Chatbots became an independent application inside our messenger. That means users don’t have to install additional apps. Routine tasks like phone calls from delivery services, table reservations and appointments now can be automated with the help of bots. The usage bots for business purposes is steadily increasing
Many international companies are already using chatbots to automate sales processes and keep in touch with customers. In this post, we’re going to talk about how to develop a chatbot and implement it to business. Let’s start!
What is chatbot automation?
As people started to spend more time in messengers, businesses realized that messengers could be a new distribution channel for customers. In future business chatbots will provide access to a variety of different services and find new ways to please your customers.
It’s no wonder that the primary sphere of interest for chatbots was the B2C sector. Chatbots will provide a wide range of services and automate a large number of routine processes over time. Actually, it can be used anywhere. For now, we already have bots that can find presents for our beloved and manage shipping concerns. So, there are only two essential concerns for businesses: to figure out what functions chatbots will automate and develop it.
Despite all Chatbots’ strong sides, some companies still don’t understand how they can benefit from launching a chatbot. Let’s take a closer look at each of the benefits of using bots for business purposes:
In 2016 Taco Bell introduced TacoBot. It allows customers to make orders online with the help of Slack. Customers don’t have to hang on the line and waste their time on phone calls no more. Actually, a chatbot can replace a whole call center, because operators can perform only one dialogue at a time, while chatbot can process hundreds of requests. Another advantage is 24/7 availability.
Today, chatbots aren’t only delivering information about the product, but can also make orders. Also, chatbots remember clients' viewing history and remind them of their preferences.
Bots can be involved in various routine tasks, thus your employees can concentrate on more important tasks. JPMorgan Chase & CO created a research center that works with big data, robotics, and cloud computing to find ways of reducing costs and risks. This center came up with a chatbot solution that provides access to the software systems, IT-requests systems, etc. Now, bots are processing 1.7 Mn requests, which is equal to 140 employees. This approach saves time, money, and removes the possibility of human mistakes.
The thing is, when using bots, customers can call for a taxi, order food, and buy tickets in a single messenger. The fact that everything is at hand, and there’s no need to switch between apps makes users more satisfied.
Bots have a significant advantage in the workflow. Communication with clients is smooth and easy. Also, customers don’t have to figure out complicated app interfaces. Instead, they just have to send a message. Usually, people have to be taught how to perform a job. Unlike people, chatbots can get to work immediately and respond much faster than an average employee.
What are the types of chatbots?
To build a business chatbot, you have to decide what tasks it will perform, what platform will be the base for your bot (Telegram, Slack, or other), and how to set up a server for your bot.
Generally, chatbots are divided into two categories by their functions:
Bots, that process specific commands
This type of bot uses the database of replies to find the correct answer to the question. Instead of creating an answer, it just chooses one of the existing. That’s why these chatbots can answer only on a short list of questions. If a user asks an untypical question, this type of system won’t understand it.
For the correct performance, a bot has to understand the question. It can be achieved with template search or with segregation by intentions(for example, call me a taxi, check taxi status, get specific information, and more).
If the chatbot finds a proper pattern, it can form the reply. Replies can be static based on templates, and dynamic based on knowledge bases. The bot will analyze them and get the list of the best possible variants.
Machine Learning chatbots
This type of bots doesn’t need precise requests, because they are equipped with AI. They understand the language and get smarter with time.
Both methods have pros and cons. While bot has a replies base, it doesn’t make grammatical mistakes. However, this base may not contain an answer to specific questions. On the other hand, machine learning bots can generate answers by themselves. But the learning process takes a lot of time, so bots can make mistakes at initial stages. On top of that, the development of a machine learning bot is expensive.
Things to consider during chatbot development
If you want to create bots for business purposes, there are a few thing you need to keep in mind. In the final section of this article we will talk about the peculiarities of chatbots. I mean features that will help users to get along with bot. These features are an essential skeleton that forms the program.
Wrapping up
To sum up, I’d like to say that bots can be great for any business as an alternative to mobile applications, and serve as a communication channel between businesses and customers. For now, you know the basics of chatbot development, so it’s time to come up with an idea and start developing bots for your business, and generate your extra income with the help of technology!
Start off by exploring the Engati Chatbot Platform. It’s powerful, easy to use and lets you create bots in multiple languages to be deployed across 14 platforms!
Register with Engati and schedule your chatbot demo now!
