Why Chatbots are the Next Big Thing in eCommerce

Chatbots are the latest eCommerce trend now!

Everyone is talking about them and every online store owner wants to figure out how to use one.

However, your mind must be boggled with various questions such as,

• What exactly are chatbots?
• Could you, would you, should you integrate a chatbot?
• What is their intended purpose?
• How can chatbots revolutionize your business?and more!

In this blog post, we not only help you answer these questions, but also talk about the benefits of bots for your online store. Let’s get started!

What exactly are chatbots?

At the most basic level, chatbots are a computer program that simulates and processes human conversation, permitting humans to interact with digital devices as if they were interacting with a real being.

Chatbots could be simple programs that answer a simple question with a single-line response, or these could be sophisticated digital assistants that offer an increased level of personalization.

There are two key types of bots:

• An ordinary bot
• An intelligent chatbot powered by machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence(AI)

The good thing is with the development of NLP (natural language processing) and AI, chatbots are slowly taking over customer queries and mainstream digital advertising.

Chatbots are the future

Business applications of chatbots for customer-facing goods are now growing swiftly. Here are some interesting stats about chatbots –

85% of engagement with businesses will be done without interacting with another human.
80% of businesses said that they are currently using and planning to use this technology in 2020.

The stats are enough to justify how bots are dominating across different business industries including eCommerce. These also make you ponder over the fact that how easily conversational bots are being received by digital-savvy audiences across the globe.

How are chatbots revolutionizing eCommerce?

Did you know that according to a research conducted by HubSpot, 55% of consumers want to communicate with a business using messaging apps?

AI-based eCommerce chatbots are transforming businesses by offering a faster and better customer experience than human counterparts. Brands use chatbots to communicate with their customers and offer solutions to their problems quickly.

Here are some of the ways chatbots have changed the eCommerce landscape for both store owners and consumers:

Automated lead generation and qualification

Using chatbots for lead generation is one of the smartest moves by a brand. Chatbots engage with leads and guide them down the conversion funnel. These act as a bridge between first touch and a live sales interaction.

Owing to their high scalability, bots are able to start a conversation with website users and segment interested and uninterested users. When you add NLP and artificial intelligence to a bot’s workflow, it actually performs better at lead generation as compared to your regular live agents.

In fact, chatbot lead generation is gradually becoming one of the most preferred solutions for marketers as it brings in a flood of leads for businesses across the globe.

Improved user experience

Every online business knows that offering amazing customer support is the topmost priority for all businesses.

Chatbots help:

• Engage users – By sending welcome messages to get them started
• Personalize – By suggesting products based on specific user needs
• Answer basic questions – By responding to common queries in a structured manner
• Promote products – By promoting certain products or give discount codes to get conversions
• Redirect – Pass complex inquiries to appropriate agents

Chatbots installed into your eCommerce scheme simplifies the user experience and offers a remarkable one.

Access to customer data in bulk

Another use case of chatbots is that it allows you to use data for better customer interactions and sales.

Irrespective of the fact if it is a human or a chatbot at the other end, your customers share a lot of information during the conversation. Conversational marketing has this unique benefit of learning and using the customer habit to good use.

This way, chatbots gather a lot of data such as the past purchase history and buying habits over time. So, the next time when your customer visits your store, the data is used to offer a seamless and improved user experience.

Knowing your customer’s purchase habits and having their data is like having a foot in the future. You can showcase the right advertisements to them at the right time which will help in better conversions and sales.

Relevant product recommendations

Chatbots have the option to remember earlier interactions and purchases. It offers personalized recommendations on the basis of buyer’s preferences and chat history. This helps in easily bringing customers to the last stage of the sales funnel with fewer obstacles.

Key takeaway

In an online world, competition is undeniably tough and your customers’ buying decisions are totally dependent on the experiences they receive. Thus making it difficult for brands to deliver dynamic experiences every single time. This brings us to a conclusion that user experience is not possible by human efforts alone.

The implementation of chatbots streamline the communication between people and services. At the same time, they empower to improve their customer engagement process and operational efficiency, while reducing the typical cost of customer service.

Want to Know How Grazitti Can Help You With Chatbot Integration? Let’s Connect!