Automation has become a huge part of our lives nowadays. This is especially true for businesses who have been on a constant search for improving productivity and lowering operational costs. This is also one reason why automation tools and apps such as chatbots have gained popularity and are being widely used by businesses. These chatbots have helped businesses automate their online marketing and outreach, customer support and social media promotions.
What are Chatbots and How Do They Work?
A chatbot is an artificial intelligence (AI) software that is programmed to simulate human conversations through text or voice interactions. They can be customized and pre-programmed to have specific responses, mostly dependent on the need of a business that uses it. If you are thinking about using a chatbot for your website or social media , here are some of the best practices that you should apply.
1. Try to make the messages as human as possible
Even with an automated chat software, it’s still important that you make each auto response as human and natural as possible. Chatbots are designed to simulate conversations, but the way you craft each message can still affect the way your customers perceive your chatbot. You should aim to provide them a smoother and natural flow of conversation, wherein they will feel like they are talking to a real human, even if they are not.
2. Know what your most frequently asked questions are
One of the primary reasons why customers need support is because they need some of their questions answered. It could be something relevant to your product, your brand, your operations, and other things that are related to what you are offering your customers. If you have no idea why your frequently asked questions (FAQs) are, you can ask your team, especially your customer support representatives, as they have the most experience in handling a variety of questions from customers. This will help you optimize your chatbot’s use and be able to provide customers an easier and more instantaneous way of getting answers from their questions.
3. List your chatbot’s functionality upfront
Another important thing that your customers should know is what they can get from using your chatbot. To help give your customers a smoother experience in using your chatbot, it’s better to set their expectations first and foremost. This way, they won’t have to go round in circles looking for answers that your chatbot won’t be able to provide. Whether you are using Facebook or Instagram bots, you should always make sure that your customers understand the limitations of your chatbot. See to it that you provide them with a means to get the responses that they need without having to look for a representative all the time.
4. Track the effectiveness of your bot
To understand how your business is fairing with the use of your chatbot, it’s important that you keep track of how your chatbot is performing. It is helping improve your customer retention? Are your customers happy with how your chatbot is programmed? Is it resolving a lot of your customers’ concerns? Is it optimizing your marketing and outreach efforts? Knowing the following stats will help you create improvements that suit your chatbot so that it can continue in helping you grow your business.
5. Research your most frequently asked questions by asking your team
One of your chatbot’s important roles is to answer questions from your customers. To make sure that your chatbot can provide a smooth service and a pleasant experience to your current and potential customers, see to it that it is programmed to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about your business, products and services. If you haven’t established an FAQ database yet, you can start by asking your team about what are the most frequent questions that they get asked by customers. This helps you start a collection of questions and craft the right answers that you can use for your chatbot.
6. Gather and analyze customer feedback and data
Your customers’ opinion about your brand and business should also be given importance. Any comment or feedback that they provide will matter and can actually help you in improving your business approach, including the way you customize your chatbot. Take into account all of the comments that they provide about their experience in using your website or social media chatbot. This will help you understand if there is anything more to add to it or if there is an error that needs to be fixed.
Whether you are using your chatbot for customer support, marketing or sales, chatbots can be a game changer for you, if it’s used properly and effectively. With these best practices you can optimize the usability of your chatbots and make the most of this very useful software for your business.
