Best practices and strategies for success: Chatbot

#1 Know what makes a chatbot effective
It’s critical to comprehend what makes effective chatbots different from bad chatbots before you begin developing your own chatbot. These are the top chatbots:

Goal-oriented:
They assist users in reaching their destination quickly.

Context-aware:
They account for the user’s circumstances.

swiftly and plainly:
They are direct and speak in straightforward terms.

Turn-based:
They don’t send too many responses at once and allow users to take turns participating in the chat.

Polite:
They are considerate of the user’s goals and time. Customers are not pushed offers and discounts if they initiate a conversation to resolve their issue.

Error Tolerant:
They are resilient to faults and recover without difficulty.

 

#2: Pick the appropriate kind of chatbot
There are two primary categories of chatbots, each with distinct benefits. Generally speaking, we advise beginning with rule-based chatbots; artificial intelligence can always be added later if necessary. Let’s see how they differ from one another.

Chatbot with rules
Rule-based chatbots react to particular instructions. They follow a decision tree-based guided conversational flow. The chatbot typically provides buttons for quick responses. Some can also respond to queries using keywords.

The guidelines specified can be either straightforward or quite intricate. The most prevalent kind of rule-based chatbot guides the user with further questions until they reach the right answer using a document retrieval mechanism.

Common questions should be handled by this kind of chatbot in predictable ways. The user’s options are represented by the branches of a decision tree chatbot, which is another name for it.

Chatbot with artificial intelligence
AI chatbots are useful for a variety of unanticipated use scenarios. They get knowledge via their contacts with end consumers. Natural language processing (NLP) helps to make this possible.

By comprehending context and intent, NLP enables chatbots to respond to human input in an intelligent manner. It’s critical to continuously test and advance technologies when developing AI.

Again, most of our customers do not require conversational AI for their chatbots to function well. Starting with the least amount of automation is one of the most important chatbot best practices.

#3: Select the appropriate channel
It’s crucial that you pick the best location for your chatbot. Ideally, you should pick a platform that is already popular among your target audience, like Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp.

People today don’t want to have to download yet another application in order to interact with a brand. People are more likely to interact with you if you use messaging apps that they are already familiar with and enjoy.

#4 Determine what can be automated
In terms of chatbot best practices, Pareto’s law frequently holds true. According to Pareto’s law, just 20% of causes result in 80% of the effects. With chatbots, this means that 20% of your FAQs are probably the source of 80% of your customer support ticket volume. Because of this, FAQ chatbots are one. Recognize your audience first, then classify the 20% of inquiries that result in the most support tickets. The remaining 20% of FAQs typically correspond to more difficult or intricate support tickets.

#5 For tasks that cannot be automated, develop a procedure.
The remaining 20% of FAQs typically correspond to more difficult or intricate support tickets. We advise developing a procedure for a smooth transition to a human agent. When a consumer needs assistance, they should always be able to get in touch with a live person, or at the very least know when that person will be able to assist them.

new data can help you identify new FAQs and develop the capabilities of your chatbot. Consider automating low-value chores to free up your human resources.

#6: Draw a user flow diagram.
Building a good chatbot depends on mapping out the user flow. Starting small is one of the most popular chatbot best practices. We advise beginning with a rule-based chatbot and adding AI and NLP features afterward.

In order to automate all of the use cases (or FAQs), you must start with a decision tree. This will act as a conversational road map.

#7 Utilize UI components and buttons
Wherever you can, try to substitute text with visuals and buttons. Words are processed more slowly by the human brain than visuals. To enhance the conversation flow, employ buttons, rapid replies, carousel selectors, and list selections.

For instance, choosing a date from a calendar view is simpler than typing the date by hand into a message. Additionally, two buttons instead of requiring the words to be spelled out function better when there are just two options in a decision branch.

These UI improvements set today’s chatbots apart from earlier chatbots. A good chatbot will use buttons when it is more efficient, let users upload voice memos when appropriate, and ask users to sign with their fingers when necessary.

#8 Invest personality in your chatbot.
Finally, a chatbot requires a personality to succeed. Giving your chatbot a voice, as recommended by chatbot best practices, makes it more interesting. Keep your target market in mind. How do you build a chatbot that connects with your users?

A crucial step in the process is giving your chatbot a voice and personality. Don’t, however, overdo it. An overly “friendly” chatbot runs the danger of becoming tiresome. Make sure that the tone and voice of your brand are reflected in your chatbot.

Work with a partner who is familiar with the most effective methods for developing chatbots.

Thank goodness for DigAptics and other platforms that are knowledgeable about chatbot best practices. DigAptics is a popular option for enterprise businesses to effectively create conversational apps.

DigAptics will enable you to:
Reduce costs and time.
Create fantastic conversations with ease
Scale successfully across several mediums and languages
Iterate to make your chatbot better.