What to Look for in an eCommerce Chatbot

There is a continual battle for webspace among eCommerce businesses. With high customer expectations, competition, and the need for leads, many companies are looking for ways to increase engagement opportunities with their audience on their websites. All of those issues can be solved by adding an eCommerce chatbot to your website. 

What is a Chatbot?

Essentially, a chatbot is a computer program that simulates conversations with human users and performs some kind of service to website visitors. Chatbots are a great modern lead generation tool that can be integrated into your website and can be used during or after business hours. While chatbots can be implemented on any website, they’re especially beneficial to the eCommerce industry because they support customers who are looking to buy products online.

Chatbots are predicted to hit $1.23 billion in market value by 2025 with a compound annual growth rate of 24.3%, according to a Grand View Research report. This growth means that chatbots are becoming an expectation for customers and a necessity for eCommerce businesses. 

Importance of Chatbots for eCommerce Businesses

Increase sale opportunities

A chatbot that can provide 24/7 support while your contacts are actively engaged on your site means a higher opportunity to increase sales in eCommerce. Providing immediate solutions to your website visitors also can help shorten the sales cycle.

More businesses are using bots

48% of businesses are already using automation technology, according to the Oracle survey. If your company is not using a chatbot it may be hard to compete with other companies in the same industry who are able to provide on-the-spot service to website users. The eCommerce industry is no stranger to chatbots as providing a great online experience for customers is key to building a successful online business. 

Messenger app chatbot integration

Engaging customers automatically on your Facebook page is possible with a chatbot. More than 70% of users are willing to receive customer service via messaging apps. Chatbots on Facebook, for example, may contact potential customers who might otherwise be lost and potentially convert them. An example of how you might use a bot is to direct uncertain users to the right products by answering questions on your website. Furthermore, it works the same way with Facebook users who comment on your posts.

How Chatbots Can Help Grow Your eCommerce Business

1. A chatbot can improve your return on ad spend (ROAS).

To increase conversions and your ROAS, add a Facebook chatbot to the mix. Your bot can pop up on your website to offer assistance when users land on a certain page. If the shopper wants help, they can engage with the bot to get product recommendations or to ask questions. If not, they can shop on their own. Use a click-to-messenger ad to bring prospects to your chatbot first, before they even visit your website. The bot can prime them for purchase by answering questions and suggesting items. From there, it can send your contacts to your site to buy.

This example shows how Jaspers Market has integrated their chatbot with Facebook messenger. They have also paired their ad with a chatbot, which will direct customers to a coupon when they click on the ad. With this information, the company can track who’s interested in the product. 

2. A chatbot can provide instant customer service, 24/7.

Customer service representatives need sleep, even if they are stellar. In most cases, brands can’t afford to have live chat support 24/7 from human representatives. When a customer is looking to purchase a product after hours it is beneficial to provide support if they have any questions. There are also benefits when it comes to questions or concerns that can be answered by a chatbot with a simple answer.

The purpose of bots isn’t to replace human agents, but to provide support at scale when a human isn’t available. Imagine someone is doing some late-night shopping and has a question about a product, shipping times, etc. and there is no live agent available after hours, which means their question cannot be answered on your eCommerce site. If there is no live agent available when your visitors need one, they may decide it’s not worth it and decide not to purchase from you. The truth is, most people are looking for immediate solutions, so if your business cannot provide them with a solution on the spot then there’s a good chance they’ll look elsewhere. The difference between a lost and a gained sale can be as simple as a chatbot that can answer their question right away.

HelloFresh is another example of an eCommerce company that is using a chatbot to improve its online presence. Shown above is a promotion that the company has with $25 off your first meal box. The chatbot has a conversational interface that is usable at any hour of the day. 

3. A chatbot can recover up to 7x more abandoned-cart revenue for your eCommerce store.

Shoppers can sometimes leave without making a purchase, even if you’ve done everything right. Approximately 70% of shoppers abandon their carts. It is vital to prevent this from happening by providing an excellent pre-purchase experience. A cart-reminder strategy is also necessary for running an eCommerce business since abandonment is an inevitability. Chatbot reminders work the same way as other cart reminders. On your website, you can contact the user after they opt-in, and their abandonment will trigger an email. This is an example of remarketing in action, which serves content/ads to previous customers and visitors of the website. It is an effective way to reach those who have expressed an interest in your company or brand. 

For example, Petland Pet Supplies sends a message when an item is left in the cart after a certain time period. The company can also offer a discount after a couple of days with items in the cart to encourage customers to buy the products. 

4. A chatbot can boost retention and loyalty with post-purchase experiences.

You may have finally won that conversion, but the customer journey isn’t over yet! A helpful, memorable post-purchase experience from an online seller is crucial. It can help boost retention, brand reputation, and lifetime value (LTV)—and of course, a chatbot can help provide this kind of experience.

One of the most important post-purchase experiences is the shipping updates. Integrate your chatbot with Shopify so users can opt-in to receive these notifications from your store on Facebook Messenger. Receiving them there instead of via email is unique and will help you stand out in the customer’s mind when they go shopping for a similar product in the future.

In this example, Dynamite clothing sends chat notifications to past customers when they revisit the website. Through these notifications, customers are updated on current promotions and new products. 

Partner with Pyxl

In general, chatbots offer a range of benefits to eCommerce companies and customers. Since eCommerce companies rely on customers purchasing products from the website, chatbots help to answer any questions the customer may have. If a customer has any questions or concerns about a product, they can easily ask a chatbot for answers. Conversational chatbots work best if they are user-friendly and can converse with customers. In addition to streamlining sales processes, chatbots can also boost website conversion rates.

Creating and configuring a robust and intuitive chatbot can be a challenge. Pyxl can assist your team in developing a successful chatbot approach that will lead to more customers and leads. Contact us today!

Updated: Apr 13, 2022