How to Use Chatbots for Marketing of Your Business

Chatbots are here to help make our lives more comfortable. What are chatbots used for? They are used as a quick reference to answer customers’ questions.

We have already discussed the use and design of chatbots in our previous posts. Feel free to check out our articles on these topics:

• How to Build a Chatbot Using a Bot Development framework;
• How to Create a Chatbot User Interface (with a special emphasis on the Conversation Flow and Language);
• Handing over Projects with Chatbots;
• Object Detection in Chatbots and Beyond (where we talk about our company’s bot Dogbi).

This time we are going to discuss how to use chat programs for business to boost your marketing campaign. Learn how to grow your client base more profitably in less time with chatbot technology. 

What Are Chatbots Used For?

Assuming you already know what the chatbots are, let’s jump to their purpose. As a fresh and compelling technology, chatbots can be an effective method to replace humans. As a matter of fact, they are bringing a new understanding of customer interactions through social media channels (such as Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp and what not.

In essence, bots for business introduce a new format of communication with clients which can lead to a change in marketing strategies. Now you can reach many clients with just one bot.

Have you recently experienced receiving an answer within a split second from a support team? Well, that was most likely a bot answering. More and more frequently, instead of a living person on the other end, you have a program answering client questions.

As an upgrade to customer service, chatbots provide 24/7 assistance without delay. If your business offers a wide range of products, chatbots can be helpful assistants for prospective customers.

At the very foundational level, a bot can perform more activities in less time. As a result, chat programs for business are replacing human conversation with ever increasing progression. The growth in chatbot technology is helping enterprises operate more efficiently with less manpower.

Here is how this technology can positively impact your business:

• Generating customer data

Information about customer’s interests, requests and purchases becomes a valuable source for data analysis. With more detailed information about customer behavior, it is possible to make more accurate predictions about preferences, habits, and interests.

Clearly, chatbot business can help to compare sales results through a website or mobile app with greater effectiveness and efficiency. This virtual friend can assist in setting up better-targeted marketing campaigns.

• Changing mobile search preferences

As more consumers begin shopping on their mobile devices, chatbots provide an excellent opportunity to become a favorite “search engine” for specific queries (i.e., weather).

How does this work? Chatbots work by collecting search results from Google, for instance, through mobile devices. In this case, they select sites that have highest-ranking positions. With their help, a mobile version of the website can potentially increase traffic to the website.

Simply put, chatbots operate as an alternative customer interaction tool with increased speed, effectiveness and efficiency.

Watch this video for more benefits of chatbots.

Getting Friendly with a Chatbot

Are you ready to befriend a chatbot? Well, let’s see what types of bots you might encounter.

There are two categories of chatbots:

• Command-based chatbots
• Artificial intelligence-based (AI-based) chatbots

Command-based chatbots depend on a pool of responses and heuristics. The bots respond by choosing an answer that is based on a query context. The drawback here is that command-based chatbots cannot create new texts.

Special features (or the limitations) of command-based chatbots:

• They are built to answer a limited set of questions. In atypical queries, the bot will require clarification from an inquiring person.
• The chatbot can perform functions only within its code.
• To give the right type of feedback, the chatbot has to understand it first. Command-based chatbots utilize either dynamic or template search to interpret questions and respond to them.

AI-based or machine learning chatbots can answer more complex questions. A client doesn’t need to ask specific questions when talking to chatbots. These chat programs for business generate replies from scratch implementing natural language processing. The cool thing is that they become smarter with time learning from past Q&A!

Both types of chatbots have their pros and cons. Command-based chatbots can give linguistically more erudite answers. However, they can’t respond to queries that are out of their field of expertise. Conversely, machine learning chatbots require a vast pool of data. Thus, forming longer sentences is a challenge for them.

What on Earth Can These Bots for Business Do?

1. They can enhance your scalability

Chatbots aren’t restricted by human limitations. Live agents can handle only 2 to 3 conversations at a time. Chatbots can operate without the restraints of a human agent. They can address potentially millions of inquiries at the same time; a live support team could reach only a tiny fraction of that. 

2. They can handle a huge quantity of queries in a short time

Let’s say your business receives a lot of inquiries. Chatbots can take the load off your customer support team. A business chatbot can function as the first point of reference. It can screen calls and messages from clients and if necessary redirect them to human agents.

3. They can help make the right choice

Your customers might need help to select the right product from a list of goods or services. They need tips, especially, if they want to buy something expensive such as cameras, tablets, etc. Chatbots can help customers make the right choice quickly.

4. They can help you to sell to the millennials

Millennials aren’t prone to be impulsive buyers. They prefer researching before they buy a particular product. Additionally, millennials prefer to communicate through live chats instead of phone calls. Thus, having a couple of chatbots in your customer service line could be a smart move to market your brand.

5. They can become a booster of your market content  

The bottom line: the more frequently you can connect with your customers, the higher the chances for you to offer your business services or products. This is especially true if you are already using online channels for communication with your clients.

Moreover, they can make your clients’ life more manageable. Do you remember the hassle of trying to find the mobile phone number for your favorite pizza? Pizza Hut has solved this problem by using chatbots who help streamline the ordering process from this cheesy giant more smoothly.

There’s no need for customers to fuss with a website or hunt down a phone number any longer. Now customers can order pizzas directly on Facebook or Twitter simply and quickly.

6. It is a catalyst for an interactive marketing platform

Chatbot technology represents a more proactive approach to marketing strategies. Apps and websites can be referred to as passive user experience. Conversely, you can use chatbots to make your marketing campaigns truly interactive. Now with chatbots on platforms like Facebook Messenger, you can reach out to many people at the same time.

Final Thoughts

Automation technologies are steadily advancing and re-shaping different areas of our lives. Your business can surely benefit from this new trend which continues to impact consumers and businesses globally.

Even if you are a small business owner, you can grow your online business by building chatbots. They can help you increase your ROI and save your time.

It might be the right time to order your first bots for business. We are here to help bring your dreams to reality by creating a first-class chatbot uniquely designed for your business.

Content created by our partner, Onix-systems.