Have you thought about using chatbots as part of your business website?
Over the past few years, there’s been a steady rise in companies using chatbots, recognising them as an efficient and cost-effective customer engagement tool. If you’re not integrating them as part of your content strategy, could you be missing out?
Chatbots aren’t a new phenomenon, but they still feel like one. Yet, as more businesses sit up and take notice of what they can offer, we’re sure they’ll soon become an integral part of any content strategy.
In terms of creating a chatbot content strategy, increasingly sophisticated technology ensures the bot itself is more conversational, learning from and expanding upon its ‘human-like’ behaviour and natural language through consumer interaction.
The human service factor
Consumer reaction to chatbots has so far been fairly positive, especially amongst millennials, who use them more than any other age group. The move to conversational commerce just keeps on growing and most customers don’t seem to mind that companies are turning more towards AI for customer service as it is a familiar way to interact with brands.
A recent study also found that 69% of consumers even prefer communicating with chabots as they find it gives them quick and easy answers and solutions to their queries. However, this acceptance is based on a relevant and fluid chatbot content strategy that adapts to what the customer is enquiring about and uses a suitable tone of voice, as well as having the option for easy accessibility to human interaction if and when needed.
Getting it right
This is why any business interested in using chatbots for their website, should take the time to do it properly. Nobody likes an unhelpful bot, or one that just says ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
To create a detailed chatbot content strategy, think about the quality of your bot and how to create meaningful experiences. A good way to start is by basing it around a strong creative idea that fits with your brand. You’ll then need to include a good design, scripted algorithms, creative copywriting and a focus on user needs.
For every chatbot conversing with customers to solve a query or confirm orders, there’s also chatbots being used as filters to direct users to the right person in the company to take a query further.
Let’s also not overlook the fact that chatbots are not just good for customer queries, they can also be designed and used to help consumers discover new products.
Sephora’s Kik
American makeup brand Sephora is a great example of how to use chatbots to creative effect. Not only can customers connect, buy and ask questions via the Sephora chatbot, which works via a messenger app called Kik, they also prompt consumers to tell the company more about themselves.
This enables their chatbot to provide personalised beauty tips (such as lip videos and product suggestions) and even allows the customer to try on different lip colours, by uploading selfie photos via their Facebook chatbot called Sephora Visual Artist.
With such instant access technology, it’s almost as if customers have a sales-assistant – with all the right knowledge and advice – that’s on hand 24/7.
Adobe’s ‘Intelligent Agents’
Adobe are leaders when it comes to the creation of digital marketing software so it’s no surprise that they’re using chatbots to interact with their customers.
As a knowledge-based bot, their ‘Customer Care Virtual Assistants’ answers questions easily and deals with any common product errors quickly and efficiently. Users simply type in their query and through specific prompts, they’re led to the right solutions to their problems.
Users can also select to speak to a real person if they feel their query hasn’t been answered enough or they can opt to look at more detailed pages on the Adobe website.
Burberry’s Facebook Messenger Bot
America might currently lead the way with chatbots in business but the UK is catching up, with a variety of businesses looking to integrate chatbots into their content strategies.
UK clothing company Burberry has had a popular chatbot on Facebook Messenger for the past few years. It began as a tool for followers to get a behind-the-scenes look at their latest collections but it quickly evolved. Now consumers have the chance to explore what they could buy, watch runway shows live and get help with customer service queries.
Integrating chatbots into your business
Chatbots are constantly evolving, yet the basic marketing principles haven’t changed. The key is perfecting your chatbot content strategy so that they can offer your consumers a personalised experience. You also want to use a bot that’s not only reliable, but repeatable.
Using chatbot technology doesn’t have to be costly, and if done right, customer service costs can be reduced by as much as 30% according to Chatbots Magazine.
If you’re interested in learning more about how chatbots could benefit your business, or if you need a hand in perfecting your chatbot content strategy, get in touch and see how we can help.
