Chatbot Mistakes

5 Common Chatbot Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

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No matter what industry you operate in, having a chatbot marketing strategy in place is more important than ever. Using a chatbot service allows your customers to find out exactly what they need to know at any time. What’s more, you don’t need to go through the time and expense of training up actual people to answer the phones.

Today, 64% of online customers rank a 24/7 customer service chatbot as the most important feature for a business website to have, while 37% of consumers have used a chatbot to get a quick answer in an emergency.

That’s why it is important to avoid the common chatbot mistakes that can have a negative impact on user experience and drive away potential customers. With that in mind, here are the most common chatbot mistakes you need to avoid.

1. Not Covering All Bases

When learning how to use chatbots, one of the worst things you can do is fail to consider every possible angle. Too many people rush through their chatbot building process, assuming that essential customer queries such as “how much is shipping” or “how do I get a refund” is enough.

However, one of the key chatbot advantages is that they are designed to handle a vast array of multitasking. You should run through every possible customer scenario with your team and ensure your chatbot is prepared to respond to them.

2. Not Running Extensive User Testing Before Launch

Chatbots might be designed to make customer service simpler, but much like any technology product, bugs can appear.

The last thing you want is for your business to receive bad reviews because your chatbot wasn’t functioning at a time when your customers needed it the most. That’s why testing different chatbots and running extensive backend and frontend testing before launch is crucial.

3. Being Too Pushy

We’ve all been on a business website before where the first thing we have noticed is the deluge of notifications from a well-intentioned but overbearing chatbot. Is that really the kind of customer service you want to provide?

Different chatbot platforms having different levels of functionality. A common mistake that people make is to push this functionality to the absolute limits by cramming in as many unprompted messages as possible. No one likes a pushy chatbot, so keep it mellow.

4. Lack of Strategy

What do you want to get out of your chatbot? Do you purely want to create an unmanned customer service desk? Do you want to direct customers to new offers and CTAs? Do you want to publicize your latest business announcements in a one-to-one manner?

One of the benefits of chatbots is that they can offer all of these things at once. However, you need to have a cohesive strategy and no exactly the kind of business goals that your chatbot should be helping you achieve.

5. No Personality

Just because your chatbot is a robot doesn’t mean it should lack the human touch. There is plenty of scopes to create a chatbot that is witty, engaging, friendly, and genuinely helpful.

Consider the language that your chatbot uses and think of ways that your chatbot can represent your brand identity. This can create a memorable user experience that will keep customers coming back for more.

Beyond Chatbot Mistakes

Learning which fatal chatbot mistakes to avoid is only one important step towards a successful digital marketing strategy. If you want to find out how to make the latest business tech work for you and your company, we’ve got you covered.

Make sure to consult our expertly-written software development guides to find out how software can level up your company in 2020 and beyond.