How Chatbots Can Transform Your eCommerce Website Into a Customer Service Juggernaut
You're an ambitious WiFi entrepreneur who has an online store to sell your products and services, with a good link profile and social media following.
However, you've got a budget, too. What else can you do to boost your sales and profitability?
Add a chatbot.
What is a chatbot?
A chatbot is a computer program that simulates human conversation. You can implement chatbots to manage a variety of tasks, including customer service and business applications.
A chatbot is programmed to answer questions, provide information, and perform tasks such as ordering products or services on behalf of the user.
In addition, the technology has been gaining popularity in recent years thanks to its ability to automate repetitive tasks while providing helpful information in real-time via text or audio channels (for example, Amazon Echo).
The history of chatbots
Chatbots have been around since 1966 when the first chatbot was created at MIT. It was a simulation of a person that could hold conversations on any topic.
Carnegie Mellon University developed the first commercially available chatbot in 1972. They called it Eliza, and it would respond to users' questions by using a database of pre-written responses.
The first customer service chatbot was introduced in 1984. It was designed to help users access information about their accounts online.
IBM released the first virtual assistant robot in 1997—it was called "Sam." In 1998, Sam became famous after he lost to chess champion Gary Kasparov in a match.
In 2009, Microsoft released its version of a virtual assistant: Cortana. It can perform tasks like searching for information on products or weather conditions, setting reminders and alarms, changing settings on your device (like brightness), and launching programs on your computer based on voice commands alone.
Chatbots are getting smarter.
Thanks to artificial intelligence, and natural language programming, chatbots have the capacity to interact with humans more naturally than ever before.
What does that mean?
Well, it means eCommerce businesses that use chatbots can reach an increasing number of customers in more ways than ever.
In 2023, we're going to see chatbots that can:
- Understand context better than ever before.
- Respond accurately when given instructions or questions.
- Make suggestions based on what they know about your business and the customer's needs.
- Have a human-like conversation with customers about products and services.
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