8 MIN READ

2023 is predicted to be a huge year for chatbot technology. Businesses are already leveraging the power of bots to automate customer service and sales processes, and the technology is only getting better. No brand has 24/7 resources to handle all customer queries, so chatbots have been dominating customer service roles. How can Facebook – the most popular social media platform – help you in this regard?

If you have an eCommerce business that you get traffic from on Facebook, it may be time to leverage the power of Facebook Messenger (Also known as Facebook Chatbots) chatbots. No matter how popular or niche your business is, quick response, automated messages, and constant engagement are essential for customer retention and increasing sales.

Read more about how to effectively use Facebook Chatbots in this complete guide. We will cover topics such as what a Facebook Chatbot is, its benefits, dos and don’ts, and how Clepher has been helping businesses worldwide.

What is a Facebook Messenger bot (a.k.a Facebook chatbot)?

A chatbot is an automated computer program designed to simulate a conversation with human users, specifically via digital channels such as Facebook Messenger. It uses natural language processing (NLP) and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to understand what people say and respond accordingly.

Facebook chatbots can answer customer queries quickly, sort orders, provide product recommendations, send reminders of upcoming events, and even handle customer service inquiries. On top of that, it can also help you generate leads for your business by automating conversations with potential customers.

If you install a Messenger bot for Facebook, it means you are covering 1.3 billion people who use the platform. This presents a massive opportunity to engage and interact with your customers and generate more sales. Think of a virtual assistant that can help your customers in real-time and work around the clock. That’s what Messenger bots are all about!

What are the Unique Benefits of Installing a Facebook Messenger Chatbot for Business?

The statistics are pretty clear – Facebook Messenger bots are extremely beneficial for businesses. In fact, studies have found that Messenger bots can help increase sales by up to 500%. Following are some quick stats released by Meta for Messenger:

• Off all mobile VoIP calls, Messenger accounts for 10% globally
• Almost 5 million GIFs are sent via Messenger every day
• More than 1 billion people use Messenger every month
• On average, there are 34000 developers and 33,000 bots on Messenger
• 375,000 customers interact with bots on Messenger from across the world

You can read all these stats and some more amazing facts about Facebook Messenger here.

The point to show these stats are:

1. Facebook Messenger bots provide businesses with an easy way to engage customers and leads.
2. It helps companies reduce the workload of customer support teams by taking over mundane tasks.
3. Whoever uses Facebook uses Messenger, so you have a wider reach.
4. No matt what platforms get popular, Messenger will remain the same.
5. If a customer has not reached you via Messenger, it means either you don’t respond to them, or you have no business at all.
6. The popularity of Messenger bots is only going to increase in the future.

Now, let’s head toward the actual benefits of using Messenger bots for business.

1) Connect with Customers Where They Are:

We saw in statistics that almost 1 billion people use Messenger. This means you have an amazing opportunity to reach out to customers and target potential customers who are already present on the platform.

People who use Messenger and connect with you, are already interested in what you do and what you can offer them. All they need is quick responses, quick solutions, and personalized automated messaging software. Therefore, they are more likely to make a purchase as compared to cold leads or people who are just passing by.

2) Connect with People via Their Profile: (Know who they are)

If a customer comes to your site, you don’t know who they are, what are their name, age, and other important details. However, when they are on Messenger, you can take advantage of their Facebook profile to send them more personalized messages and offers.

Check this screenshot:

Do you see this? Our chatbot addressed the user by her name. This is how personalized and automated messages can help businesses reach out to their customers in a more meaningful way.

So, these are two things; you are responding quickly, and you are responding with personalized automated messages. This is how Messenger bots can help you connect to customers where they are and make them feel special even when the messages are automated.

3) Automate Sales and Support:

Hear me out, This is Black Friday, and you are getting huge traffic in your store. You have a customer support team of 10 people, and you receive 100,000 queries in just an hour. How can you manage this? How can you make sure that each query is answered quickly and efficiently? Wouldn’t you freak out?

Yes, you would. But not if you are one of the smartest businesses that have already installed the Messenger bot. This is where chatbots can help businesses automate customer support and sales processes. You don’t have to hire extra people or stay late in the office. Just install a bot and let it do the work for you.

The bot can take care of mundane tasks such as FAQs, payment inquiries, refunds, and more. It can also help you make sales by providing discounts, promotions, and offers. For instance, what’s the biggest hurdle for customers? Knowing when their order is delivered. Tracking information is not always available on the website.

Now check this screenshot from the Clepher chatbot template for order tracking and delivery:

4) Automate sales:

83% of the customers say they would shop online through messaging channels if given the option. People prefer messaging channels rather than calling a customer service number. So, it means you can utilize chatbots to target this 83% of customers.

You can set up automated messages to inform customers about discounts, offers, product releases, or any other information they need. You can even send automated drip campaigns and keep customers updated with their orders.

Let’s say a customer comes to your Facebook page; you can show a quiz related to the product they are looking for. Then they fill out the quiz, you can get the information about what kind of offer they are looking for, and you can automatically send them the offer they were looking for.

This will result in more conversions, sales, and happy customers for you. Remember, out of everything I spoke about, you don’t have to do anything. Everything can be done with automation and chatbots.

Check this screenshot:

The dos and don’ts of using Facebook Chatbots:

So, now you know how to use Facebook chatbots for your business. Here are a few tips and tricks about using them:

1) Don’t fully rely on chatbots:

That’s true if you have heard chatbots are the future, but chatbots aren’t able to handle very complicated queries at the moment. So, instead of fully relying on them, use them to answer some basic queries and handle mundane tasks yourself.

Remember, the success of chatbots depends on how you use them. If you just install and forget, it won’t work. However, you can set the basic questions and automated responses and let the bot do its work. You can install a question where the bot will ask if the user needs to speak to a live customer representative.

2) Don’t forget to personalize:

The key to success lies in making users feel that they are talking to a real person, not a robot. You can personalize the messages by using their name, adding emojis or gifs, and asking relevant questions. We shared the screenshot above where the chatbot from Clepher uses emojis to make the conversation more personal.

3) Update it with new information and features:

Make sure to update your chatbot regularly with new information and features. This will help you keep up with the competition and keep users interested in your chatbot. Let’s say you have installed a Facebook chatbot for handling inventory and orders. Make sure to add new features like tracking the order or providing discount codes.

Let’s say you are running a 30% discount, and the discount ends, but you have not updated your chatbot. In this case, customers would not be happy when they come to know that the discount is no more, but your bot is still telling them about the discount.

4) Don’t spam your customers:

I understand chatbot is here to automate everything but never forget that users still need to feel like they are talking to a real person and not to a robot. So, make sure you don’t send spammy messages to users. You can send an automated welcome or thank you messages but don’t try to spam them with promotional messages, which might annoy them and make them leave your page.

5) Utilize analytics:

One of the best things you can do with chatbots is to use analytics. This will help you understand what works best for your users and what doesn’t. You can check which messages have the highest engagement rate or CTR rate. Then you can use those insights to create more personal and effective messages. The idea is to use analytics to understand how users interact with your chatbot and then optimize the messages accordingly.

6) Keep it simple:

Last but not the least, keep your chatbot messages as simple and straightforward as possible. Don’t try to be witty or sarcastic as it might confuse users. Use simple language and short sentences to communicate effectively with your customers.

Personalization is the key but doesn’t go over the board where it becomes annoying. An example would be, instead of saying “Hey, how are you today” say something like “Hi there”. The idea is to keep it simple and to the point. Opt-out messages are a better approach when it comes to bots.

Check this screenshot from the Survey chat flow from Clepher:

With these tips, you can use Facebook chatbots to your advantage and take your business to the next level. So, set up the chatbot, personalize it, update it with new features and information, and most importantly use analytics to understand what works best for your customers.

How does Clepher help?

Clepher has been helping hundreds of small businesses like yours to build Facebook Messenger chatbots with ease, using its powerful Automated Flow Builder. We provide tools and resources that let you create powerful chatbot flows and track user engagement with analytics. Clepher also has a platform to provide resources, free chatbot training, and tons of other resources to help you get started.

We also provide a user-friendly and intuitive dashboard where you can create powerful chatbot flows and track user engagement with analytics. This makes creating, managing, and optimizing your chatbot easier than ever before! So, if you are looking to create a powerful chatbot for your business, Clepher has the perfect solution for you.

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