Getting The Most Out Of Your Chatbot
by Klaire Dulay
In the age of social media, we have encountered different kinds of ads, activations, and interactive tools. With a great number of products and services offered in the market, it’s not surprising to see publication materials screaming the words “Talk to me!” or “Buy Me!” Throughout time, companies and ad agencies have adapted to different technological advancements and have found ways on how to interact with their consumers more efficiently and effectively. One example of which is the use of chatbots.
Chatterbot, more commonly known as “chatbot”, is a computer program built in the 60s and is powered either by artificial intelligence or a set of rules. ELIZA, the first of its kind created by Joseph Weizenbaum, became the pattern for all the other bots such as A.L.I.C.E and PARRY. Over the years, companies have made use of this technology by incorporating it into their sites to create virtual assistants or representatives that will answer their consumers’ queries. Few of the widely-known platforms that launched them are Slack, Discord, Telegram, and Kik. But recently, Facebook, the social media giant, used it to their advantage by placing these bots on their Messenger application.
Unfortunately, the craze died down immediately because companies and organizations found it difficult to drive sales and engagement. So the question still remains— is this kind of technology really ineffective or are we just not using it properly?
You can also do a lot with these virtual assistants. Aside from simply answering inbound inquiries, these bots can also serve as virtual representations of advertisers or sales personnel that can provide all the information that a consumer needs then turn them from prospects into actual clients. They can also generate audience interaction and repeat execution engagement through the use of games, photo submissions, trivia, and code submissions similar to SMS promos.
So how else can these bots help your company grow? Here are a few ways:
- It responds to consumers’ queries promptly 24/7.
- It gathers data based on the consumers’ online behaviour and stores all the information for future use.
- It is available in omni-channel.
- It shows customers the available products and services and entices them to make a purchase.
- It provides another platform for advertisements.
If more companies will be able to further enhance this potential, then we can take consumer-engagement, selling, and even advertising to a whole new level.
