Chatbots in Retail industry
In today’s era, where technology is expanding exponentially Chatbot is the next big sensation. We know that we are already dependent on machines for almost every task but it’s time that we start socialising with them too. Thanks to the artificial intelligence that technology has come this far and we can actually consider talking to a Chatbot instead of a human for the instant solution of our queries particularly in case of retail businesses. Here we will talk about everything, you need to know about Chatbots and how they are helping in achieving operational optimisations in the retail industry.
What is a Chatbot?
A Chatbot is basically a computer program that works on an automated system of communication and is designed to work as an assistant. It communicates with the users via texts or voice interface. It is one of the most proficient technologies that has opened new doors for the retail businesses, replacing the traditional way of approaching the customers. Some of the common examples of a chatbot are weather bots, e-commerce bots, and customer service bots etc.
Types of Chatbots
Chatbots are broadly divided into two categories based on their programming which is Simple Chatbot and Smart Chatbot.
1. Simple Chatbot: A simple chatbot works through predefined responses induced by a developer using general expressions on the basis of users’ response. A simple Chatbot will be able to help only if the user asks questions according to the pre-defined responses else it will reply with a simple statement like “Sorry! I don’t understand”.
2. Smart Chatbots: As the word suggests, Smart Chatbots tend to become more intelligent and smarter by relying on artificial intelligence. Every response of a customer is recorded so that it can adapt its behaviour according to its interaction with the users. Smart Chatbots can also be further divided into two sub categories one based on supervised machine learning and another one based on unsupervised learning.
How can a Chatbot help in Retail Industry?
Customers are considered to be the king of the entire retail industry and every business’s primary motive is not only to acquire new customers but to retain them. Various strategies are used to lure the customer. A customer will return only if he is satisfied and customer support department of the company plays a very crucial role in providing that satisfaction. For the redressal of the complaints, a company hires customer support executive but the drawback of recruiting executives is that they are prone to make mistakes which is obviously a human nature because of which the process of handling the customers’ grievances gets delayed.
To tackle this major problem Chatbots came on board. The new tech-savvy generation that is constantly in touch with the social platforms through their smart devices be it phones, tabs or laptops wants to have an impeccable tailored made customer service experience with any brand they are connected with. To deal with the queries of the customers in a much-personalised way more and more retail companies are taking help of the chatbots or virtual assistant. A Chatbot can help the retail industry in the following ways.
1. Highly efficient by providing 24/7 customer service: No human workforce is needed when it comes to using a chatbot. The capability of handling the customer’s grievances of a Chatbot is much more than that of a human. A customer doesn’t have to wait on a call for hours for the customer service executive to attend them, or repeat the same query again and again while talking to different customer support executives hence improving the overall customer satisfaction. Soon chatbots will replace the normal form of contacts like live chat, calls and emails. Since chatbots are computer programs, they can work 24*7*365 without taking a break, also they can instantly handle multiple queries at the same time.
2. Customers can get all the details through chatbot: From processing orders, providing product recommendations to giving shipping information chatbots can do it all in just few seconds. This all is done by analysing customers’ behaviour and choices, past shopping experience, moods and much more.
3. Saves Money or cost optimization: Chatbot is a one-time investment, therefore, being an owner, you don’t have to recruit number of employees in order to get your job done. A standard chatbot would cost much less than the annual salaries of the employees of an organization which includes cost of recruiting, training, basic salary and benefits etc.
4. Operational cost is reduced: Every time a customer interacts with chatbot the relevant information gets stored with it, so next time when a customer comes back he doesn’t have to enter the same information again and again. With the use of chatbots the number of incoming calls, emails or social media inquiries gets reduced substantially which not only improves the efficiency but also lowers the operational cost.
5. Revenue generation: Once a customer’s query has been effectively resolved by a chatbot it opens up the door for the customer to return to the website for more and what’s better than a returning customer, also a chatbot can send time to time alerts about various discounts, sales and other marketing strategies that can easily attract customers helping in generating more sales and revenue.
Future of Chatbot
The future of Chatbot is bright. With the advancement of artificial intelligence it seems that in the coming years, chatbots will take control over 85 percent of customer service interactions of digital business platforms. Get ready for more personalised experience and hundred percent satisfaction with chatbots.
Market Growth
As the operational cost of the retail business reduces significantly with the help of chatbots, the market of Chatbots is expected to grow on a large scale. It has been estimated that by 2025 the Chatbot market is expected to reach USD 1.25 billion. The main driving force for the market growth would be the enhancement in the features of the Chatbots which can be attained with more and more innovation in the field of artificial intelligence.
How to build a Chatbot
After all the discussion it may look like building a Chatbot is a dubious task but it is totally attainable you just have to hire a software developing company that understands your needs. A successful chatbot would the one that can provide consistent value to its customers. Few things that a company has to decide in advance before the creation of a chatbot which are:
1. What problem, work or queries will be solved by your chatbot?
2. Which services will be used to develop the chatbot?
3. Which platform will be chosen to make your chatbot live for example Facebook, WhatsApp, and Slack etc.?
4. Which server will be used to run the Chatbot?
If you want to get a Chatbot developed for your business then EYT should be your number 1 choice. EYT is a team of efficient, app and software developers that will help your business to grow. We take special care of the client’s requirements and deliver the product according to the needs and wants of the client. The finest technologies with all features and integrations are being used by our competent team so that you get what you desire.
Recently EYT helped a company in developing a Chatbot for their level 1 customer support. The process started with the Chatbot understanding the flow of work of the customer support department of the company, it then recorded the predefined responses of the customers and maintained a conversational flow. The conversational flow is then implemented in the chatbot engine to interact with the customers to save a lot of time and energy.
This work could also have been done by a customer care executive but this unconventional method saved a lot of time, effort and money. More and more businesses are getting attracted towards chatbots and realising the importance of this amazing invention.
Now that you know everything about Chatbots and how they can help your businesses you surely know who to contact to if you want to develop a perfect Chatbot.
Contact us on support@eyt.ee .
