It’s 2020 and customers are used to getting what they want, when they want, and without any problems. This kind of customer service can be difficult for companies and brands to achieve, but luckily AI-powered chatbots have become an important part of the solution for this issue. Research by Gartner found CIOs identified chatbots as the main AI-based application used in their enterprises. Today, chatbots are altering the digital experience and user-experience by helping companies change their culture completely. Although experts have stated that chatbot technology is still in its infancy, we have gotten a glimpse into what the future of AI will look like and how chatbots will alter life as we know it.
According to research from the Temkin Group, customers who have positive experiences with chatbots are 3.5 times more likely to make further purchases, while 22% of customers with bad experiences decrease their spending with that company, and 19% stop spending completely.
If you want to transform your business, here are 5 ways chatbots can take your site to the next level:
- Use chatbots to determine digital body language
If you are trying to better understand your customer, make sure you use chatbots to help judge how they are feeling. These digital body language insights can help retailers understand whether an online user is active, engaged, and ready to purchase, or if they are confused and need some additional guidance. “For example, if a customer is bouncing from page to page on a website and showing frantic mouse movements, clearly showing signs of frustration, the chatbot should deploy, and even potentially pass the interaction off to a human agent who might be better positioned to help,” said Tim de Paris, CTO at Decibel.
- Increase your sales
The key to elevating your chatbot customer service is by looking at them as not only a customer service tool but as a way to reach a whole new audience in an entirely new way. Chatbots can be used as a great sales tool for a multitude of reasons. First, they know everything there is to know about the product you sell and they won’t forget this information if you regularly update them. Secondly, they’re always available. Chatbots don’t need time to rest – they are available to go, go, go all day long. And thirdly, chatbots are incredibly helpful and insightful. Instead of leaving your customers to fend for themselves on your complicated sales pages and confusing eCommerce platform, your chatbot is there to make the sale.
- Chatbots and Internal business intelligence
We live in a world that revolves around data and numbers, which can become difficult to track. Digging through the vital information you need as a business to continue to grow and transform can be time-consuming, and in today’s fast-paced world it can be challenging to keep up. When you have a chatbot on the website to take care of the preliminary, basic queries or FAQs, it means that a chunk of the job of your live agents is reduced. Thanks to the conversational interface of chatbots, businesses can now find this information easily. The team at Google Analytics has even implemented chatbots on their own site to track data, which is a clear indication of how useful they can be.
- Speak to your customers in their own language
One of the most useful parts of adding chatbots to your website is their unique ability to speak to all of your customers in their own language. Language doesn’t create barriers for chatbots, since many have multilingual options they can connect with all customers in a personal way. It can be a deterrent for customers who have to struggle through a conversation they don’t understand very well or at all, leading them to leave the site and not coming back again. Your customers can simply choose which language they want to chat in, which removes any confusion.
- Offer 24/7 availability
Because chatbots operate during and after the typical company office hours, they can provide 24/7 guidance. This allows customers to continue to shop, learn, and receive support whenever they need it, no matter the time or where they are in the world. This is a huge competitive advantage because they generate leads and respond to questions all the time, and providing answers in real-time, can prevent visitors from checking out your companies’ competitors.
Bots are constantly evolving to meet the current needs of both businesses and customers. The ultimate goal is for chatbots to become as emotionally intelligent, and artificially intelligent as possible, which will lead to a whole new and innovative world of customer service.
