Do you want to learn how to serve your customers better and increase their satisfaction by perusing their comments on your website and social media?
Chatbots designed for customer support can greatly help with things like these.
However, you may still be left with some mysteries.
In practice, how do chatbots help customers? In what ways will they benefit your company?
Regarding customer service, what are some instances of companies that have found success with customer service chatbots? How about a chatbot for your website?
And that is precisely why we're here.
Let's find out what's hiding in the shadows of these powerful customer service chatbots.
What exactly is a chatbot that provides support to customers?
In offering support, a chatbot can automate answering customer questions and addressing their concerns in online discussions.
Chatbots are designed to aid website users and deliver first-rate customer support using AI and machine learning.
They quickly identify frequent visitor speech triggers at various stages of the customer experience and give pertinent information without involving human representatives.
But do chatbots improve customer service?
The quick response is yes. The more extensive version will necessitate we detail the most significant benefits of customer service chatbots that organizations may enjoy.
There are several ways in which customer service chatbots can improve customer service.
As a customer support tool, a chatbot has many uses.
It's a potent resource for increasing conversion rates, enhancing lead creation, addressing frequently asked questions, and more.
Aside from these benefits, customer service chatbots are available around the clock, respond in real-time, understand and speak different languages, and typically don't need to be programmed.
How can chatbots be used to assist customers better?
Superior customer service is achieved with chatbots. As the field of artificial intelligence develops, bots are gaining the ability to learn at an unprecedented rate.
Deploying customer service chatbots can help you gain valuable insights about your clients and increase their happiness with your products and services. Increased conversions and happier customers can be achieved by providing tailored, individual service in conjunction with lightning-fast response speeds and minimal wait times.
customer service chatbots are readily available at any time from any location. Customers nowadays are incredibly pressed for time and picky. They need prompt and thorough responses to their inquiries.
The good news is that automated assistance systems stay energized like human employees do, so they're always ready to respond to customers' questions whenever they may be asked. This functional interaction is a surefire method to turn website visitors into paying clients.
Using customer service chatbots can help your company save significant money. You may save money while increasing sales with chatbot customer service.
To begin with, it is always more cost-effective to implement a chatbot for customer care rather than to hire and train a human customer support staff. There are numerous free chatbot creators and chatbot templates to choose from.
In addition, a survey by Business Insider Intelligence projects that by 2024, consumers will spend $142 billion online via chatbots.
Chatbots can communicate in various tongues
These days, finding ways to communicate across linguistic boundaries is more crucial than ever. One reason is that research shows 75% of consumers would instead do online transactions in their native language. And no one likes to see the potential business go down the drain because of problems with communication with clients.
Customer service chatbots powered by NLP (natural language processing) technology are great for companies because they can quickly understand different languages and answer appropriately to visitors.
Use chatbots to streamline your customer support
Also, if you give your bot some character, you can expect more people to start a conversation with it. 53% of consumers had a favorable impression of firms whose bots utilize witty comebacks, according to our study of chatbot personalities. A customer service bot can increase customer loyalty by providing better service and understanding customers' wants and needs.
Shopify, Wix, WordPress, or WooCommerce; makes no difference. You indeed have a lot of options open to you right now.
Furthermore, a chatbot need not be hosted exclusively on your website. Chatbots for platforms like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram can let you keep in touch with clients at all hours.
However, which chatbot service companies offer the most robust set of options? What is it?
Most helpful chatbots for customer service
Knowing how helpful a chatbot may be, let's investigate the best ones available for customer service.
This is one of the most excellent chatbot services to assist online shoppers. BotPenguin is an adaptable all-purpose chat platform with built-in bots and real-time chatting. It also includes a chatbot creator that doesn't require any code and integrates with the most popular e-commerce platforms.
Key Features
- Syncing with social media platforms and 60+ integrations
- Conversational bots that use natural language processing
- There are more than 30 pre-made templates to select from.
- Customizable Frequently Asked Questions chatbots.
- Widgets that may be easily modified to fit the theme of any website.
- Unified Inbox for communications
- Omnichannel Bots
Pricing:
- There's a free version called the Baby Plan
- King Plan ($4.85 per month)
- Enterprise Plan ( Custom Plan)
Gorgias
Since it is both a Shopify chatbot tool and a ticketing system, Gorgias is an excellent alternative for medium-sized businesses. It helps companies keep tabs on their clients and divide them into several groups so they can cater to each individual.
Pros
- There are more than 30 integrations, including chat apps and social networking.
- Seeing the bot's past chats
- Recognizing intentions and emotions
Cons
- Focuses primarily on e-commerce
- Less reporting features
Pricing
- Essential ($60/mo)
- Pro ($300/mo)
- Advanced ($750/mo)
- On-demand (Custom price)
Intercom
In-chat polls for collecting customer feedback, interaction tracking, and visitor categorization are the features offered by this AI chatbot system for customer support. You can also automate your support pipeline with rules. Intercom provides solutions that enhance your company's communication and customer service.
Pros
- There are many different chatbot templates to choose from.
- Functions for tracking and reporting on workflows
- Bots that can converse in multiple languages
Cons
- An intensive learning process is required before use.
- It is not feasible to organize content into folders.
Pricing
- By Quote
HubSpot Chatbot
HubSpot is a marketing and sales platform designed to increase your company's revenue and customer base. It's a customer relationship management solution that helps you keep track of customer correspondence and arrange your contacts with them more efficiently. This chatbot platform's marketing, sales, and customer support options are second to none.
Pros
- Tracking site visitors
- User interface that is well-organized and simple to use
- E-mail box that everyone uses
- HubSpot CRM, Zapier, Gmail, and more integrations.
Cons
- Limited data analytics only goes so far.
- Establishing a knowledge basis can be challenging.
Pricing
- Free Plan
- Starter(monthly $45)
- Professional ($450/month)
- Enterprise (From $1,200/month)
Zendesk Chatbot
Zendesk is a cloud-based service that gives businesses access to features, including web SDKs, custom agent roles, and set business hours. The solution is adaptable, allowing for use across multiple platforms like email, social media, WhatsApp, and more. This chatbot for customer service is simple and provides valuable tools for marketing, branding, and customer support teams.
Pros
- Data analytics and reporting that's state-of-the-art
- Pre-chat offline forms
- View of website visitors in real-time
- Facilitation of use in multiple languages
Cons
- There have been a few reports of problems with data transfer.
- Inadequate system layout and navigation.
Pricing
- Suite Team ($49/agent/mo)
- Suite Growth ($79/agent/mo)
- Suite Professional ($99/mo)
Use cases for well-known brands' chatbots
You've just learned how awesome using a chatbot to handle customer inquiries is.
You may be wondering if any major companies use AI-powered customer care bots. Finally, the correct response is yes. Here are some of the examples mentioned below.
An Example of a Chatbot in Use at Starbucks
The customer service chatbots for Starbucks streamlines the order placement process.
The shopper can use the bot's text- or voice-based interface to be walked through the order placement process. It has NLP capabilities, can use a saved card or gift certificate for payment, and send a coffee order to a nearby establishment. The chatbot handles customer care and notifies consumers when their beverage is available for pickup.
A Chatbot for Sephora
Makeup recommendations, tutorials, and helpful hints for using Sephora products are just some things the chatbot has been taught to provide to its users. Ora is the name of the bot explicitly created for today's youth.
Suppose you have any inquiries about your accumulated loyalty points, the availability of specific items, the status of your order, or anything else. In that case, you can always contact the customer service team using this AI chatbot.
It also gives user-submitted reviews and ratings of products for your convenience.
A Chatbot for Spotify
Spotify's new Messenger bot makes finding and exchanging music easier for users. The Spotify app allows users to search for and share music with their social networks by sending 30-second snippets or entire songs to one another. This customer service chatbot can help you create the perfect playlist by giving suggestions based on your current disposition, preferred musical style, and task.
Chatbot for Mastercard Transactions
Customers may quickly monitor their credit card transactions with Mastercard's chatbot for customer service on Facebook Messenger. In addition to facilitating account reviews, account-related inquiries, and cardholder benefit disclosures, it can help customers with general account management. In addition to providing purchase history and monitoring spending levels, this artificial intelligence customer service bot offers financial literacy support.
How to create a chatbot for customer support
The good news is that many chatbots can be created and set up without programming knowledge. And many of these can be implemented on a website in under 5 minutes. Does it sound too good to be true to you? Let's look at the actions you need to take to construct a chatbot for your website's customer support department:
Get clear on why you're building a chatbot in the first place.
It's important to be as detailed as possible when defining the goals for your conversational AI. The bot may use this information to provide a friendly welcome, track down lost shopping carts, or respond to inquiries regarding refunds and exchanges.
Your needs can be better defined, the bot's functioning more precisely outlined, and the best course of action for customization can be established with this information
Pick the channels you want to utilize
Do most of your consumers prefer to message you on Instagram, or do they prefer your website? Do you use Messenger or WhatsApp? Select a customer care chatbot with the proper integration by considering the platforms and apps your target audience utilizes.
Choose who will host your chatbot for use with customers
Think carefully about your needs and goals, then pick the best chatbot option. The good news is that it doesn't cost anything to experiment with different customer support tools because many of them (like BotPenguin, for example) provide free plans.
Create the flow of your conversation using a chatbot creator
Sign in to the chatbot creator of your choosing and program the responses you'd like your bot to make. BotPenguin is an excellent choice since it features a drag-and-drop interface with easier chat flow designs. Start with a visitor opening a specified page command if, for instance, you only want the chatbot to activate on a specific landing page. Just compose the text you want the bot to send and include a decision command allowing instant responses.
Get your chatbot to pass some tests
It is essential to ensure everything operates as smoothly as possible. To get a feel for how your chatbot will appear to clients, you can test it as you create it. Verify the continuity of the conversation and make any required adjustments.
Keep an eye on the chatbot's stats
Your customer care chatbots can only provide reliable assistance if you're constantly monitoring their effectiveness and ready to adjust to user feedback and data. Choose your measurements wisely and keep a close eye on them.
A guide to scale your company using customer service chatbots
After you've set up your chatbot, you may be asking how to improve its usefulness to your clientele. We've got your back; here are some helpful hints:
Add a personal touch to your messages.
According to the data gathered about chatbots, giving customers a sense of uniqueness and demonstrating customer focus are two of the most appreciated things a company can do. It has been estimated that customer-focused businesses generate 60% more revenue than their competitors.
Consequently, you will have much more success with your support bots if they can make each feel special. Be sure your chatbots can mimic human language and body language. You should use your company's brand voice when communicating with customers, including using their names, responding to their tone, and answering their questions.
Make use of several methods of communication.
As was previously noted, it is essential to research the platforms your intended audience frequents. There's a reasonable probability that you have multiple subsets of your audience that all use distinct contact methods.
Employing an omnichannel strategy for customer support is a straightforward method of resolving this matter. Customer loyalty can be won with the help of AI-powered support on both your website and chat apps.
Create a dynamic list of frequently asked questions.
Get your chatbots ready to respond to any frequently asked questions your clients could have. This will make communication much more efficient since they won't have to go to the FAQ page and scan it themselves.
Regarding frequently asked questions and other straightforward inquiries, 74% of consumers say they'd use an AI chatbot rather than speak to a human representative. Bots can quickly react to consumer questions, find the information the user needs, and make the experience seamless for the user. Really, how could you possibly dislike them?
Incorporate lots of detail and information.
The text and content richness support the italic, bold, and underlined styles. Isn't it more interesting to read content presented in various forms, font sizes, and colored text rather than just plain writing?
And it's a massive hit with the public. As a result, it becomes more apparent that the organization values open lines of communication. Including media like images and GIFs in your conversational text makes it more engaging for readers and prevents them from leaving your page.
Providing customer support: Chatbots vs. Humans
When assisting customers, is using a robot or real people better
Let's keep that to a minimum. A customer support chatbot is worth the investment if
- As your company expands so does the volume of customer support inquiries you receive.
- The volume of support requests received is now beyond the capacity of your service team.
- You intend to serve customers around the clock.
- You can start a global company.
- Your website's visitor engagement has to be increased.
We can all agree that implementing a chatbot for customer support has several advantages and can help your human workers save time by automating some processes. Nonetheless, putting a human face on things can do wonders and may be just what your customers need. To that end, we will side with the human representatives.
As a result, your company should probably steer clear of chatbot customer care if:
- You're just starting a business that requires face-to-face contact with clients.
- A personal touch is essential to your company's customer service success.
- You have the best grasp of your business and its clientele.
In your opinion, what is the single most important thing your company could use right now? Answering this question is essential before implementing an AI chatbot for website customer care. But if you are unsure, pick a platform that offers a free plan, create some bots, and see if they produce the desired results. We also encourage you to read our blogs on automating customer service if you want to learn more about the topic.
Key Findings
Let's recap what we've picked up
- A chatbot designed to aid in customer service is an AI-driven software.
- Better communication, availability around the clock, financial savings, and a distinct voice for a business are just a few benefits of using chatbots for customer care.
- Depending on your company's needs and the scope of your customer base, you can pick from various customer support bots.
- It's becoming increasingly important to have a well-trained customer care chatbot; companies like Starbucks, Sephora, and Mastercard already do.
- Constructing a chatbot only takes simple steps and no coding knowledge.
- Personalization and an omnichannel strategy for conducting business are two cornerstones of a customer service chatbot's success.
The use of chatbots to assist with customer service is here to stay. They are quickly becoming an industry benchmark. You might want to put one in now.
