One of the most important factors which can help you in succeeding in your eCommerce business is – prompt communication with customers.
Brick and mortar stores have one advantage over online stores and that is direct communication with customers. To overcome this drawback, the eCommerce stores got live chat integrated so that it becomes easy for the customers to solve their queries while purchasing.
But, live chat requires 24/7 human backend support which becomes difficult to manage during late nights, weekends or holidays. Moreover, an inefficient live chat representative can spoil the reputation of your eCommerce store, and increase frustration among customers. This would result in increased bounce rate and cart abandonment rate.
Chatbots can help in overcoming this drawback of live chat system. But how?
First, let’s understand exactly, what is a chatbot?
A Chatbot is an automated system to communicate with humans providing solutions to their queries.
Types of chatbot
Basically, there are two types of chatbots –
Fixed Chatbots – Specific set of data is fed into the system and it uses that data only while conversing with people.
AI-based Chatbots – Learns from the conversation with the customers and the entire work environment.
The type of chatbot to be used for your eCommerce business depends on the type of your business and your target audience.
How is Chatbot used for eCommerce?
eCommerce chatbots are designed to –
- Help visitors to complete their buying process
- Provide product recommendations to the customers
- Leverage customer support
Why Should eCommerce Stores Use Chatbots?
As per a recent chatbots report, below can be potential benefits of using chatbots.
The fact is – eCommerce stores work 24/7 but humans can’t. Humans take breaks. Whereas, chatbots are non-stop working machines. Keeping your customers waiting for answers to their queries can make them go to your competitors’ store. Basically, the all-time availability is the main reason, eCommerce stores should use chatbots.
There are other reasons too –
Eliminates Human Errors
Humans are driven by their moods, situations, and emotions and so are likely to commit mistakes. On the contrary, chatbots are driven by Artificial Intelligence and thus eliminating any possibility of human error.
Can Act As Per The Situation
Chatbots are capable enough to act as per the customers’ profile including their age, gender, location, etc. The chatbots can tweak their answers based on the available information relating to the customers.
Can Replicate Humans
Chatbots have the capacity of replicating humans in terms of vocabulary. Instead of using highly professional language, chatbots replicate humans by using words which you use while communicating with your friends and family. This really can make communication comfortable for your customers.
Versatile
Whether it is about generating leads or helping your customers to complete the purchase, everything can be done by eCommerce chatbot. You don’t need different representatives to address the different problems of your customers. All the queries can be resolved by a single chatbot.
Prompt and Effective Response
Through chatbots, you can be prompt and effective while providing the response to your customers. The reason for this is 24/7 availability and its capability to interpret the information keyed in by the customers quickly.
Cost Effective
eCommerce chatbot can prove to be cost-effective when compared to hiring different human resources for working in different shifts and solving different types of queries by the customers.
eCommerce Chatbots: Is It Worth Using for your Online Store?
As per Drift’s report, 27% of consumers would prefer to buy a basic item using chatbots.
As per Hubspot survey, 47% of respondents are open to buying items using a chatbot.
To communicate with humans, chatbots use natural processing language, due to which 57% of people are interested in getting information from chatbots while browsing a business website.
After going through these statistics, you would be convinced by the fact that eCommerce chatbots can definitely play an important role in improving sales and conversions.
So, what are you waiting for? Get chatbots for eCommerce website, stay competitive and reap the benefits of increased sales and revenue.