Chatbot Can Help You Get More Sales

How a Chatbot Can Help You Get More Sales

Have you heard? According to the Association of National Advertisers, personalization is marketing word of the year. This concept will be the key to getting more sales for your ecommerce store in the next twelve months and beyond.

So how can you apply personalization at scale? Of course, one effective way is with customized product packaging, which can make your brand stand out, and help increase awareness, loyalty, and repeat business. 

Another idea to consider adding to your strategy: Personalize the shopping experience for each individual by using a Facebook Messenger chatbot in your sales funnel.

First Things first: What is a chatbot?

A chatbot is a piece of software that can converse with users in a back-and-forth, humanlike style. They can be used to share information, answer questions, recommend products, and more. There are a few different types of chatbots, based on:

  • Where they exist. Some bots are built to live on a website. Others are built to live in a specific platform, like WhatsApp, Telegram, or, in this case, Facebook Messenger.
  • How they respond. Some more advanced bots are equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) so they can “learn” to respond to free-form input from users. Others run on a script you write, and will chat with users on a fixed set of topics. These bots are simpler, but can still be highly effective tools. Messenger bots generally fall into this category.
messenger bot



Messenger bots live in Facebook’s messaging app, and most interact with users based on a script you can easily write yourself.

Why Messenger Bots are Effective Tools for E-commerce

Today, we’re talking about Facebook Messenger chatbots in particular. They live, of course, in Facebook’s Messenger app. While you can integrate AI to make them even more intelligent, most bots of this type run mainly on a Q&A-style script you write. 

Here’s why this kind of bot is a great option for providing that personalized e-commerce shopping experience: 

  • Information access. They live in the Facebook ecosystem, which means they have access to each user’s Facebook profile (once the user opts in). For example, a chatbot that exists only on a website would have to ask for the user’s name. A Messenger bot would already have it, and could use it to greet the prospect personally. 
chat bot

Messenger chatbots have access to each user’s Facebook profile, so they can greet them by name and include other personalized elements.

  • Audience access. Messenger is the second-most popular iOS app of all time, with 1.3 billion average monthly users. A Messenger bot gives you the opportunity to tap into that huge, global audience, especially if you link your bot to your Facebook ads.
  • Easy to build. The recent rise of the no-code movement means that it no longer takes special skills or an engineering background to build a Facebook Messenger chatbot. You can use a no-code platform to create your own in an afternoon.

Intrigued? Here are five ways to harness the power of personalization with a chatbot to get more conversions for your online store!

 

#1. Treat Shoppers Like The Individuals They are.

In a recent survey, 80% of respondents said they’re more likely to do business with a brand that offers personalized experiences.Interacting with each shopper as an individual is a powerful sales tactic, and a Messenger bot can do it for you at scale. Here are a few ways a chatbot can inject personalization into each experience:

Greetings. As mentioned, Messenger bots have access to the Facebook profiles of anyone who chooses to interact with them. That means your bot can greet prospects or customers by name—showing them right away that it’s here to provide information tailored specifically to them. 

It could even open with a relevant greeting for the user’s time zone (also included in their profile), like Good morning, Kate! It’s easy to see how much more engaging this type of custom opener is than a generic Hello there.You can even set your bot to generate personalized graphics to really grab a user’s attention.

facebook chat bot

Facebook Messenger chatbots can easily personalize the user experience with text and/or graphics.

Chat history. Plus, a user’s chat history with this type of bot is saved, just like any other conversation in Messenger. So whenever a user comes back to chat with the bot again, it can say Welcome back, Kate! instead of repeating the same initial greeting. These seemingly small details can have a big impact on making a prospect feel welcome and listened to!

Product recommendation. If you’re willing to spend a bit more time building your bot, you can even set it up to recommend products based on a user’s specific preferences. Set up a quiz-style experience so the bot can gather information about the user’s taste or needs via Q&A. It can then show relevant products, along with links to purchase!

chatfuel

A Messenger chatbot can lead users through a simple Q&A in order to recommend relevant products.

#2. Reduce Barriers To Purchase By Providing Service on Demand.

Although bots aren’t meant to replace human agents, they can handle up to 80% of routine inquiries. That means prospects can get questions answered on their time. In turn, this means you have less risk of losing a customer simply because they couldn’t find the information they needed to commit to a purchase. To do this, equip your bot with:

FAQs. It takes just a few minutes to set up your chatbot to answer common FAQs. Then, it’ll be available to assist shoppers 24/7/365. It can even offer customized answers as needed. For example, if a user was asking about shipping costs or times, the bot could ask them to enter their country or zip code so it can provide accurate information.

chatfuel chatbot

The bot for this German photo booth rental company asks if the user is a corporate or private client, and then gives customized pricing information accordingly.

A live-chat option. While a well-designed bot can handle most common inquiries, you don’t want customers with complex or highly specific questions to get frustrated. That’s why it’s smart to also equip your bot with a live-chat option, similar to pressing “0” when on the phone with automated support. Customers can type in a key phrase like help or tap a button to be connected with one of your human agents who can jump in and assist them.

chatfuel.com

You can have one of your live agents take over for your bot at any time, if needed.

#3. Tap Into Facebook’s Huge Audience in a Friendly Way

As mentioned, Facebook’s audience is enormous—in the billions. Your potential customers are already in Messenger chatting with family and friends. Use a chatbot to connect with them there too, in the same friendly, conversational style.

And while we’re on the topic: a bot’s ability to engage conversationally deserves extra emphasis. Part of why they’re so effective in boosting conversions is that they give prospects and customers the opportunity to talk back. 

Take these two examples. Which is more engaging? Which experience is more pleasant and makes you want to move forward and shop?

  • A message from a NOREPLY email address notifying you that you left an item in your cart? 
  • Or a friendly direct message inviting you to take a second look at the item you left behind, and ask any questions that may be preventing you from buying?

Turn the sales conversation into a personal, friendly one focused on the user’s needs. Bring conversation back to commerce with a chatbot, and watch your conversions increase

unboxing marketing

Use a chatbot to open a friendly dialogue with prospects to get more conversions.

#4. Use The Bot Across Multiple Channels.

Another key aspect of personalization is reaching customers where they are—where they already spend time. While Messenger bots live, of course, in Facebook Messenger, you can integrate them elsewhere too to reach even more prospects. Consider connecting your bot to:

Your store website. Setting your Messenger bot to appear on your website is a great way to move shoppers along the sales funnel. It can pop up on your page offering to answer questions, make suggestions, or even share a discount to incentivize a purchase. You can get more conversions this way than if you simply leave shoppers to browse on their own.

Your Facebook posts. Planning to share a post on your business page about a contest or giveaway? Link your chatbot to the Facebook post to have it automatically message all commenters(or only those who comment a specific keyword). It can offer a coupon code or lead magnet to these users to get them interested in your brand and lead them to your site to shop.

chat fuel

It’s easy to set up your chatbot to automatically message those who comment on a Facebook post on your page.

Your Facebook ads. If you’re already running Facebook ads, try connecting your bot to them. When users click on the ad, they’ll be directed right to your chatbot in Messenger. From there, it can offer discounts, share information, answer questions, give recommendations, and do other sales-boosting functions.

#5. Build a Contact List To Retarget with Customized Offers.

Quick terminology lesson: A chatbot subscriber is a user who arrived at your bot and responded to one of its messages at least once(which means they’ve opted in). After that, they’re considered reachable: meaning you have the right to contact them via bot (per Facebook’s Messenger policies) with promotional offers for 24 hours. After that, you can pay to contact them with a sponsored message. Or, you can wait until they reopen the 24-hour window by engaging your bot of their own accord.

That means you can build a list of prospects and customers you can reach out to later in order to:

  • Remind them they left items behind without purchasing. Abandoned-cart reminders sent via Messenger bot can help you recover up to 7x more revenue!
  • Ask for private feedback or public reviews on their experience, so you can improve your service and/or gather social proof.
  • Send personalized offers via sponsored messages to get repeat business.

Competition is fierce; make your brand stand out

The world of online retail is growing incredibly quickly. Competition for prospect attention and dollars gets fiercer every day. You’ve got to do everything you can to make your brand stand out! Start with custom packaging and a Messenger bot, and you’ll already be setting your business apart from the crowd. You can contact Arka for premium and eco-friendly custom packaging for your brand. They offer top-notch custom folding cartons that make your brand stand out! You can also check the premium custom mailer boxes or shipper boxes that ensure excellent unboxing experience. 

mary rybakova



Mary Rybakova is on the content team at Chatfuel, a no-code platform for building Facebook Messenger chatbots. While chatbots are super-effective solutions for sales, marketing, and support across industries, they’re becoming especially popular for ecommerce brands. Set up a bot for your business and watch your conversions skyrocket, your customer satisfaction rise, and your efficiency increase!

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