Running an online store requires a lot of help. Between answering service questions and perfecting the customer experience, it can be hard to find the right support staff. Fortunately, technology may be the answer. By adding a chatbot to your e-commerce shop, you can improve your customer service with ease.
In this article, we’ll introduce you to the concept of chatbots. Then we’ll cover three of the best reasons to consider using one in your online store. Let’s dive right in!
An Introduction to Chatbots
Customer service is typically an important part of the online shopping experience. However, hiring enough staff to attend to all of your clients’ needs can be costly. As such, many people prefer using chatbots instead.
A chatbot is a piece of software that can communicate with customers in a simple way:
There are a few prominent benefits to using this tool in your store:
- You can answer common questions that don’t require a lot of explanation.
- You can satisfy the 36% of consumers who say they feel frustrated when they can’t find answers to their questions.
- You’ll be able to sort out complex questions and send them to live agents.
Your shoppers probably aren’t new to this technology, either. A recent study found that 40% of consumers have used a chatbot to communicate with a retailer before. Therefore, just under half of your visitors will understand how to make the best use of the software intuitively.
Additionally, chatbots can be valuable if you own a growing business. Since this technology can serve multiple users, it is easily scalable. This means you can expand your customer service as your reach grows.
3 of the Best Reasons to Use Chatbots in Your Online Store
In case you’re not convinced yet, here are some of the most impactful reasons to add a chatbot to your e-commerce website.
1. Cut Down on Customer Service Tickets
Your shoppers might have simple questions from time to time. Even though the answers may be straightforward, they can still be very important. For example, you could potentially lose a sale if a customer can’t figure out where you’ll ship products to.
A chatbot can act similarly to an interactive FAQ section, providing users with fast and accurate responses. The cable company Cox provides an example of this in action:
Answering minor questions may not seem like a big deal, but those tickets can add up. You can consider a recent study as an example: one chatbot was able to handle 67% of requests for a 20,000 person event.
Some programs may even enable you to automate simple tasks such as password resets by prompting visitors through the process. As such, a chatbot can result in fewer tickets and fewer questions for your staff overall. This can also decrease the working hours your team has to put in, which may lead to some savings for your business.
By cutting down on customer tickets, you can ensure that your employees have enough time to deal with important requests. The chatbot can include an option that connects customers to a live agent, so urgent issues such as products going out of stock are addressed in a timely manner.
2. Boost Your Store’s Convenience
Chatbots can be an affordable way to provide your customers with round-the-clock support. That said, they tend to be powerful convenience tools for both you and your shoppers.
In some situations, your customers may be unable to call you, or your business hours may not align with their free time. Moreover, 66% of consumers have stated that they want a self-service option available. You can serve a huge portion of your audience with a single innovative tool.
This convenience can take on many forms. For instance, you may choose to use a chatbot that can provide helpful links, such as Domino’s chatbot (Dom):
This chatbot can help users track their orders, giving them a better idea of when to expect their food. It also provides this convenience without putting extra pressure on staff members. Furthermore, providing the option to reorder a previous order can streamline the experience and encourage future purchases.
Nevertheless, a chatbot can’t do all of that alone. We suggest that you also prioritize the consistent updating of content. That way, you will be able to provide your digital assistant with a lot of resources, so it can better serve your customers.
3. Further Personalize the User Experience
While personalized experiences should generally be approached with caution, it’s also a tactic that can make shoppers feel more connected to your brand. It can be a lucrative strategy, too: 80% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase if they’ve had a personalized experience. Thus, if you’re looking for ways to make shoppers feel that your service has been tailored to their needs, a chatbot can be a subtle way to accomplish this.
For example, some chatbots operate through Facebook. This provides them with each customer’s name, or other details such as their location and time zone:
However, chatbots can customize the experience even further. They also enable customers to solve issues on their own terms. A chatbot can make a customer feel like they have a personal shopping assistant.
Of course, customer needs aren’t static. A chatbot may need to be updated from time to time in order to provide optimal support. For this reason we recommend that you keep up with conversations about technology and personalization. This can help you better understand how to serve your shoppers in the future.
Conclusion
Shoppers tend to have high expectations. Between answering questions and trying to offer a curated service, it can be difficult to meet all of their needs. Fortunately, you can use chatbots to easily improve the customer experience.
How do you use chatbots in your online store (or how do you plan to incorporate them)? Let us know in the comments section below!
Image credit: Pixabay.