Should Your Small Business Use Ecommerce Chatbots?

The pros and cons of conversational commerce

Conversation is an essential part of the buying process, whether you ask the wine manager which red he recommends or message a store owner on Facebook to see if he sells gift cards.

I’m sure you’ve visited a website and a chat box popped up asking if you need help or offering to start a conversation. Most likely, the “person” you are talking to is not human.

A chatbot enables business owners to provide answers and solutions, and even generate leads and sales, 24/7 through automated customer service live chat. According to IBM, a chatbot could answer up to 80% of routine customer service questions.

There are two types of chatbots:

1. Those that are based on rules and can only accept / respond in a limited way.

2. Those who use artificial intelligence to employ sophisticated accept / reply algorithms.

One of the areas in which we will increasingly see this technology is healthcare. While nothing will replace a professional, especially in an emergency, it is convenient and quick to ask a bot a simple question about a cold or what medications interact with breastfeeding.

Here’s an example: Florence is a very popular online personal health assistant. “She” has focused on two main features: health tracking and medication reminders. All users have to do is start a chat with her on Facebook Messenger, Kik or Skype and she will join.

Now, let’s take a look at three advantages of conversational commerce:

1. Quick answers, multiple options. You can respond to inquiries ultra-fast, and this type of interaction is possible on a wide range of platforms, including Facebook Messenger, SMS, Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Apple Business Chat, and WeChat.

2. Money, money, money. You don’t need to work late answering questions, and you don’t need to pay employees to respond to every interaction. If you want to sell through your bot, people can buy your product or service anytime, anywhere.

3. Collect data automatically. Ecommerce chatbots collect data so you can deliver a more personalized experience each time someone contacts your brand. Plus, you get a wealth of valuable information about your users’ needs, pain points, and purchasing habits.

Caption: Domino’s uses a wide variety of tools to allow pizza lovers to quickly order, pay for, and track their food.

Let’s balance that with three downsides:

1. They cannot replace humans. Especially in the medical and legal fields, there is a concern that patients may use these technologies instead of seeking professional help. Also, you shouldn’t use conversational commerce as your only form of customer service. Your customers should be able to connect with a live person, at least during their regular business hours.

2. Misunderstandings can occur. The problem is in understanding natural language, which is the ability to determine intention. Bots are not as adept at understanding us as our peers, at least not yet. Customers will be frustrated with malfunctioning ecommerce chatbots and take your business to a competitor.

3. They are not suitable for all situations. It’s true that many companies can benefit from this ever-changing technology, but don’t try to force it. If your services are too complex to plot in AI chat or require extensive consultation, a chatbot is likely not helping lead qualification efforts or sales.

Chatbots are far from perfect, and while they will certainly advance in the future, you don’t want to alienate customers now. By understanding the pros and cons, you can ensure that you are choosing the best chat option for your business.