Customer service has always been an important aspect of running a business, especially in a world where consumers are placing greater value on connection and loyalty to a brand. However, many business owners forget to invest in their customer service, causing them to lose potentially loyal clients. In contrast, some companies have skyrocketed to the forefront of their industry precisely because of their superb customer care, underscoring its importance even more.

Technology has advanced to radical proportions, transforming businesses in almost every way. With the introduction of chatbots to provide artificial intelligence or AI-powered customer care, companies can now help customers around the clock without pulling night shifts. Chatbots can also immediately resolve the most common questions customers have without requiring human intervention. They’re also capable of servicing multiple customers at once, offering a drastic improvement to a company’s efficiency.

What are Customer Service Chatbots?

Customer service chatbots use artificial intelligence and machine learning to resolve simple customer inquiries through a business messenger platform. They often appear as pop-up chats at the bottom corner of the webpage. They can be programmed to answer questions such as “Do you ship worldwide?” and “How do I place an order?”. IT consulting services usually step in to help businesses set up their chatbots, making them easy to add and implement.

AI chatbots need an existing knowledge base, like FAQs or informative articles, to answer your customers’ questions. They can recognise multiple versions of a query, and you can configure them to provide immediate responses with your preferred tone and voice. Chatbots are handy additions to companies with a global customer base that require multi-lingual support across different channels, like social media or in-app. They’re also fantastic ways to reduce customer service costs while scaling customer support.

Can Chatbots Replace Customer Service Agents?

Although chatbots are incredibly efficient tools that can aid customer service agents, they cannot replace them. Chatbots are excellent at resolving basic questions right away, often the questions that a customer service team receives the most. With these out of the way, customer service agents can focus more on pressing and complicated concerns.

Bots are designed to simplify tasks and eliminate repetition from workflows to streamline processes and make jobs more efficient. However, they cannot offer the sincerity that comes with human interaction, so it’s best to use them in tandem with real customer service specialists. In fact, many tech consulting experts recommend approaching chatbots as virtual assistants rather than actual customer care agents.

What are the Benefits of Customer Service Chatbots?

AI-powered chatbots offer a world of benefits to many businesses. For starters, they provide immediate resolutions, contributing to customer satisfaction while improving chances of conversion. It also allows companies to offer 24/7 support without going on night shifts, as chatbots can answer simple queries at all hours while providing links that can give more information. However, if the question proves to be too complicated, they can indicate your available hours and assure the customer that someone will be in touch to help later.

Another benefit of chatbots is that they’re always learning, thus improving the quality of their support. Canned responses are no longer the norm when interacting with a chatbot, providing conversational and personalised care to even basic questions. It also creates a consistent user experience since none of their queries will go to spam or be accidentally missed.

Conclusion

Chatbots have ultimately redefined customer service to make it more accessible, especially for companies with a growing global presence. They make it easier to manage queries while improving customer service agents’ workflow, helping businesses become more efficient. By adding chatbots to your page, you’ll offer a happier customer experience, making them more likely to convert to paying customers.

Informatics is one of the best software consulting companies specialising in custom software development and infrastructure solutions and services. With our IT consulting services, we can equip your business with the software and technology you need to meet your goals. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you set up chatbots on your website!

Written by Daniele Paoletti