As a client, if you have ever visited a website and used their online chat service, you will know how far the technology has come on. No longer are we frustrated by useless responses, but chatbots are actually getting down to resolving our issues.
This is a world where we would rather seek solutions to problems online instead of contacting a human. A scary yet realistic thought is that within the next 5 years, we may be interacting with chatbots more than we do with our own family.
Regardless of what we happen in the future, right now chatbots can turn a business around, improving customer interactions, and enhancing the website, and in turn the user experience.
The idea of a chatbot is not to communicate like a human; we are a long way off being able to talk with a chatbot that understands emotions, or facial expressions. A chatbot is a way to get across product details and information in a more interactive way; the aim is for the service to be easier and more convenient for the user.
Surprisingly, chatbots have been around for decades, well, at least the concept. The idea was first talked about in the 1960s. Nowadays, chatbots have been integrated into our daily lives.
The Oracle report stated that by 2020, 80% of business executives and marketers will have probably put chatbots in place.
The Advantages of Chatbots for Small Businesses
Installing chatbots now is more about preparing your business for the future. In their current state, the kinks are still being ironed out of some of this technology. There are plenty of advantages, here are a few:
Constant customer care- With chatbots, your site will be interactive 24 hours a day 7 days a week. This removes any geographical restrictions; a customer on the other side of the globe can receive the customer care and information, even when you are asleep.
The ability to customize- Chatbots are highly flexible and with this, you are able to apply them to a great range of tasks.
Powerful without breaking the budget- Right now, you can implement chatbots for a very reasonable fee. It’s worth looking around at some of the popular options; Facebook Messenger is high up on the list.
Cut down on your human resources- If a chatbot is handling a large percentage of your customer service, your HR department will have more time to concentrate on other areas of the business, more specifically- production!
The Solution for the Future
Let’s face it, customer service has and always will be an important aspect for all businesses. At the same time, it’s not always that easy to keep one’s calm.
Chatbots can be programmed to respond in a certain way, it can literally control a conversation to maximize the chances of a positive outcome. To put it basically, it has unlimited patience and you can’t hurt its feelings, something we can’t say about humans.
By training the chatbot, it can analyze the needs and desires of a customer and from the data collected, provide a reduced number or the perfect buying choices for that individual. These types of chatbots are just right for e-Commerce sites, providing a much more personalized serve.
A Novel Solution
When an intelligent chatbot is used, customers are able to interact with new technology, which improves the user experience. It’s not just about serving the customer; at this point, it’s about proving the “Wow factor” and impressing them.
The Speedy Response Time
When you combine the benefits of AI chatbots and machine learning, you will be able to integrate a solution that can multitask, it’s highly efficient, and it can respond much faster than a human can, even with significant amounts of data. We all want solutions as quickly as possible, so chatbots are the way forward.
In Summary
It’s difficult to find a reason not to implement chatbots into your business. They are an excellent way to engage customers, improving not only the customer experience but also the customer service around the clock. They can reduce the strain on your human resources, and best of all, they are not an expensive way to take your businesses beyond the 21st century.
