACADEMY service and, at the same time, produce better enquiries for the team.
Through practical development, Ask Matt has evolved into something more capable. It is now designed to understand objectives, ask relevant questions, reason using approved organisational knowledge and guide people towards the right outcome.
Each improvement is validated through structured testing before becoming part of the core platform. The next generation is still maturing — this case study describes the direction of travel rather than a finished, widely deployed product.
The Philosophy
Why "Ask Matt"?
Matt was a close friend and, later, a colleague. For many years he was one of the people I turned to whenever I faced an important business decision.
One of the things that made him exceptional was that he rarely started by offering a solution. He listened carefully. He asked thoughtful questions. He helped people understand what they were actually trying to achieve before exploring possible answers.
That philosophy became the foundation of Ask Matt. The platform has never been designed simply to answer questions — it has been designed to understand objectives first, and only then guide someone towards the right outcome.
The technology may be modern, but the thinking behind it comes from a very human approach to problem solving. The SHACADEMY implementation carries Matt's name; every client implementation can carry its own.
Good guidance begins with good questions.
Where the Value Sits
Technology and consultancy working together
The value of an Ask Matt engagement lies not only in the technology, but in the consultancy, customer journey design, Knowledge Pack development, implementation and ongoing optimisation delivered by SHACADEMY.
Ask Matt provides the intelligence. SHACADEMY makes that intelligence work for each organisation. Clients invest in a premium, consultancy-led guidance platform — not an off-the-shelf AI chatbot.
Intelligence powered by Ask Matt · Implementation by SHACADEMY.
Could Ask Matt work for your organisation?
See how SHACADEMY delivers Ask Matt.
SHACADEMY works with organisations to configure Ask Matt around their services, journeys and knowledge. Explore the product page for the challenge it addresses, who it's for and how we deliver it.