Let’s look at this number: 60.5 million Americans used Siri (iPhone), Cortana (Windows) or another virtual assistant at least one a month in 2017. That is a huge number, and one that indicates the growing influence of artificial intelligence, and more specifically chatbots, in today’s society. This holds true not only for America but the whole world!

We humans are gradually becoming reliant and trusting of humanised technology, something that has been spoken of and predicted in various media like movies and magazines. A quote in an online article even read: “Legit companies are realizing that chatbots are a primary gateway and channel between businesses and shoppers”.

This is where the concept of smart marketing using chatbots has come into the picture. Such has been the rise in popularity of this technology in the service sphere that eight-tenths of all companies are looking to get their chatbot features rolling by 2020. But this is something that is a relatively unknown quantity, and companies need to be aware of what it is investing in and what said investment brings to the table.

It is not a secret that chatbots can be built in terms of personality, data fed and data received. And the first one is quite important, especially cases where companies are n dealing with customers, or where there is some kind of customer-service involved. A good personality given to a chatbots can go a long way in engaging customers in a positive manner and keeping them happy.

While good features make a big difference in performance and logistics, a good personality is what will drive the product forward, and will ensure customers are satisfied. A cheery, optimistic chatbot can be the difference between losing customers and gaining new ones. Positive personalities, as with inter-human interactions, tend to invoke the same kind of responses and feelings among those engaging in conversations. The same can be applied to a chatbot as well.

It is telling that 57 per cent of consumers prefer chatbots for their instantaneity, and this is where personalities can be the smart move. Fields like marketing and service require a lot of interactions between the chatbot and humans, so giving the former some conversational features gives it the best possible chance to make positive moves.

A good chatbot can help customers solve simple, specific tasks like booking movie tickets, shopping, directions and making hotel reservations. It also gives the company a good opportunity to connect with its audience, and find out their likes and dislikes, based on which more tweaks and changes can be made in the technology.

The most important thing, perhaps, is to ensure that the bot does not sound like a bot, and more like a human with whom audiences can share their feelings and get answers without any misgivings. It should provide an easy, one-step process to access tools and find solutions for the customers.

Vijith Sivadasan

Written By Vijith Sivadasan

An enterprising visionary and a serial entrepreneur, Vijith is driven by instinct in his pursuit for creative excellence. Passionate about transformational marketing strategies, he enunciates the critical need of analytic skills to maximize business potential. To know more on how he can add value to your business, drop him a line at vijith@codelattice.com