10 MIN READ

Alright, do you really need Facebook Messenger chatbot in your business? Well, according to a recent Oracle survey, 78% of brands are planning to have some sort of Artificial Intelligence (AI) implemented in their business… all to serve customers better. The same survey indicates 80% of business executives plan to use the most recognizable form of AI in their customer experience by 2020… And the most recognizable form is, of course, chatbots.

So, in short, what is a chatbot again? 

A chatbot is a software, or little program if you will, that can simulate a human conversation. Chatbots offer automated responses. But, they can also perform tasks. Plus, with the use of machine learning, bots get smarter with every interaction. In fact, they are becoming the digital assistant of choice for many businesses. At the top, most popular chatbots are from Facebook Messenger. They’re expected to serve over 2.4 billion people by 2021. That’s huge! That’s a big chunk of the entire world population! While there are countless chatbots out there today… we have some, may I add convincing, reasons why a FB Messenger chatbot is the best bet for your business.

8 Reasons Why You Need a Messenger Chatbot in your Business:

1. Facebook Messenger Chatbots can become the “smartest” out there.

As mentioned earlier, bots are programs that simulate human conversations. But, chatbots must understand questions to provide the best-automated response. And with the right integrations, chatbots become better with usage. So, for bots to become smart and deliver accurate answers… they must learn from billions of chat interactions with real people. By 2021, Facebook Messenger is expected to have over 2.48 billion active monthly users. Which translates to countless interactions!

Now, since machine learning makes chatbots smarter with every interaction, we can conclude that bots (on Facebook) can become the most intelligent bots out there. The amount of individual interactions on Facebook Messenger daily is unfathomable. While other bots still seem robotic because they aren’t used as much… Facebook Messenger chatbots are in a league of their own. In fact, I’m willing to bet lots of people communicated with a Facebook Messenger chatbot before… without even realizing it. That’s how cool and smart they are! Facebook bots can use NLP (Natural Language Processing). You can use this to understand and generate entries (meaningful information) from messages sent by people.

With NLP, Messenger chatbots can identify a person’s intent, automate replies and collect audience data. The conversation can also be routed to a human responder via live chat. NLP makes Facebook Messenger chatbots offer the smartest or most near human-like experience. Facebook’s chatbots are so smart they are no longer reserved for customer support tasks only. The chatbots are currently being used to automate sales and marketing tasks. They are way more advanced than most chatbots in the market today. They can do everything! Tasks from responding like a human customer care support agent. Or tasks like qualifying leads, and making sales on your behalf.

2. A Messenger Chatbot in Your Business for Heroic Customer Support

One of the most critical customer support metrics is speed. Facebook Messenger bots are not only smart but quick and flexible. While most customers prefer communicating with businesses instantly via live chat… this may not be possible for many companies for obvious reasons. Chatbots make this possible. Messenger bots can respond to many customer questions at the same time… and send automated responses 24/7. This simply means your customers won’t have to be kept on hold to get the answers they are searching for. The bots can also redirect users to webpages with the information they are looking for. Integrating a chatbot with your Messenger a/c can save you a lot of time on customer support. You can forget about live chat waiting time when you have the fastest chatbot.

Moreover, you stand to enjoy the benefits of having a business page on Facebook. Facebook Messenger chatbots prompt users automatically on Facebook, increasing the chances of engagement. You also stand to gain from the fact that many businesses aren’t using Messenger bots. There are about 300k active bots compared to the 6 million+ advertisers on Facebook. In a nutshell, your business is bound to gain an unmatched competitive advantage. Just by using Facebook Messenger bots! (And there are studies to prove this.)

I.E., this Facebook study shows that 56% of customers prefer messaging over calling customer service. Giving most of your customers what they want, I.E., chatbots and advanced ones for that matter is a sure way of improving customer support. In case you are concerned about uninspiring chatting services, don’t worry. FB Messenger chatbots can be built to represent your brand correctly. (How? Well, with an advanced chatbot builder like Clepher of course)

Where’s the proof?

Looking for concrete proof on whether Facebook’s chatbots actually improve a business’s customer support? Look no further, because Rogers Wireless is a perfect example. In 2016, the Canadian wireless service boosted customer satisfaction by 65%! They did this by integrating Facebook Messenger into their customer support system. Rogers Wireless has 9.8 million customers. Note, your company doesn’t need to have millions of customers to benefit. If you have a plumbing company, for instance, your customers can book as well as change appointments online anytime through these bots. This will drop common pain points associated with scheduling for services.

3. Save time and cost on FAQs

If you take time to examine what most of your potential and existing customers ask about your business… you’ll identify some repetitive questions. And, most companies need customer service teams to answer these repetitive questions. Regardless what kind of product or service you offer, your team spends a significant amount of time daily answering FAQs. While repetitive questions may be part of building a relationship with customers… they can be dealt with in a shorter time using Facebook Messenger chatbots.

If you’re reading to add a FB Messenger chatbot in your business… use our bot builder Clepher… you can create a custom bot for your business that answers FAQs unique to your business. This is possible even if you have a FAQ section on your website. By reducing the time your support staff spends on FAQs, you can channel their efforts to more pressing issues. Automating an FAQ section will also decrease the time your customer support staff spends on calls.

Where’s the proof?

Globe Telecom is the proof. This telecommunications company in the Philippines was able to reduce calls by 50%. And they did it by incorporating a hybrid Messenger bot. This increased employee productivity by 3.5 times. If you’re wondering how customers react to automated FAQs… Globe Telecom’s customer satisfaction rate increased by 22%! And this all from incorporating the hybrid bot. These benefits are immense for small businesses, especially those looking for ways to reduce costs without hampering growth.

With your FAQs automated, you don’t need to hire a lot of customer support agents either. What’s cool is that you can deploy existing support staff to more productive tasks. And if you’re smart, you give them a task with a direct impact on your bottom line. I.E., If you have a landscaping company, you can use a bot to answer FAQs. Questions such as the different types of grass, or cost. This helps your customers make instant decisions, such as whether to ask for a personalized quote.

4. To automate frequent business tasks like promotion

FAQs are not the only thing you can automate using Facebook’s Messenger bots. A well-designed bot can respond to specific questions. Like, automate payments, transactions, promotions, and more. Plus, you can use chatbots to give offers to potential and existing customers.

Where’s the proof?

Alcohol brand Absolut Vodka has been able to automate promotions. In the past, they were part of Facebook’s chatbot success stories. Absolut was interested in changing how their customers (millennials) sampled their products. They wanted to reach their customers at the precise moment of consumption via their phones… or at the bar to boost sampling and purchase. By using a bot to offer their customers complimentary drinks at local bars of their choice… their promotions surpassed their benchmarks twofold. Their sales lift was much higher at 4.7x. Their sophisticated bot was able to handle everything from finding local bars to delivering redemption codes. Basically, duties that would have required a significant manpower investment. 

Your brand doesn’t have to be as big as Absolut Vodka. All types of businesses can use similar bots. If you launch marketing campaigns and promotions, you can do the same for your small business. You can have a custom bot that delivers updated information to your customers’ accounts. That information could be anything from scheduled delivery to promotion codes. Or, perhaps current invoices, and past payments. Automating frequent business tasks offers tons of convenience to your team and customers. Most businesses need their customers to log-in to their accounts… And in some cases, contact support to get many tasks done. Chatbots can do 80% of these tasks automatically.

5. Identify and capitalize on intent and customer behavior

You also need a FB Messenger chatbot in your business to take advantage of USPs. As mentioned earlier, most people would rather send a message than call your business. But, customers hate waiting, which is why they love Live Chat. Small businesses that don’t have the resources to have customer care service teams 24/7 can use bots. And these bots can offer many advantages over humans! A benefit could be identifying things like customer intent and consumer behavior. Or as simple as instant replies on common questions!

Where’s the proof?

Instead of customers calling to get a quote, they can use your chatbot to get a personalized quote. The process requires a few seconds, and the quote is generated instantly. Tech like NLP in Messenger bots can identify what most of your customers want when they contact you. If your business is dependent on quotes… bots can identify intentions and automate the process eliminating the need for calls. Regardless of your line of business… chatbots on Facebook Messenger can offer this unique advantage. Considering 87% of shoppers start their buying journey by researching products/services online… it helps to have a chatbot that can “tell” what a customer wants and deliver instant results.

6. Target your most loyal customers

Traditional ways of keeping customers updated with what’s happening are no longer appealing. Sending emails to your entire client list every time you have a new product, service, promotion, blogpost, etc… Some customers actually qualify it as “spammy” behavior. A Messenger bot can target your most loyal customers. I.E., those who visit your business site/pages online more and keep that segment of clients informed. Like a restaurant, for example. They can notify loyal customers on limited reservations for upcoming holidays. Or they can let customers know of new specials, seasonal menus, new locations, and more. Messenger bots can also be used to notify customers in a specific location. Imagine impending delays because of bad weather in the customer’s area. Wouldn’t it be cool to keep the customer updated on that as well?

Where’s the proof?

Companies like TechCrunch are a perfect example. The online publisher was among the first notable tech publishers to use a chatbot. The FB Messenger chatbot notified its followers on TechCrunch’s latest articles. It would also determine the articles it would send to different users based on responses, I.E., clicks. While data on the success of TechCrunch’s bot hasn’t been released… the bot increased the number of user sessions.

7. Build brand awareness fast and easy

Building a brand isn’t easy when you chose traditional routes. Facebook offers the best brand awareness platform. See, with 2.6 billion MAU… and many more on related platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp… Any brand serious about brand awareness should be looking at FB and its expansive list of tools. One of the most important aspects of a winning brand awareness strategy is offering an interactive experience. You definitely knock it out of the park if they are customer-oriented. A chatbot in itself is interactive already. But, if you can amp that quality even more… Prepare to be blown away!

Where’s the proof?

McDonald’s enjoyed a 90% success rate in their brand awareness campaign. They did it by using their own chatbot dubbed TrayQuest. For over two decades… McDonald’s had used tray liners as the main channel for entertaining their customers. With the coming of smartphones, tray liners seized to be engaging to customers. That’s why McDonald’s developed TrayQuest. Alongside immersive experiences, the bot invited customers to sync their tray liners and play games for rewards. TrayQuest activated 90 percent of tray liners offering a direct marketing channel. A whopping, 175,000 people took part in the first week, making the chatbot an instant hit. The same can be done for small and medium-sized businesses. To connect with customers, you can use a bot to showcase your brand mission too. And, as a result, establish your brand among new audiences. 

So, want a Facebook Messenger chatbot in your business yet?

8. Better/more effective alternative to traditional sales funnels

Sales funnels are essential for conversion. Yet, Facebook Messenger bots can bypass traditional sales funnels. How? Well, by giving your customers everything they need to buy products/services online in a chat. A well-designed bot can take prospects from the awareness and interest stages to the decision and action stages… You know, the actual buying part. Bots can create interest through NLP. They do this by delivering content capable of convincing a prospect to make a buying decision. And, as a cherry on top, guiding them to checkout. All you need is a good chatbot with everything from CTAs and checkout to payment options. Facebook Messenger chatbots are even capable of tracking deliveries.

Where’s the proof?

You can use Facebook Messenger to sell. Customers can view product/service catalogs with the Messenger application. They can go to the checkout page when they are ready to buy. It is now possible to respond to customer queries and offer automated notification about orders. The effectiveness of a chatbot cannot be denied… Facebook Messenger chatbots have open rates and CTRs capable of reaching 88% and 56%. This kind of performance makes a chatbot more effective than email. Which (email) has an average CTR of approximately 7%. Custom Messenger bots with a Welcome message, and CTA, is a better way to lead millennials to your products today.

Summary: Why you need a Messenger Chatbot in your business

The above information highlights eight good reasons to have your own Messenger chatbot. First, Facebook Messenger chatbots have a data advantage. This will give the bots an edge when using technologies like AI and machine learning. These bots are bound to offer the most significant improvements. And they will have the most impact on your bottom-line. 

Yet, there are good and bad Messenger bots. You need a good Facebook Messenger bot to enjoy all the benefits listed in this article. But, unless you are a programmer capable of building your own bot… you’ll need a chatbot builder that takes care of all the hard stuff for you. Luckily for you, we currently offer the best chatbot builder available. 

Anyone can create a Messenger chatbot with Clepher. Our all-in-one Messenger chatbot Creation and marketing suite offers a lot. For instance, Clepher has drag ‘n drop Flows, unmatched automation rules, and growth tools. Plus, you access Live Chat, superfast broadcasts, and so much more. Create a custom Facebook Messenger chatbot in your business today… do it with ZERO knowledge on coding using Clepher.