The benefits of chatbots for businesses are well documented. These assistant robots work wonders for customer service, sales, and brand loyalty. And they’re just getting started.
The global chatbot market is expected to reach a whopping $1.25 billion by 2025. And Gartner predicts that they will become the primary customer service assistant for 25% of organizations shortly thereafter.
Haven’t jumped on the chatbot bandwagon yet? Or do you still doubt your coolness? Here are 12 benefits of chatbots that we hope will change your mind.
12 Benefits of Chatbots for Business
The benefits of chatbots depend on the type you use and how you deploy them. There are three types of chatbots that you should be aware of:
- Smart chatbots using artificial intelligence (AI)
- Simple Chatbots Based on Rules
- Hybrid models that use a combination of both
Not all chatbots can do everything. If you’re looking for an invincible sidekick – Robin for your Batman – then we recommend an AI chatbot like Heyday.
This list primarily looks at the benefits of AI chatbots. Let’s dig!
1. Provide customer support 24/7
The peculiarity of robots is that they do not need to sleep. Always. People need to sleep, so we’re not very good at providing 24/7 customer support.
With chatbots, companies can ensure that someone is always on the other end of the support window. This allows them to offer assistance after hours. FAQs, order tracking assistance, product recommendations and various other types of support are available at any time.
This allows retailers to confidently serve customers around the world, regardless of their time zone. And it gives customers what they want most: speed of service. 90% of consumers say that getting their issues resolved quickly is their most important customer service requirement.
What are the benefits of 24/7 customer support? Increasing customer satisfaction, strong brand loyalty and increasing the lifetime value of your customers. Oh, and an almost empty mailbox every morning for your helpdesk.
2. Automatically answer customers’ frequently asked questions
Raise your hand if you’re tired of answering the same four questions over and over (and over and over again). If your hand is up, then you will love this second advantage of AI chatbots.
The best chatbots can be programmed to answer your customers’ most frequently asked questions using natural and friendly language. They are always ready to answer these questions (24/7 support, remember) and never get tired of answering them.
What’s more, chatbots can be programmed to answer frequently asked questions and guide visitors to the next stage of their user journey. In this way, you not only give a preliminary answer, but also increase the likelihood of a purchase or conversion.
Needless to say, this is a significant time saver for retailers. It outsources routine tasks to an available robotic assistant, freeing up your team for more personalized conversations.
Here is an example. Major Tom uses an FAQ chatbot to start a conversation with a visitor and quickly direct them to the right information or the next step.
3. Give valuable time back to your team
Customer service teams are working on a fume these days. According to McKinsey, 61% of help desk executives reported an increase in help desk calls this year. This puts a strain on contact and help centers. And, more importantly, the burden on support staff.
Nearly 50% of those same leaders reported an increase in employee turnover over the past year. Why? The main reasons for leaving were employee burnout, job dissatisfaction, and poor work-life balance.
Operational customer support is a complex task. Chatbots can ease this burden by giving individuals and teams time. They remove routine requests and requests from the support queue, resulting in lower call or chat volumes. This, in turn, allows the support team to devote more time to the conversations that have the most impact.
And when people aren’t overwhelmed and can make a noticeable impact, that’s the key to employee retention.
4. Make sales directly in private messages
Social commerce is booming. In 2022, sales through social media platforms are estimated at $992 billion. It is expected to reach $2.9 trillion by 2026.
This means that online stores cannot ignore social media as a sales platform. But they also need to make sure they can scale customer support across these channels.
Enter chatbots. Many of these bot friends connect to Instagram and Facebook to provide the same automated support as they would on an e-commerce website.
There are many benefits from this. First, it allows you to provide a true omnichannel experience with scalable customer support. Second, it engages with your audience where it is. And third, it allows you to drive sales and offer support across multiple locations on the web.
Here is another example of a chatbot. Garage Clothing uses an AI chatbot to offer ongoing support via Facebook Messenger. In the example below, it guides the user through a stream of shoppers until they stumble upon a relevant product to purchase.
5. Set up an integration with your Shopify store
Shopify businesses benefit from the wide range of AI-enabled chatbots available on the Shopify App Store. These tools allow you to scale customer service on your Shopify store without the need for a live agent.
Heyday is one such AI chatbot. The Shopify integration takes just 10 minutes and offers powerful AI-powered support out of the box.
Some highlights of using Heyday on Shopify include:
- Communication in English and French
- Seamless transmission to live agents as needed
- Automated responses to frequently asked questions using templates or quick response scripts
- Product offers and search
- 24/7 support with automatic welcome messages and timeouts
Heyday is available with a 14-day trial so Shopify users can try it out before buying.
Here is an example. David’s Tea uses the AI-powered Shopify chatbot for a variety of use cases. Here the user receives quick information about his order and delivery time.
6. Make the customer journey as smooth as possible
Customers expect a smooth buying process. And they expect it to be seamless across multiple channels.
One of the main benefits of chatbots in ecommerce is their ability to reduce friction and remove the reasons why potential buyers leave.
They achieve this by providing:
- Ongoing support so users don’t get frustrated
- Product recommendations so people can find what they need
- Automatic prompts so users can easily move to the next step in the process
- Premium content and tips showing the product in action
- Relevant discount codes and promotions based on product selection
Together, these features create a user-friendly experience that eliminates many of the reasons why users abandon a purchase.
7. Reduce Cart Abandonment
Drop-off is a major problem in e-commerce. According to the Baymard Institute, 69.82% of online shopping carts are abandoned. This results in a whopping $18 billion in annual sales losses.
Smoothing the customer journey, as mentioned above, helps eliminate the root causes of cart abandonment.
Many of the issues mentioned in the image above are due to poor user interface. Users do not receive important information until the very last stage – checkout – and exit. Chatbots are one way to ensure that all the most important information is passed on to the buyer before they take the last big step.
8. Get rid of stress for employees and customers
Burnout, dissatisfaction, and poor work-life balance are the top reasons for churn of help desk employees, McKinsey notes.
All of these are directly related to too much work and not enough impact. Employees who are forced to have many chats at the same time and answer the same questions day in and day out are likely to experience all of the above emotions.
This is one of the most important benefits of AI chatbots. All features and functions mentioned so far have two end effects:
- They reduce the overall volume of calls and chat.
- They allow support staff to focus on the most important conversations.
Combined, this reduces stress and gives the impression that the service desk has more impact. In turn, this increases job satisfaction.
The same is true for clients. No one wants to get frustrated when dealing with customer support. And customer expectations are higher than ever.
In fact, 39% of consumers say they have less patience when shopping online than before the pandemic. 30% say they will wait for an agent in the chat for a maximum of two minutes. And 43% say long wait times are the most frustrating part of customer service.
Consumers want uninterrupted and fast customer service. And that creates stress for employees. This is where chatbots can step in to benefit both parties.
9. Let customers make in-store appointments
In 2022, online shopping orders were all the rage. According to the Shopify Future of Commerce report, 50% of consumers say they are interested in this type of shopping. And 34% are likely to participate in a shopping destination this year and in the future.
Chatbots are a great way to handle meeting requests at scale. Many of them allow users to request and book in-store appointments right in the chat window.
This is where the real omnichannel shopping begins. With this feature, users can shop online for the items they like. They can then book an appointment on their computer or mobile device. And finally, they can test and buy products in the store. Everything became possible thanks to the interaction with the chatbot.
10. Expand your brand voice
Omnichannel retail is fast becoming irresistible. According to research from Shopify, half of consumers say they enjoy shopping online and shopping in-store. And the other half said they like to do the opposite.
This is another of the main advantages of a chatbot. With these tools, you can establish and deploy your brand voice and personal style across multiple touchpoints across the web. Buyers will get the same brand experience and support whether they are on your website or on your social media accounts.
Here is an example from Decathlon UK. They have some flair in their messages that relates to their individuality as a business. With the help of an AI chatbot, they can convey that personality through Facebook Messenger as shown below and on their website.
11. Offer multilingual customer support
Earlier we mentioned 24/7 support as a key benefit of chatbots. This allows you to serve a global audience. But it doesn’t help much if you can’t speak to these clients in their native language.
Chatbots make it possible. Most AI chatbots offer support in multiple languages. This allows you to confidently expand around the world and provide the same level of support regardless of language.
Here is an example of a chatbot conversation where Merci Handy can provide seamless support in English and French.
12. Cut Help Desk Costs
Finally, AI-powered chatbots are scaling at a fraction of the cost of customer support teams. While 24/7 support will require a full or partial salary for a few support staff working around the clock, chatbots can do this for a monthly subscription fee.
For example, heyday starts at just $49/month for Shopify Merchants. This is just a fraction of what it would cost to hire a team of customer service agents.
Advantages of Shabo against disadvantages
Like everything else, chatbots are not the perfect solution for everyone (and everything). Here are the four most important advantages and disadvantages of a chatbot that you should be aware of.
Benefit: No more having to answer the same question over and over
Chatbots quickly and automatically answer the most frequently asked questions. They don’t get bored doing it and can have multiple chats at the same time without getting stressed.
People can’t do it. At least not indefinitely. Because of this, chatbots are the perfect companion for ongoing support teams. They focus on simple, high-volume issues so that support can focus on complex, high-priority issues.
Disadvantage: Takes time to collect and code the FAQ
AI chatbots are only as good as the information you give them. This means that a lot of upfront and ongoing work is required to program and fine-tune the answers to the FAQs.
Companies should monitor chat logs regularly to check how well a chatbot is responding to questions. They also need to be aware of new issues that come up.
It is a continuous and iterative process that requires internal efforts and resources.
Benefit: Promotes conversational marketing and easy navigation.
Everyone makes purchases and uses websites differently. Chatbots give users the ability to interact with part of a website to learn new information and find products.
This offers a more dynamic and interactive way for companies to get their message across to customers. It captures their attention in real time and uses that attention to optimize sales.
This real-time interaction is simply not possible with static content or site navigation.
Drawback: They are personalized but may not be representative
Finally, AI chatbots are designed to mimic human speech. And they are designed to respond to input. They are not representative and they cannot provide the same level of human interaction as a human.
This can make it uncomfortable for users to communicate with the chatbot. They may receive general answers and there is an increased risk of misunderstanding.
Because of this, it is very important that chatbots be used as a tool for customer service support. They don’t have to be your entire customer service department. Ideally, you should be able to offer a seamless transition between AI chat and real person support as needed.
Engage with shoppers on social media and turn customer conversations into sales with Heyday, our custom AI chatbot for social commerce retailers. Deliver a 5-star customer experience – at scale.