Techblog
How using chatbots can benefit a small business
Now that Facebook is allowing anyone to make chatbots, even the smallest businesses can build them to power growth. Here's an overview of how to get started.
We first heard about the power of chatbots to revolutionise e-commerce from tech insiders, such as Uber director Chris Messina, who hailed 2016 the year of conversational commerce. By which he meant that consumers would be messaging chatbots to interact with brands. “You and I will be talking to brands and companies over Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack and elsewhere before the year’s end, and will find it normal,” Messina predicted.
Shortly after, Facebook launched an online shop with coding tools so anyone could build their own chatbots for Messenger. Kik and Telegram had already launched stores for their messaging apps.
Since the chatbot economy has ignited, expect to see bots proliferating as companies compete to enhance services. The best part is, it's a competition even the smallest businesses can join, as bots are relatively cheap to build.
What are chatbots?
Chatbots are text-based services, typically powered by artificial intelligence, which people interact with on chat platforms. They complete tasks for users and companies build them for specific purposes. For instance, a retailer would likely make one to help customers purchase products but they could do many other things – from functional to fun.
Interest in chatbots has skyrocketed because, for the first time, people are using messenger apps more than social networks – which have long dominated marketing.
On top of that, they seem perfectly suited to today’s customers who demand greater convenience – OneReach found 64 percent would rather text than call a business. Entrepreneurs such as Aaron Batalion expect consumers will be delighted by the simplicity of chatbots, which don’t require installing a native app. For those willing to experiment, chatbots are “potentially a massive opportunity”, said Batalion.
How do they work?
There are two types of chatbots. One function is based on rules and limited to specific commands. The more advanced version is capable of machine learning, or artificial intelligence. It understands language, rather than simply responding to commands, and gets smarter as it learns from interactions with users.
Chatbots operate within messaging and chat products. Several major platforms have introduced them, including Facebook Messenger, Kik and Slack, as well as Telegram which became the first to allow developers to build their own chatbots last year. As this space is ripe with opportunities, expect to see many more platforms enabling chatbots, such as Whatsapp.
How can you build chatbots?
To find out how to build chatbots, you simply need to visit any platform that allows them. Messenger, Kik and Telegram all provide information and tools for developers.
For those who aren’t developers, there are beginner guides to build Slack bots and Telegram bots without coding.
Small business owners may prefer to save time and engage a bot-building service such as wit.ai, which is owned by Facebook. It’s also worthwhile keeping an eye on startup Meya, which is trying to take the coding out of bot building and supports all the major chat platforms, including Messenger.
How can they benefit your business?
If you're not yet sold on chatbots, consider some of the benefits for small businesses.
Firstly, they enhance service. Customers interact with chatbots like they would with human representatives, but they're cheaper and more efficient. As Customer Think’s Gigi Peccolo explained, responses to queries come back “almost immediately based on pre-programmed logic”.
Secondly, chatbots can engage in complex conversations. According to Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates, chatbots could be used in education, teaching even the toughest subjects. However, these conversational abilities have a range of use cases far beyond education.
While chatbots primarily communicate in text, they also employ rich content such as images. This is valuable as it means businesses can showcase products.
They also have access to huge audiences. For example, Messenger has near one billion users per month. As Forbes writer Blake Morgan said in the recent article, Reasons Facebook Chatbots Are Good For Customer Service, “It’s an easy way for… [businesses] to reach large volumes of people.”
Even businesses that don’t engage in customer service can get a boost. Build chatbots to take care of processes such as scheduling and save on hiring assistants – the opportunities are plenty.
With chatbots tipped to revolutionise e-commerce, small businesses should consider leveraging them as part of their wider business strategy. You needn’t be an expert developer, simply:
- Work out the use cases for chatbots in your business
- Chatbots can provide assistance, training and serve customers
- Choose a platform: Messenger, Kik, Telegram, etc
- Use guides and tools to build your chatbot
- Or save time and engage chatbot builders.