The best part of running a small business is the human-to-human connection we get to have with our customers—a real opportunity to work with customers at a deeper level. But, let’s be honest, as much as we always want to be there for our customers, we can’t be available to service them at every hour of the day or during the busiest seasons. There are just moments where even the biggest people-pleaser just can’t give customers the immediate attention they deserve. Luckily chatbots are available and can be a quick and easy solution for 24x7 customer service.

Okay, so now that you’re convinced that having a chatbot can be really helpful for your small business (you are convinced, right?), here are some basic steps to selecting a chatbot and getting your chatbot up and well…chatting!

Select a chatbot that works best for your business - What’s the goal of your chatbot? Are you trying to boost conversions, generate leads, or looking to answer questions your customers have when you’re not available? There are chatbots that specialize in certain things, so you’ll want to be sure to get the one best suited to your business goals.

Additionally, consider at what points in the sales funnel do customers need the most help? How will you moderate or respond during office hours? What happens when there isn’t a human to step in because it’s the middle of the night? Questions like these will also help determine the best chatbot for your business.

There are many chatbot platform options available to purchase as plugins to your website. Look for the one that best aligns with your business goals and start building!

What are your chatbot KPIs? - Determining KPIs (key performance indicators) helps you measure the effectiveness of your chatbot in relation to your goals. When deciding your KPIs, map out a few key questions.

Types of KPIs you might consider measuring are the forms completed, click throughs, and purchases made by customers.

Customer needs and chatbot personality - What is your typical customer like? As an Enji user, you may already have your ideal customer persona(s) established. With these aspects of a typical user in place, you can begin to think about how your chatbot would communicate to influence a customer’s decisions and satisfy their needs. This leads to creating your chatbot’s personality.

Knowing your customers, you can determine the tone of voice your chatbot will use in its responses. This voice should consist of a healthy balance between brand consistency and customer satisfaction.

Create your knowledge base - This is the “ground floor” of your chatbot’s interaction with customers. It’s also probably the most time consuming part of setting it up. Start thinking about the questions the user will want answered when they communicate with your bot. Write helpful articles that include text and video so your customer can get what they need. This will evolve over time, but starting with questions about pricing, ordering, returns, etc. are always a good idea.

Design - The way you design your chatbot will vary depending on the platform you choose. Each chatbot platform functions differently, but you generally have the option to design your chatbot from scratch or from a template provided by the chatbot vendor. In nearly every case you will be able to modify views, colors, fonts, buttons, and set up your goals. Once your design is complete, test each button, try each conversation flow, and view on both mobile and desktop to ensure your design works on both.

Track, measure, and improve - Now is when you can start measuring the performance as it relates to your KPIs. This will give you the knowledge to optimize the content and make changes to get the results you want. Metrics to track include: How often is the chatbot being used? What’s the bounce rate (when are customers dropping off)? How many customers completed a goal? How many received the help they needed?

It might be a good idea to use surveys to gather feedback about what your customers think about your chatbot and whether they’re happy with the help it provides.

Chatbots make it easier to stay connected and build relationships with prospects and customers because of the 24 x 7 availability. Statistics have overwhelmingly shown that addressing customer questions and concerns directly from your website increases conversions. Who’s ready to chat?

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