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Sometimes human interaction cannot be replaced by technology. We’ve seen it in many situations by now. For example, grammar and spelling software is not even close to replacing real editors. It’s good, but it’s not that good. Customer service is another category where the use of automation is a matter of dispute, to say the least.
Still, the standalone chatbot industry is thriving, and we better take that for a fact.
According to a report provided by Grand View Research, chatbot market size is expected to reach $1.25 billion by 2025.
An independent survey among 3,000 UK and US customers revealed the main factors that made chatbots unappealing:
What does this tell us? Customers mainly hate chatbots because they are not sophisticated enough to mimic the human approach. They are too cold and they lack intelligence and empathy.
But then, there’s the other side of the coin.
Oracle polled 800 senior marketing and sales professionals and revealed that chatbots are set to surge. 80% of brands will be relying on chatbots for customer interactions by 2020, and 36% have already implemented such technology in their business practices.
So there’s that. Companies were being careful with this technology at first, but now they are all hopping on board. Why does this happen when customer-centered surveys obviously show impatience towards chatbots? The answer is clear: there’s tons of potential in this technology, so companies are trying to advance it in a way that meets people’s needs and make their customer support departments more effective at the same time.
Of course, we can! There are huge advantages to this technology if we’re only willing to develop it further.
The good news is that not all customer-centered surveys show such negative perception towards chatbots. As always, we cannot take the results from one survey as facts. Another survey, provided by LivePerson, showed that chatbots are getting more popular, and 38% of consumers rated their overall perception as positive.
Laurie Richardson, head of the customer service department at ResumesPlanet.com, explains: “Do customers love or hate chatbots? – It all depends on the type of chatbots they’ve encountered. There are terrible ones, but there are also great chatbots that lead to quick and effective solutions. If the chatbot is well-programmed and leads to effortless connection with a real customer agent when there’s need for such assistance, then it’s definitely a good thing for both the business and the customer.”
When we talk about the disadvantages of chatbots, we have to mention the advantages, too. The pro/con list will give us a realistic impression of the forecast.
So what are the major advantages?
In many situations, customers prefer contact with real people. There’s no doubt about it. If your chatbot takes them back and forth, making them repeat the question and still not delivering answers, it’s no good. If it forwards them to a live chat agent and they still have to repeat the information, it’s no good at all.
But we must also consider the fact that chatbots are getting better, and the customers are getting more receptive towards that technology. When done properly, chatbots will benefit both your business and your customers.
See how a chatbot can make your website work harder
Warren is a marketing enthusiast and a blogger at Resumesplanet.com, who loves music. If he doesn’t have a guitar in his hands, he’s probably embracing new technologies and marketing techniques online! You can meet him on Twitter and Facebook.
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