Regardless of the situation, it’s human nature to be seeking out the next big thing. That is how we keep evolving as a species. We’ve even evolved in how we stay connected with each other from mail to telephones to computers. This shift in how we stay connected took a fascinating turn with the widespread adoption of the internet and artificial intelligence.
In business, connectedness is everything. It is the basis for how sales are made, customers are satisfied, and how brands develop.
In 2017, chatbots are poised to be the next big platform that connects people to businesses. A recent survey conducted by Oracle found that 80 percent of senior marketing and sales professionals expect to be using chatbots for customer interactions by 2020.
As wonderful as it sounds, implementing this channel into a business model is not apples to apples. That being said, let’s talk about how entrepreneurs can craft their approach to successfully navigate this connectivity trend, as well as the ones in the future.
Understand the customer journey.
Implementing chatbots — or any customer touchpoint — is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Every organization has a unique set of customers and discourse between parties. As effective as chatbots may be in terms of cost and interactions, they must be programmed in accordance with the customer journey.
For this to work, managers need to have an cognitive, data-backed understanding of the journey from A to Z. Even more, managers need to know the exact points for when and why customers reach out to the business. For instance, what are the types of content you produce that are meant to prompt interactions? What are the customers looking for?
This concept is nothing new. Knowing the finer details of the customer journey is the foundation for success in any capacity. As AI is taking a larger role in business operations, it’s not just about understanding it, it’s about having the accurate foresight and experience to program the robots to understand.
Design for customer success.
Once you’ve pinpointed the areas in the customer journey where chatbots can be put to the best use, you need to grasp how they can advance customers down the sales funnel. Often times, this is the most difficult piece of the puzzle when incorporating an automated system.
This is where you need to be examining your customer service and sales data under a microscope. What are the patterns related to the questions people ask?
Which patterns and questions occur the most? Even more, how can you…
