What can chatbots be used for? Lead generation, sales, customer support.

TLDR: Chat is versatile and can be used for a wide variety of things, from lead generation, driving more sales to customer support.

Whether you are using humans or AI to take the conversations, chat works best when used for specific goals with a well-structured strategy. The first thing to do is consider what you want to use chat for, look at common issues or aims within your business and go from there.

Customer support

One of the most common reasons for using chat is to handle customer support queries. Ensuring your website is filled with self-serve support such as FAQs is essential, but sometimes a site user might just need a bit more support.

Rather than sending an email and waiting days for a response, they can simply click onto live chat and have their question answered promptly.

Benefits of chatbots for customer service:

• Efficient – although our live chat team responds with an average response time under 30 seconds, many employees aren’t trained appropriately and don’t have the skills needed to handle queries efficiently. Bots answer instantly, meaning no waiting around for a response.
• Able to handle an infinite number of chats concurrently, reducing the need for extra employees
• Out of hours support – chatbots don’t need to go to bed, meaning 24/7 support that assists customers while your team sleeps
• Customer feedback can be collected throughout the chat and via post-chat surveys
• Cheaper – chatbots reduce your cost to serve through requiring less employees and handling more conversations

Lead generation

Traditional lead generation methods mean that you can receive a lot of spam or low-quality leads. Chat can qualify those leads before sending them over to your team, meaning you only receive high-quality leads.

If you are looking to increase the number or quality of leads coming through your website, chat is a key way to do this. Although human agents are able to use conversational skills to build trust, chatbots work well for booking appointments, taking details for viewings, free trials and signing up to receive more information.

Benefits of chatbots for lead generation

• Bots are able to gather more information than simply through a form through conversation
• Chat can appear to customers when they need it most, turning site visitors into leads
• Makes the most of your website traffic. Instead of letting so many browsers leave, chat works on engaging with those who are about to leave
• Chat can prequalify and vet any leads before they come to your team, meaning higher quality leads and less time wasted
• Interactive conversation can break down barriers and provide a better service

Sales enablement

Human chat is typically the first thought when it comes to using chat to enhance your sales experience and drive more ROI, but chatbots are also effective in this area.

57% of consumers abandon their purchase if they can’t get their question answered quickly enough, so if you don’t have easy access to answers to their queries then you could be missing out on sales. You may think you’ve included all the essential information, but there will always be things missing. Having chat as an option means you don’t have to lose out.

Benefits of chatbots for sales

• By using a strategy to target customers when they need it most, you can reduce basket abandonment and guide them through the checkout process
• Chatbots can answer any last-minute questions and turn unsure visitors into customers
• One of the best features of chatbots is being able to make suggestions and product recommendations based on data
• Chat leads to higher customer satisfaction rating, meaning retention and loyalty in future

Routine tasks

Due to the fact you can add many integrations into a chat window, chatbots are a great option for handling routine tasks that would take up your human team’s precious time.

Routine tasks can be anything from changing an appointment or meeting time, updating information, checking on order status, or any other common queries you get through your website.

Benefits of chatbots for routine tasks

• Chatbots can handle repetitive tasks, freeing up your human team to focus on more important things
• AI is efficient. Your customers can have their needs taken care of quickly instead of waiting for a human response
• Handling a routine task through live chat is a nifty and smooth solution for the customer, increasing satisfaction and retention
• Chatbots handling routine tasks is helpful for customers who may be struggling technically or unable to find a solution onsite

Final thoughts

Chatbots can be used for just about anything, though each goal requires proper strategy and planning in order to get the best results. As a general rule, chatbots work exceptionally well for simple, efficient work, but if you need something more complex and sensitive, human chat would be a great fit. The two can also blend together, creating a seamless hybrid solution to suit any need.

If you’re unsure where to start with chat and would like some expert advice, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.