Roles of chatbots in running an online business

If you've ever wished you had a sales assistant that doesn't cost much but takes care of time-consuming tasks, good news. You can probably have it, thanks to big improvements in how chatbots work. Previously, chatbots only answered the simplest questions, but now they can do so much more.

Thanks to the progress of chatbot technology, to the growing number of chatbot plugins and Facebook Messenger's chat tools for business, bots can handle several important customer service and marketing tasks for you. But before you start, here is a premium training that will allows you to know all the secrets to succeed in the Podcast.

?? What is a chatbot?

A chatbot is an artificial intelligence (AI) program that can simulate a conversation (or chat) with a user in natural language via messaging apps, websites, mobile apps, or over the phone.

An example. You want to buy shoes from your local retail store, you need to go to their website, find what you are looking for and buy it. But what if this store had a bot?

It would be enough to write a message to the brand via Facebook and tell them what we want. And if you had any doubts about the size measurements, you could find answers to your problem in an instant.

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The use of chatbots was initially partly experimental because it presented a certain risk for brands depending on possible semantic slippages and manipulations or misappropriations also possible on the part of Internet users.

However, progress in the field has been rapid and chatbots are now establishing themselves in certain contexts as a new support channel or customer contact guaranteeing availability, absorption of activity peaks and above all productivity gains.

One of the great advantages of chatbots is that, unlike applications, they are not downloaded, they do not need to be updated and they do not take up space in the phone's memory. Another is that we can have several robots integrated in the same chat.

?? Types of chatbots

Chatbots process data to provide quick responses to all kinds of user requests with predefined rules and AI-powered chatbots. There are two types of chatbots.

Rules-based chatbots

Rule-based chatbots follow predefined paths during conversations. At each stage of the conversation, the user will have to choose from the explicit options that determine the next stage of the conversation.

Key attributes:

• These robots follow predetermined rules. So it becomes easy to use the bot for simpler scenarios.
• Interactions with rule-based chatbots are highly structured and are more applicable to customer support functions.
• Rule-based bots are great for answering common queries like an inquiry about opening hours, delivery status, or tracking details.

Conversational Chatbots

Conversational chatbots are also called virtual assistants or digital assistants. They are much more interactive and personalized than rule-based chatbots.

They emerge as conversational banking trends as they converse with users as in a way humans converse and communicate in real life situations.

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The conversational communication skills of chatbot technology allow them to deliver what customers are looking for.

Key attributes:

• Chatbots can understand the context and intent of complex conversations and try to provide more relevant answers.
• AI bots apply predictive intelligence and sentiment analysis to gain a close understanding of customer emotions.
• These machine-learning bots learn from user behavior and deliver more personalized conversations.

?? Role of chatbots in business

A chatbot implementation plan can improve operational efficiency and save businesses money while providing additional convenience and services to customers.

They allow businesses to easily resolve many types of customer queries and issues while reducing the need for human interaction.

According to Forbes, 80% of marketers plan to start using a chatbot in some way by 2021. This is a big reason why brands invest in improving customer experience. .

Here are 5 ways a chatbot can improve your small business.

#1. Instant customer service

No one wants to wait for answers to basic questions about your business. With a chatbot, they don't have to. No matter what time of day people come to your site with questions, and no matter what your business, chatbots can take care of those basic questions and answers for you.

You can configure your chatbot with a menu of questions and answers relevant to your business and your customers. If your chatbot has AI-powered natural language processing capabilities, your customers can have real conversations with your bot to get their questions answered.

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What if someone asks a question your bot can't answer? You can configure your bot to connect the customer to your customer service team via email or phone.

#2. Marketing data collection

Chatbots are a great way to build your marketing lists. If your customers connect to the chat with their Facebook profile, you can receive their public profile data. You can also request an email address and phone number to build your marketing lists.

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The bot's Beauty Uncomplicator feature helps users find foundation, eyeliner, and other products that match their skin type and style preferences. This can lead browsing shoppers to make purchases without leaving the chat.

#3. Help customers find the products they want

With the right chatbot, your customers can find what they're looking for while they chat, without having to click through to the site themselves. For example, some WordPress chatbots integrate with WooCommerce to support product searches, upsells, and cross-sells in the chat feature.

This creates a customer experience that feels more like in-store service than click-and-search online shopping.

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Why would you want customers to buy through your chatbot instead of browsing your site? Because unless a site is exceptionally intuitive and easy to use, they'd rather not.

“Difficult to navigate” sites were the top frustration for online shoppers in a 2018 report. More than a third of respondents said they had been frustrated browsing an online store in the past month.

#4. Remind customers of items in their cart

The average cart abandonment rate for e-commerce hovers around 70% year after frustrating year. Many factors cause customers to abandon their cart: clumsy checkout process and high shipping costs. Sometimes buyers are just distracted, or have to get back to work.

Chatbots can help with this, by sending a reminder to shoppers about these products. An invitation to ask questions or a discount offer on items in their cart. It can increase your conversion rates without any effort on your part.

#5. Send campaigns via email, chat and text

The real power of chatbots today is in the amount of data they collect and organize for business owners. When you have a chatbot that gathers information, email addresses, and phone numbers on Facebook Messenger, you have instant marketing lists.

When you combine this contact information with details about how these buyers have used the chatbot and your site, you have an easy way to segment these lists and create more effective campaigns.

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We've already talked about the ability of some chatbots to remarket to shoppers who have left items in their online cart. But you can also use your chatbot data to quickly create campaigns based on:

Past purchases

Maybe 10 people bought dog crates from your store last week? These customers may need a special offer on chew toys that their puppies can enjoy during the crate period.

Search for products in your store

Were shoppers looking for fall jackets before you had them in stock? Let them know as soon as you have them available.

Questions buyers have asked your chatbot

Has a buyer spent a lot of time asking questions and looking at your store's woodworking tools? Update them whenever you have new millwork items in stock.

Some chatbots will allow you to send chat campaigns to your entire list or segments. Some integrate with other marketing tools so you can also create email and SMS campaigns.

???? Summary …

A Chatbot uses technology that programs responses in advance based on specific keywords. In other words, it is a computer program powered by rules and interacts with humans via a chat interface. It allows:

• Support for an unlimited number of conversations,
• cost reduction thanks to the automated response system,
• Permanent availability: response from Chatbots is instantaneous.

However, it has some drawbacks. The disadvantages of chatbots stem from their concept. They are described as software capable of conversing with a human according to instructions already programmed beforehand then:

• User questions must be precise otherwise the robot's answer will be wrong,
• Spelling errors mislead the ChatBot.

Now you know more about chatbots, leave me your concerns in the comments. Before you leave, here is a training that allows you to master trading in just 1 hour. Click here to buy it

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