In a world of increasing digitization, there is still a need – and a demand, for a personal touch. This is particularly true within the e-commerce world. Customers want the speed, ease, and convenience of shopping at the click of a button, but crave the personalized attention they would receive while browsing through the racks of a brick-and-mortar store. The innovation and integration of bots into websites as part of a comprehensive customer service offering seeks to bridge the gap between digital innovation and personalized service, and is quite well-received by e-commerce consumers. Around the world, 67% of shoppers used a chatbot to resolve support issues in 2018 and it is estimated that 85% of all customer interactions will be handled by bots by 2020. What’s more, 40% of customers claim they are pleased to receive the help they need in a timely fashion, and do not care whether that help comes at the hand of a chatbot or a human customer service representative.
But what is a bot, anyway?
In a nutshell, a bot, or a chatbot, is an automatic robot that utilizes advanced technology (and scripts) to simulate human conversation with real users and provide customer service on a webpage, without any human intervention on the business’ part. Bots enable smooth interactions between customers and the machine behind the business website, via voice or text messages.
The benefits of using a bot for your e-business24/7/365 customer service
Gone are the days where stores close at 5 or 6 PM. E-commerce stores run around the clock, and customers expect support to be readily available at all hours as well. Ensure your customers’ needs are always fulfilled, by integrating an always-on bot. Your website’s chat will be transformed into an e-commerce tool, keeping customers on site and reducing cart abandonment.
Personalization
Chatbots use natural language to collect important data from the service-seeking customer and create a personal and highly-targeted, automated customer service experience. Bots help shoppers find the products they want, suggest cross-sell and up-sell opportunities and increase overall sales by helping retailers create fail-safe targeting in the informal and “safe” space that is Messenger, as opposed to targeting e-mails that are often left unopened and unread in customers’ inboxes.
A smoother omnichannel experience
Today’s shoppers tend to jump between digital devices – desktop, mobile, and tablet, even within the same customer journey on a business’ website. Bots help smooth this transition and the overall omnichannel experience, by easily integrating with relevant industry platforms. The bot becomes the one-stop-shop for all of the customers’ needs, regardless of which device they’re using.
Reduced costs
Bots efficiently engage in the round the clock work businesses would otherwise have to pay human customer service representatives to do. This saves the brand money, allowing for budget re-allocation to other, more critical e-commerce business tasks.
Bottom line
Bots can significantly benefit your e-commerce business, adding value, efficiency and profitability to your list of achieved goals. At Gingee Marketing, we aim to help boost your bottom line, by creating the bots you need, to succeed in the digital business world.