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Conversations help us go a long way. Particularly in the context of marketing, conversing with consumers is a great way to build meaningful engagement and relationships. And it is precisely to meet this goal and fuel business opportunities, that chatbots have started to gain massive attention.
What Exactly Are Chatbots?
Chatbots are software-enabled computer programs that use artificial intelligence (AI) to replicate human conversations. Through chatbots, companies can receive messages and respond to them as well. As it stands, with the advent of automated chats, offering positive consumer experiences and improving business capabilities has become significantly easier.
Chatbots are key to modern-day marketing strategies, as they collect consumer data and put them into the CRM-based marketing and sales funnel. These round-the-clock active chatbots are highly useful when it comes to initial levels of query resolution and contributing to smooth consumer journeys. And without an iota of doubt, chatbots can contribute to a stronger brand identity for businesses.
Chatbots Make A Massive Difference
Businesses have upgraded their services considerably, with the introduction of Chatbots. Things have changed not only from a company’s brand and communications perspective, but also from the perspective of resource and operations management.
Let’s look at some of the major benefits that chatbots offer, a little more closely.
Refined Consumer Experience
Everyone is offering similar products; so the experience through which it is offered, really makes a difference; Strong experience makes returning consumers; builds brand recall; keeps consumers engaged, and helps them find quick answers to questions
Brands today are increasingly focusing on the experience they can offer to consumers. While several brands offer similar products and services that meet certain use-cases, the experience through which they offer those, has become really important to consumers. Chatbots make a great way to improve the Consumer Experience. Through fast communications, quick query-resolutions, and a personalized touch, chatbots ensure customer satisfaction. This leads to stronger engagement, and enhanced business opportunities.
Improved Lead Management
The mechanism via which chatbots operate, is a great way to attract consumers. When a prospect visits a website and a chatbot pops up initiating a conversation, it is an opportunity created. The bot not only offers a human touch to understand the consumer’s needs and wants, but also collects prospect information such as name, contact details, and requirement parameters. Gathering such details smoothens the lead nurturing process and these chats can then be integrated with CRM systems companies use, for targeted marketing campaigns. Customized campaigns can be run to nurture leads further and move them forward in the funnel.
Let’s look at a Chatbot communication example. Suppose it is a travel company that has initiated a chat with a potential consumer. The chatbot can learn what kinds of locations and travel a consumer is exploring through questions like. ‘Do you prefer mountains or beaches? Would you prefer flight travel or air travel?’. Accordingly, relevant services can be offered to the consumer.
In the context of modern-day data-driven marketing campaigns and communications, chatbots have quite a pivotal role to play.
Time-Saving & Cost-Effective
Communication modes such as emails and ads have their own nuances and can end up taking a lot of time, to establish an association between companies and consumers. Through automation in the form of chatbots, companies can save significant amounts of time and cost and also achieve the desired business impact. With such optimized efforts, opportunities are created for companies to involve employees in more strategic areas and help them build more critical skills.
With chatbots successfully managing a lot of initial level queries, it allows for better streamlining of processes. For instance, having helped consumers till a point, a chatbot can direct them to the right agent and the conversation can then be taken forward. Such steps contribute strongly to a positive consumer experience and to the resource management goals that companies have.
Chatbots are Round-the-clock Availability
Easy access to devices and digital platforms has opened up a lot of avenues. One of them is consumers accessing websites whenever they want and exploring as per their requirements. Chatbots can be effective in this context and can help a company cash in on opportunities whenever a consumer is visiting the website. Whatever time of the day, whichever day of the week, chatbots can ensure that prospects are attended to. When the business is closed or the employees are unavailable for some reason, such chatbots that are programmed to operate 24*7, can make sure that no opportunity is missed. Tickets can be created and when the representatives are available, these chatbot-initiated conversations can be further processed. As opposed to earlier times when an external consumer service entity would be involved to take calls when employees are away, automated chatbots serve the purpose in cost-effective ways and improve overall efficiency.
The Business-Agnostic Nature
Any and every kind of business today leverages digital channels. And the chatbot capability is something that every business can implement. It is an extremely effective way to enable marketing and business teams. Chatbots help businesses and brands strengthen their identity and are a key differentiator when it comes to staying ahead of the competition
Chatbots are quite a thing. The kind of transformation they have brought is revolutionary. As digital transformation continues to gain momentum, businesses are relying heavily on technological capabilities, to achieve expansive results and impact. And chatbots are a key enabler to bring this kind of vision, to fruition.
Digital Transformation Marketing Stack for Physical Retail Enterprises.
