All merchants love the feeling of seeing sales rise and orders flow in faster than ever before. Growth is what drives businesses and pays bills, but growth can also restrict your ability to keep up with core business protocols, including customer communication.
At ShopFox, we believe that chatbots and live chats are a no-brainer. In this article, we look deeper into what chatbots are, how they work, and how they can help your business.
What are Chatbots?
Chatbots and live chat widgets are, in short, pre-programmed artificial robots that can provide clarity, instruction, and advice to customers visiting your Shopify store. As a live example, you can see we have one in the bottom right of your screen.
Instead of customers having to go through the long process of filling out contact forms, waiting for a reply from your support team, or navigating through complex order tracking systems, chat bots can aid visitors and give the impression that they are interacting with a real customer service assistant.
How do Shopify Chatbots work?
Chatbots are simple to set up and require little to no input from you once installed on your Shopify store. A lot of chat bot providers have released their own Shopify app, which makes installing the bot a one-click affair. Once it is added to your store, you’re all set up and ready to help your customers.
What the chat bot says is determined by inputs you choose on the chat bot provider’s website. These range in customisability, but generally speaking, you can choose automated responses for certain key phrases a visitor may ask, or choose a selection of quick options for a user to pick – making the process of getting them an answer quick and concise.
Is a chat bot right for me?
In most scenarios, yes. The rapid response and immediacy of artificial bots will always outweigh the speed a human could reply at – especially if you have nobody dedicated to online customer service. In a digital world where attention spans are short, these speedy responses can be the difference between a sale and a potential customer loss.
On top of the fast functionality, the costs are also minimal. They vary depending on which bot service you decide to implement on your store.
Popular Chatbot Providers for Shopify
There are many providers of chat bots out there, but we’ve conveniently listed some of our favourites below to speed up your decision making. Olark, ManyChat and Zendesk are some of our favourite chatbots services.
Chatbots are a great addition for all ecommerce Shopify stores. If you’re looking for more customisable apps in your store, then check out our range of applications at this link.
Proofer Proof Management – That extra pair of hands you always needed for your customised products.
FraudBlock – Goodbye fraud and refund fees, hello more free time!
AutoSync for Square – Automation for your Shopify and Square inventories. Simple.
