Does Your Website Need Chatbots to Stay Competitive?

Over the last few years, it’s quite likely that you’ll have noticed the appearance of chatbots on an increasing number of the sites you visit.

13:16 26 July 2021

From e-commerce platforms to social media networks to commercial websites, these AI-powered pieces of software are almost ubiquitous these days.

 

Indeed, they’ve become so commonplace that they’re perhaps more conspicuous by their absence – meaning you may well need to provide them on your site in order to stay competitive with your rivals. Still unconvinced? Here are a handful of reasons why chatbots can add value to your online presence and your offline profits.

 

Immediate response

 

Today’s modern consumer culture is defined by instant gratification, with website users desiring answers to their questions as soon as they have posted them. At the same time, the global and always-on nature of the internet marketplace means you can expect to receive petitions and queries at all hours of the night. Chatbots can offer your customers that service, giving 24/7 support to everyone, everywhere, all of the time. With 83% of consumers favoring instant messaging if they were guaranteed a prompt response, chatbots are a great way to access that market.

 

UX

 

What that on-demand access to advice and answers ultimately results in is a superior user experience (UX) for those who visit your website. Just think about it: if you had the choice of giving your custom to a company which took hours or even days to respond to your inquiries, or one which got back to you immediately with the relevant information, which would you choose? The one which delivers a better UX, of course. The same will happen with your target audience, so don’t let them slip away to a snappier and snazzier rival – get your chatbot to field their questions first.

 

NLP

 

Chatbots are certainly sophisticated pieces of software, but have you ever wondered to yourself: how do chatbots work? Well, the truth is that not all chatbots are created equal. While older models simply give preprogrammed responses when they recognize certain keywords, newer, more advanced chatbots use natural language processing (or NLP, for short) to assimilate the information they are given and improve their performance over time. This means that your website will become more and more adept at meeting its customers’ needs as it progresses.

 

Sales completion

 

Converting a lead into a customer is the ultimate goal of any sales funnel – and pushing through the checkout is always the most the most difficult stage of the process. Indeed, the average shopping cart abandonment rate across all sectors is over two-thirds (69.57%). While there are all kinds of reasons why someone might pull back from finalizing their purchase, unanswered questions are certainly one of the leading causes. Having a chatbot on hand to assuage any concerns and give any pointers is key to getting them over the finish line.

 

From 24/7 responsiveness to improved UX and from continually improving performance to enhanced sales completion rates, there are plenty of reasons why your website needs chatbots. The real question is: can it afford to do without them?