Perhaps you have recently entered a site and be contacted directly by the Customer Service via Chat, to receive notifications push to the publication of new content and articles from your newspaper online trust, to contact a company directly from Messenger, on its Facebook page, or to receive useful information from the Telegram chat. What is it about? Two words: Chat bot.

 

Chat Bots: what are they and how do they work?

Un Chat Bot is, in fact, a muzzle operating away chat, virtual assistant able to converse - or rather, chat - with users automatically. Using complex algorithms, these Web robots they are able to interact with individuals, responding in a relevant way and providing new ideas for conversation, conversing in a realistic and natural way thanks to artificial intelligence.

In their most advanced versions, thanks to the processes of machine learning, are able to learn the language of individual users, even understanding their state of mind and are thus able to adapt the conversation and tone, all in real time.

 

 

Why use Chat Bots and what are the advantages of queam I instrument?

The compelling reasons for rely on a Bot are different: although it is still a technology in its infancy, it is increasingly widespread, and the reason is only one: efficiency.

1. Automation: first of all, the Chat Bots allow you to communicate simultaneously, via chat and in real time, with an unlimited number of users, 7 days a week and 7 hours a day; this allows us to respond immediately to any request from users, at any time. This simply means making an activity scalable that, carried out manually, would never be as efficient.
2. Chat Bots can be used on websites, applications and social networks: integrating them, it will be possible to have a complete view of your target.
3. Chat Bots are a great tool for lead generation: using the Facebook Chat Bot, for example, it is possible to find new customers through engagement posts, and create a database to be able to contact them again at a later time.
4. Through the Chat Bots it is possible profile users and personalize contenti based on the answers: as in a tree diagram, each user interaction is recorded, analyzed and translated into useful information for subsequent interactions.
5. Il open rate exceeds the 90%: this means that 90% of users will open the chat, and a good percentage of them will read its content.

 

Chat Bot for Business: Any Practical Applications?

In practice, i Chat Bot they can be programmed to perform any function that requires a first contact with the user, even more so where the number of interactions is high and it becomes difficult to manage conversations without any automation.

1. The most classic example is the customer care. If it is undeniable that every user it is unique and different, it is true that the needs are common, the problems encountered are often the same and just as often they are easily solved with more or less uniform answers. Chat Bots are programmed to provide quick answers to frequently asked questions, optimizing the customer service and relieving it of the problems for which contact with natural persons is not necessary. An example? Timetables and general information, which can easily be communicated automatically.
2. Through the Bots it is possible perform basic commercial functions in an automated way: from the sale of products and services, to the sharing of information relating to offers and promotions, to the suggestion of products based on the history.
3. It is also possible optimize the activity of e-mail marketing campaigns , sharing information and contents in an automated way: to be clear, one Newsletter via chat, more direct and personalized.

Focus: Messenger Bots

Having clarified the advantages and potential of Chat Bots, we can focus on the Facebook Messenger Chat Bot. Why rely on Messenger Bots for your Digital Marketing strategy?

1. Billions of users: 1.3 billion people use Messenger - needless to say, billions of potential customers to contact and re-contact.
2. É still a little used tool: traditional email marketing is still the most used, but it is easy to predict that it will soon be replaced by its optimized version - the chat marketing - And Facebook it is and will remain a giant in the sector.
3. As previously stated, Messenger Bots allows you to profile users based on their interactions, in order to offer diversified and personalized content: it is possible to know exactly not only the gender of each user, but also the messages and promotions already displayed, those with which he interacted and how he interacted; with the right questions, the targeting will be more and more precise.

Why should you prefer chat marketing over email marketing?

If you are still not convinced, we will briefly explain the reasons why theemail marketing is now out of date.  Chat bots are a more efficient alternative, in all respects:

1. Create a list of subscribers. Creating a list of subscribers results, for the classic newsletters, definitely difficult: it is often recognized by users as a "nuisance", in most cases users do not want to be contacted and will deny consent during registration or purchase. Chat Bots register each user from the first interaction; Basically, at the first contact with the Bot you become automatically subscriber and you are entered in the database of users to contact. Clearly, with each interaction it will be possible to interrupt the flow of information, but the process is decidedly more streamlined.
2. Profiling the users: anything is possible, but profiling users in email marketing is a much more demanding process, both in terms of time and money: The Chat Bot will do everything automatically.
3. Communication: compared to classic e-mail communications, which are generally more formal and detached, chat communication is different, more concrete, real and direct. The user is more easily led to interaction. Do not forget, then, that being a relatively new instrument it is easier to hit the mark in terms of originality.
4. Open rate and CTR: if the opening rate in newsletters is around 1%, it reaches 90% with Chat Bots. Also in terms of click-through-rate, this is 4 to 10 times higher on Chat Bots than on e-mails: numbers that make the difference!

How to install a ChatBot?

There are two main options to implement a Bot on a website: the cheapest option is use a free platform (As dialogflow. com o botify. com) and follow the instructions and use the editors, finally inserting the associated code string directly on the company website; alternatively, you can turn to specialists who deal with it build and program custom bots.

Similarly, to use the Facebook Messenger Chat Bot it is possible to use an online platform or use the Facebook platform, which allows you to make any kind of customization.

Clearly, the cheapest option is never the most efficient: to get the most out of this kind of software and make optimal use it is advisable to turn to those who have the necessary skills and knowledge.

The ChatBot is therefore one essential tool for all companies that want to offer a complete service of Customer Care and assistance 24/7 to its loyal and non-loyal customers.

It does not end here…

The story tells how we initially went from a paper phase, that of flyers or brochures in letterboxes, that is, uniform advertising not studied based on the target of customers that had to be good for some and not for others, but the problem did not. posed. Then after endless years of door-to-door, the e-mail marketing phase arrived.

In this case the e-mails were sent with a well-calculated cadence, it was a direct marketing strategy that used e-mail as a means of communicating commercial messages to the public.

Email marketing, if addressed to a list of preselected users, is called Direct Email Marketing (acronym: DEM).

At this stage the advantages with the previous tool were numerous: paper was not wasted in vain, a few seconds or better a simple click to send so the process took a ridiculous amount of time, the ROI (Return Of Investment) was significantly higher compared to other marketing channels, the costs were contained.

In short, it seemed to be the modern twist needed to attract one greater amount of users mainly due to the fact that the messages could be customized according to the customer. This was definitely an important aspect that made the difference with the previous method.

Then technology once again took over, a change was needed, this was still not enough: it was necessary to automate.

It began to imagine a robot that did everything automatically, who personally took care of communicating and providing the right customer service. The Customer Care service is a significant commitment for a company, a sector that should not be neglected but which employs many operators, how can you streamline this workload without decreasing its efficiency and effectiveness? The answer came and it was the Breakthrough: the ChatBot.

The ChatBot That Never Goes on Vacation

Basically the ChatBot can be identified with a person always available, who works for us, at the service of customers 24/7.

An important aspect of this tool is the fact that, unlike the human person, the automatic robot is not likely to indulge in episodes of anger, typically human trait, especially when dealing with difficult customers who complain or are not particularly satisfied with the service. One example is the constant complaints.

In addition to this there is also the full availability of the service, customers can in fact make requests at any time of the day, regardless of whether it is night or day, Christmas or Easter. There are no holidays in his calendar. Each day is the same as the one before.

Using ChatBots is equivalent to have the access keys of the phones of each person. Yes, in fact the most interesting aspect of these automatic chats is the fact that they can reach an unlimited number of people at the same time, not even stealing time because they create a chat directly within the platforms already used by users.

Messenger, for example, is a common medium for everyone. Each of us uses it daily to chat with friends, boyfriends and relatives. The ability to quickly and directly access this tool by promoting your services and products is an extremely powerful weapon.

If before, wanting or having to respond to a promotional email it was a job that still required time and effort, now, thanks to these automatic chats, everything is made faster and more automatic. Almost fun, because it is nice to chat with a robot so similar to a human. It becomes a kind of pastime.

And if you think that all the chats created are not saved, well, you are wrong once again. Another interesting aspect of using this tool is the fact that you can record every single chat with users to see if there may be an interest or not in the products offered.

In short, the world of ChatBots is constantly evolving and due to its effectiveness it has replaced the presence of operators in flesh and blood who personally take care of the activities related to Customer Care. This has therefore made it possible to dedicate more workforce to the company's core business without neglecting the delicate aspect of customers.

Choosing to use ChatBots today is one demonstration of innovation and efficiency.

We cannot wait, the time has come to act.