Chatbots are points of the primary contact for customers who cannot reach any executives to solve their immediate queries. Although people assume that this would be a solution that is commonly useful across all sites and is for all brands, that simply is not the case. The reason for this is that each company has different types of customers who want different things. Chatbots are only effective if they are programmed in such a way that it supports and enhances the customer journey.
The customer journey is key to implementing chatbots. There needs to be a clear understanding of the customer journey which is backed by data. Understanding when and why exactly customers might reach out to the company is very important. Customers only reach out when they are looking for something or the content your brand showcases prompts interaction from them. Such a breakdown of details is the foundation that is required to successfully implement and utilize Chatbots in whatever capacity deemed to be necessary by your brand.
Artificial intelligence is taking a superior role in the operations of the business. Using this science to program Chatbots along with future tech is essential. Chatbots too, are not what they used to be, they have evolved. NLP (natural language processing) and AI power are used in Chatbots to make them more versatile and sophisticated, thereby allowing for several business processes to get automated. Resolving customer queries have become so efficient that Chatbots are considered a part of the marketing strategy today. Customers are taken through the sales funnel with ease because of this.
A personalized experience for users
Interacting with people who call you by your name while addressing you gives it all a personal touch without a doubt. Chatbots collect data about the people they interact via social media and the likes and do this while starting a conversation. If ever a Chatbot poses a customer care query, it answers to the point with utmost accuracy and also offers personalized advice to make the customer purchase experience more fruitful.
Businesses today are trying to focus more on the humanizing aspect. Conveying a brand’s unique persona in a relatable way to people is very important. It needs to be on an emotional and personal level so; Chatbots need to be made as “human” as possible to achieve this.
Your Chatbot’s responses need to be programmed in such a way that your brand’s personality and unique character clearly stand out. They are the brand’s voice and so, they need to be able to figure out the usual pain points of customers with empathy, making it a genuine humane experience. This makes your relationship with the customer strong.
Engaging large audiences
Chatbots can be used not only to engage customers, but also to retain new ones. Instead of static marketing, Chatbots can actually help keep customers entertained as and when they choose to interact by grabbing their attention, learning from past interactions and making suggestions with relevant information surrounding the brand in question and its services and products.
Upselling and cross-selling are possible in a personalized and conversational way using Chatbots that keep people engaged. Chatbots are mostly found on platforms of social media messaging that allows for a virtual and limitless audience.
Hence, tapping into new customer bases is easy for your brand because new demographics can be accessed by integrating Chatbots across multiple applications and making help readily available for your customers. It is a great way to increase consumer interaction and sales.
Learning through data and analyzing feedback
Each day, consumer mindsets change. Bots need to be able to adapt to these changing environments. They do this by staying updated on the trends by the continuous analysis of data which can help stay ahead of competition. The growth of any business requires one to keep track of how the conversations between brand and people progresses and identify common tracks to recognize shifts in user intentions. Hence, it is important to observe key metrics as they will be the biggest drivers in shaping the future of your platform and how it will be used.
Chatbots can collect data and feedback from users, one method of gathering this is through surveys. It makes sense to incentivize such survey competition, people feel more motivated to do so when they feel like they are gleaning some benefit by participating. Surveys can be obviously conducted or subtly done by asking questions while there is an ongoing conversation. This feedback can be analyzed to get data on users and insight into the true needs of your audience. By using this information, a brand can restructure its marketing strategy by focusing on the needs of customers.
Relevant notifications and fun brand communication
Nobody likes being spammed. So, it would not be wise for a brand to bombard its customers with messages, emails, etc. anytime there is an update or change in business. Chatbots are pretty useful in this account because they can notify people while they already have the mindset of taking in information. Chatbots can even leverage their good side by sending them notifications that are personalized to their specific interests through social media which is most relevant to the user.
Interactions are made fun by Chatbots. Notifications need not be delivered in a bland way, instead, creative and colorful means to share data can be effective. Marketing thus can be made more interactive and fun which leaves the user with a lasting impression. You might even see an increase in visitors to your site because Chatbots can also be programmed to sharing relevant links or blog posts (any content) that suits the customer search.
Proactive branding and interaction
Instead of honing a passive approach towards customers, it is more beneficial if your brand has a proactive approach. Don’t wait till your audience comes and approaches you with queries, but instead, use a Chatbot that automatically sends a greeting or a welcome notification when someone opens your site or social media page.
People are made aware of the presence of a Chatbot should they have any questions, they can always ask it. This puts you in a proactive position; you will be taking the initiative to strike a conversation as a brand, which is good. It’s a positive sign and makes an impact on developing a favorable reputation.
Category: Social media marketing
Keywords: marketing, Social media, chatbots, technology
Tags: marketing, chatbots, NLP
