Buyers today expect businesses to always be available — they have short attention spans, and they’re increasingly unwilling to sift through information to get the answers they need. Long email correspondence, phone tag and contact forms are no longer sufficient, especially since quick response times matter more than ever before.
The longer a business waits to follow up with a lead, the less likely it is to make the sale, book the appointment or pitch the product. Timing is crucial; if a business can contact a lead within the first five minutes, as opposed to the first 30 minutes, that business is one hundred times more likely to achieve its desired outcome, according to a study by LeadResponseManagement.com (www.leadresponsemanagement.org/lrm_study). This means that for businesses to thrive, they need to have a plan for delivering instant, on-demand communication that makes the buying process effortless.
The AI-Powered Solution
Because of the changing landscape of lead engagement, AI-powered chat is stepping in to fill the gap. With intelligent chat, customers can receive answers to their inquiries 24/7 without the need for a live agent. Not only does this benefit customers looking for answers to basic questions, but AI-powered chat can also answer highly specific, free-form questions. If someone wants to know how long a certain staff member will be available or what the current in-person wait time is for a service, intelligent chat can provide a quick and automatic response. While these are common uses of intelligent chat, the technology is capable of so much more — and this is especially true in today’s difficult and unpredictable climate.
COVID-19 drastically shifted the way businesses communicate with customers. With so much uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, such as changing business hours, added health and safety precautions, and even closures, AI-powered chat offers an instant solution that addresses questions customers are raising in greater frequency. The technology has been especially useful for businesses with several brick and mortar locations. If a customer from Phoenix wants to know details about her local store, intelligent chat can ensure she gets the correct information. Static websites often do a poor job of communicating specifics, and this is where intelligent chat provides superior value.
Businesses aren’t just dealing with customer uncertainty; they’re addressing employee uncertainty as well. No one knows when it’ll be completely safe to return to office environments, but for companies putting together their return-to-work plans, intelligent chat can make the process easier. Intelligent chat is now being offered by companies like STChealth to help human resource leaders make informed decisions for employee well-being. Through STC’s SAFE Return to Work Program, HR professionals can learn about COVID-19 best practices, stay up to date on the latest research and even enable contact tracing amongst employees, all with the assistance of intelligent chat when needed.
Leads are the lifeblood of any business, and intelligent chat can manage them faster and more effectively than human representatives. Intelligent chat allows end-users to clearly articulate what they’re looking for and gives businesses the ability to respond instantly with a helpful answer. This process enables businesses to personalize the discovery process using natural language conversion. If those leads are truly qualified, they’ll get moved to the next stage of the sales process, which could be speaking with an in-person team member. Companies that use this approach have been shown to double their conversion rates and significantly increase their revenue.
Enabling this next generation of intelligent chat nurturing, Botco.ai is currently the only marketing-focused chat technology company robust enough to scale to the demands of enterprise-level businesses. This is achieved through its unique learning approach. Rather than having a team of live agents or a solution that can answer only basic questions, the company leverages advanced AI and machine learning to quickly analyze inquiries and predict outcomes. Intelligent chat is the future of communication, and Botco.ai is paving the way.
Rebecca Clyde is CEO and co-founder of Botco.ai, a fully automated, AI-powered marketing chat solution that can be implemented at scale. She’s an accomplished marketing professional and public speaker with unique expertise in marketing automation, as well as building, leading and exiting successful companies. Prior to Botco.ai, Clyde co-founded Ideas Collide, an award-winning marketing automation agency.
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