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With an abundance of existing online services in the e-learning segment, chatbots for higher education can accompany each student individually, in accordance with his level and the chosen pace of mastering the material, making learning accessible to almost anyone with access to Wi-Fi. Compared to traditional learning, chatbots do not require significant resource costs, and can potentially help millions of students worldwide.

Robots won’t be able to replace humans in the classroom anytime soon, but they can already take on some of their workloads. Subject tests and essays take a significant amount of time for the teacher to check, and at the same time, tasks in them are often repeated. This is especially evident in massive open online courses, where the bill goes to hundreds and thousands of students, which makes individual feedback almost inaccessible. Chatbots may be the perfect solution to this problem, and there is already research and experimentation going on in this area.

The prospects for using chatbots at all levels of education are almost limitless. Interaction with instant messengers already dominates social networking among modern students, and it is only a matter of time before they learn under the guidance of WhatsApp bots or receive detailed feedback on completed coursework via Telegram.

Some universities are already experimenting with Chatbot for education in their virtual lecture rooms. So the Georgia Institute of Technology successfully implemented a chatbot named Jill Watson as a teacher. Jill, named after the famous IBM Watson, helped more than 300 Ph.D. students in artificial intelligence during the system’s testing period, without them being able to recognize that they were interacting with a digital learning assistant. After a successful debut, Jill Watson now helps students on various campuses around the world.

Chatbots for language training

One area of ​​education where higher education chatbots may soon take over is language learning. Many foreign universities are now actively using chatbots that answer students’ questions and help relieve the burden on teachers and involve students in their studies. One of the most popular chatbots in the world, which is an unobtrusive way will help you learn English online from scratch or bring it up to the required level.

Compared to traditional language learning software, chatbots are much more flexible and adaptable. They react differently depending on the answer the user gives, given different options, like in real dialogues, they can answer questions in different ways and even “take the first step” if the student hesitates in the conversation.

Library Assistant Bot

The life of the book largely takes place in the digital space. The Authorbot service helps authors to promote their work on the Internet using the latest technology. Authorbot allows readers to enhance the experience of the book, and authors to get additional benefits. Writers can customize the bot to their liking, such as sharing additional information about the characters or plot, engaging with readers in conversations, hosting quizzes, or simulating dialogue using artificial intelligence technologies. It is expected that the service will be used for marketing before the release of the book.

The bot will help you find the nearest library, find out its work schedule, see the top 10 popular books and leave wishes in a special channel. Depending on where the user is located, the bot will suggest the library located nearby. A map will appear in the chat with the address marked on it, as well as a work schedule and a phone number.

In addition, you can get a list of the most popular books for the month and find out in which libraries they are available. In the chat, you can leave wishes, reviews, and complaints about the work of libraries: for example, attach a photo or video, as well as leave contacts for feedback. Search for books all over the Internet in all languages ​​​​with the possibility of downloading them in ePub format will be provided by the chatbot. It offers a choice of different versions of books with different years of publication.

Bots to help applicants

Boston startups have developed a bot that helps applicants from all over the world to enter universities and then understand the difficult university life. Initially, the AdmitHub service was aimed at Georgia State University freshmen. Using machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies, the robot answers simple questions about university life. You can ask him where the hostel is located or when the registration for the course closes.

Now an applicant or student of any university can ask for help from a bot. There are several Prepathon robots: one is responsible for motivation, sends out reminders and words of encouragement, another helps to find a more effective approach to learning, and the third tells how long it will take to prepare for a test or exam.

The chatbot helps you choose universities, colleges, and courses, and also compiles a daily selection of courses and lectures on a suitable topic. To do this, you need to talk about your own wishes: the form of education, place, and discipline. If there are no active courses on the topic of interest yet, then the bot will offer a new search or subscription – this way it will notify the applicant when the course appears.

This chatbot is a bot that will answer questions, offer to participate in a quiz, select an IQ test, and give general knowledge in all sciences. This is actually a teacher with many different functions. Judging by the reviews, it is highly appreciated by IT students: the bot helps to save on textbooks, provides rare information, and asks really important questions.

Bot Perspective that teaches politeness

Google has unveiled a service that helps identify offensive comments. The service is based on machine learning. In a special field, you need to enter a phrase or sentence, and Perspective will determine the level of “toxicity” of the comment. If this indicator is 80% or more, it is likely that a comment that appears online will offend other users. 

Contact Botsify for the higher education chatbots anytime

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After all, customer service is a preview of the level of care and comfort that a clinic, hospital, and insurance company can offer. 

Despite this correlation between customer service and sectoral growth, healthcare establishments have been missing the mark for various reasons. Some fail to comprehend patient expectations, while others do not offer the required degree of convenience.

Whatever the cause, it leaves behind a chasm of unmet demand and unrealized potential. Here is a look at why customer service matters in healthcare and how one can deliver it.

Importance of Customer Service in Healthcare

The value of customer service in the healthcare industry can be summarized below:

1. Customer Experience Starts From the First Touchpoint

You could have highly qualified caregivers and well-educated physicians on your staff. Yet, your hospital or clinic might fail to attract patients simply because the receptionist is rude and apathetic!

This illustration proves how the quality of interaction between the healthcare service provider and the patient sets the expectations for the level of care they can anticipate for the patient’s injuries. More importantly, customers form such an opinion right from the first point of contact. So, if customer acquisition is on your mind, you must beef up your customer service.

2. Happy Patients are Loyal Patients

Customer acquisition is not the only segment in healthcare that can benefit from improved customer service. It also extends to customer retention. Handling your patients with care, empathy, professionalism, and efficiency fosters a sense of trust, which is the Holy Grail of healthcare.

This trust lays the foundation for long-term and repeated business. Customers would find themselves relying on you – not just in the present but for generations. After all, people do not depend on their “family physician” for nothing!

3. Happy Patients are Also Brand Advocates

The customer satisfaction you can evoke by delivering the highest customer service standards acts as a lead magnet. Survey says that nearly three out of ten satisfied customers are more likely to recommend your product or services to others. This statistic displays how brand advocacy translates into the most compelling form of marketing – word-of-mouth advertising.

Referred clients are easier to acquire and offer excellent customer lifetime value. Plus, you have the scope for bagging referrals from referred customers and setting off a chain reaction.

4. Identify Room for Improvement

Poor customer service is a symptom, not a disease. It can indicate underlying problems that hamper service delivery, say, understaffed facilities, lack of adequate equipment, poor appointment management, etc.

Since customer feedback is an integral component of customer service, capturing patient feedback lends insight into the critical breakpoints so that you can devise solutions for them. Streamlining processes to eliminate inefficiencies or bottlenecks can help deliver better patient care — for now and in the future.

5. Automate facility and asset maintenance management:

Healthcare facilities are complex environments tasked with responding tending to patient well being no matter the circumstance – be it a normal day, a flu outbreak, or a full-fledged pandemic. How safe, comfortable, and confident a patient feels about hospital facilities dictate how much trust they will place in the institution. To deliver quality patient care, healthcare facilities need to ensure equipment, facilities, and the overall environment are safe and efficient. Automated systems streamline maintenance and improve resource allocation, accountability, and compliance with regulations. A robust healthcare computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is a key step towards proactive healthcare facility management. Coupled with IoT-enabled real-time monitoring, proactive maintenance offers several benefits, including increased equipment reliability, enhanced patient safety, improved staff productivity, lower operating costs, improved compliance, better resource allocation, and enhanced planning and budgeting.

How to Provide Better Care for Your Patients

Since we have set the background on why customer service is essential in healthcare, here are a few practical ideas for improving customer service:

1. Implement Help Desk Software

In the age of the internet, where information is available at our fingertips, patients don’t like to wait around. Patients demand the ability to connect with healthcare providers instantly and in real time. As such, healthcare providers will require the help of help desks.

Help desk software solutions, such as Zendesk or Zendesk alternatives, can take care of end-to-end customer interactions — from scheduling to check-in to appointment to continued care. It can also be deployed to capture feedback and centralize communications. In short, it is the one-stop shop for all customer interactions.

Given its mission-critical role spanning various touchpoints, healthcare institutions should strongly consider implementing customer-centric help desks. Such a tool or platform helps build and nurture customer relationships based on consistent and reliable communication.” – says Dr Kasen Somana, director of Signature Dentistry.

2. Digitize and Centralize Patient Files

The healthcare industry is a mesh of interconnected businesses and stakeholders. This web features players ranging from hospitals to chemists and druggists to path labs to at-home caregivers to health and life insurance policy providers, to name a few. Given this network, patient records have to traverse through different nodes on an ad hoc basis. When faced with the challenge of articulating complex medical concepts, consider the expertise of a seasoned nursing essay writer who can translate intricate details into accessible and empathetic content, ensuring a seamless connection with your audience.

However, it is impossible to seamlessly share such vital information if healthcare organizations still use the obsolete system of maintaining physical patient files. It means that the patient will be subject to manually filing paperwork while repeating details several times — not fun.

In this respect, patient file digitization can offer a new level of convenience by making information shareable and accessible, along with access control, authorization, and validation. Such a system paves the way for a boundaryless economy that surpasses industries, organizations, and geographies.

3. Simplify Billing and Collection

While the journey from a prospect to a patient may be seamless, everything boils down to billing and collection, as it is a significant pain point for healthcare customers. The situation turns graver as the high stakes come with the high possibility of miring the patient experience. After all, quite a lot can go wrong at this stage — from incorrect or opaque billing to the lack of clarity in making payments.

The easiest way to defuse the situation would be by leveraging an integrated software solution. It can perform various functions, from preparing a detailed and transparent itemized bill to sharing the same through text or email and even accepting online payments through various means.

It automatically issues reminders and notifications for pending payments. Such a smooth transactional process will surely elevate customer service.

4. Conduct Regular Staff Training

Your healthcare business cannot adopt a patient-first mentality if your staff fails to imbibe the same. As such, the mindset should originate from the grassroots level.

To reiterate, your customer-facing staff is the flagbearer of customer service. Hence, they need to display the highest degree of empathy and compassion, especially in adverse conditions – as the case may be when one is in pain or discomfort.

While hiring the right people for the job can strongly address the issue, it does not offer a long-term solution. You need a regular training and sensitization program that reinforces that the patient comes first. Compliance software could help you with staff training and keeping them up-to-date on various issues. 

Follow it up with a critical evaluation of your employee performance, especially in real-world conditions as they interact with patients. Observe their strengths and weaknesses so that you can help them develop their personality based on their inherent traits.

5. Follow Up and Offer After-Care Care

Patient care does not end with discharge. If anything, it is the starting point for building rapport with your customers, clinching more business, and improving turnouts since you would be offering them care even when they are outside the premises. In a way, it reassures the patient that just because they are out of sight does not mean they are out of mind. You may even think of this as post-sales customer service.

Use the help desk software to schedule follow-up visits automatically, send reminders for prescription renewal, or collect patient feedback. At the same time, you can use health apps and smart, wearable devices to monitor their vitals and remotely check in on their health without establishing direct contact. Such inputs may even shape the course of the treatment, frequency of patient visits, etc.

Making Healthcare Healthy

There is no contest that exceptional customer service lays the groundwork for business growth regardless of the industry. However, the case becomes more vital for an industry like healthcare, where a lot is at stake. 

As such, players in the healthcare sector should prioritize customer service as it aids in customer acquisition, retention, advocacy, trust building, and nurturing customer relationships. Such tangible advantages put businesses on the path to sustainable growth and improvement driven by customer demands.

However, embracing customer-first principles will not be an overnight pan-organizational change and would require the active participation of everyone involved, followed by regular training. As for the rest, most of the problems can be addressed through technological interventions that neutralize stressors and infuse convenience, transparency, and reliability.

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If you own a restaurant, you might have wondered if implementing a chatbot is the right call for you. The answer is yes. Chatbots can boost your efficiency, reduce the need for human interaction, save costs, and answer customers’ questions 24/7.

In the article below, we’ll take a closer look at what chatbots are, the main benefits of implementing them, and the eight best uses of chatbots in your restaurant.

What Are Chatbots?

Chatbots are computer programs designed to simulate and process written or spoken human conversation. This allows people to interact with devices as if they were interacting with a real person. 

Chatbots don’t all look the same. Some are simple, created just to reply to easy queries with single-line responses. Others are more sophisticated, offering a personalized experience by collecting and processing information.

Chatbots have become so common that you might not even realize when you’re interacting with one. An example would be visiting a product page and having a window pop up on the screen inquiring if you need help.

Chatbots can be an alternative to written FAQs, allowing customers to feel like the experience is more interactive. They can also triage people’s questions and redirect them to a live person if the issue is more complex and requires in-person assistance.

Some people use the terms chatbot and bot interchangeably, but it’s essential to know that they’re not the same. Chatbots aren’t used for malicious purposes, as opposed to bots, which can be used that way. They exist to increase efficiency and help people with basic tasks.

5 Main Benefits of Using Chatbots in Your Restaurant

1. Reduce costs

Instead of hiring additional staff for basic tasks or overwhelming your current staff with more responsibilities, you can pass those along to a chatbot. They don’t need to be paid or take breaks.

Chatbots can engage with your restaurant customers at any time of the day, saving you money in the process.

2. Keep in touch with your customers

In the restaurant industry, out of sight is out of mind. If you don’t constantly engage with your customers, remind them to visit you, and motivate them to come back, they might forget all about you.

Chatbots can help you follow up with customers, send important communications, ask for their feedback, and so on. Use them as part of your reputation management strategy, and you’ll notice an improvement in how customers view you.

3. Save time

The life of a restaurant owner/manager is often busy and chaotic. Cut through some of that chaos by implementing a restaurant chatbot. 

You will take some of the pressure off yourself and clear up your schedule so you can focus on more important tasks and optimize your workflow.

4. Increase conversions

If you make a chatbot one of your main restaurant website features, you will be able to intercept customers who visit your website to check out your menu, location, or learn more about your business.

A chatbot can pop up presenting an enticing food offer or a discount coupon code that they can apply at checkout. That way, someone who was just browsing your website could become a first-time or repeat customer just because they saw a deal they couldn’t pass up on.

5. Collect customer data

Restaurant chatbots can also help you gather valuable customer information by asking for their name, email addresses, or food preferences. They can find out customers’ favorite menu items or what they would improve.

This data will help you better understand your customers, make changes to your menu and operation to improve guest experience, and attract more customers with targeted, personalized promotions.

6. Food safety compliance

In addition to the numerous advantages of incorporating chatbots into your restaurant operations, it is crucial to emphasize the significance of food safety compliance. Ensuring that your establishment adheres to rigorous food safety standards is paramount for both customer well-being and regulatory compliance.

8 Best Uses of Chatbots in Your Restaurant

1. Offer personalized recommendations and menu suggestions

One of the most exciting uses of restaurant chatbots is adding more of a personal touch to your customer interactions.

You might think AI is the opposite of a personal touch. The truth is that chatbots can collect an unlimited amount of information that they can use to provide customers with a more personalized experience.

You can boost customer loyalty by providing recommendations to returning customers based on their previous purchases. You can also make suggestions of new restaurant menu items you think they might like.

2. Upsell and cross-sell

Increase the average order value by suggesting food pairings such as a side of fries with a burger or a larger pizza for just $0.99 extra. As long as you underline the benefit of adding something to their cart (such as free shipping if they add $2 worth of items), they will appreciate the heads up. As part of 2023 food industry trends, offering some additional benefits will increase your chances of success.

Having these questions asked by a chatbot while browsing the website/menu won’t annoy the customer or seem too pushy. It will let them know that you care about making their experience with your restaurant the best it can be.

3. Target customers with special offers, discounts, and promotions

In addition to suggesting personalized menu items and add-ons, a chatbot can entice more customers to place an order by delivering targeted promotions that they won’t be able to resist.

From showing every website visitor the same daily promotion to personalizing promotions based on user recurrency and behavior, this is a strategy you can’t go wrong with.

Re-engage old customers with a 10% discount on their next order, entice new ones with free delivery on their first order, or ask recurrent customers whether they’d like to order their favorite meal again.

4. Allow users to view your menu and order

You can integrate your menu into the chatbot to allow customers to browse it and even place an order online without interacting with any staff members.

You can also include answers to the most frequently asked questions regarding the menu and ordering process, so customers don’t abandon the cart if they stumble upon an issue.

Considering that more and more customers are looking for contactless ways of ordering and paying for their food, you’ll be growing your customer base and increasing brand loyalty. 

5. Enable reservations

Another thing a restaurant chatbot can help you with is accepting restaurant reservations. Most customers prefer to have a table waiting for them instead of worrying about table availability on busy days.

They also prefer reserving a table online instead of calling. On your side, this also eliminates any potential human error, whether it’s misunderstanding the reservation time or the number of people to expect.

The chatbot can also send a confirmation email to the user, as well as an email reminding them of the reservation ahead of time. That way, you can remove friction from your online customer experience without spending a fortune.

6. Simplify payments

Besides allowing customers to order food, your chatbot can also process payments. Allow customers to pay with their credit/debit card or using services like PayPal or Google Pay.

The chatbot can automatically send them the bill so they can make sure everything is in order. This simplifies the payment process by making it 100% contactless and seamlessly integrated into your restaurant chatbot.

7. Ask for feedback and reviews

Honest feedback is what helps your business grow. You want your customers to share both the positive and the negative aspects they encountered so you can work on improving their experience in the future.

After customers place an order, ask them to rate the ordering experience on a scale of 1 to 5 and share any feedback they might have. Based on their feedback, the chatbot can take action if there’s a basic question or issue or connect the customer with a real-life person who can help them further.

Alternatively, you can set the chatbot to ask for a testimonial, with permission to use it on your website/social media. The more positive reviews you get from satisfied customers, the more trustworthy your restaurant will seem.

8. Answer questions

As mentioned above, chatbots can be used as a more interactive FAQ page. Create a list of questions people often ask and let the chatbot do the hard work.

It can guide your customers through any easy questions they might have, including follow-up questions to their initial queries.

This offers a more personalized and pleasant experience than sorting through a long list of FAQs trying to find an answer to your question.

Conclusion

Chatbots are handy tools to have in any business. They help business owners and customers alike, so they’re a win-win situation.

Chatbots can save a lot of precious time, energy, and money for a restaurant owner, without too much effort. For their customers, they can streamline the website user experience, ordering and paying for food, as well as finding answers to essential questions.

Overall, using chatbots can improve the customer experience, increase brand loyalty, and attract more customers to your restaurant without a huge investment. Implementing one will make you wonder how you’ve lived without one for so long.

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Every business at some stage requires the need to rely on software for managing data, employee records, managing stock data, and increasing productivity. The demand for software development companies has also increased with the constant demand to switch to digital. 

According to Pro Business Plans, the global business software market had an estimated $390 billion US dollars in 2020. However, this figure is said to increase with a growth rate of 11% annually till 2028. This indicates that software development companies have also seen tremendous growth and are constantly expanding. 

With the help of Botsify, you can build conversational flows with no-code chatbot platforms, which will help potential customers to get connected better. But how can you find a reliable software development company that suits your business model in the long run? Here are the essential things to remember before hiring remote software developers–

Source: Unsplash

• Evaluate your needs

Understand the needs of a software developer or programmer and the kind of experience that you need from your remote developer. Then, anticipate the time limit you wish to set on the project and hire a remote developer accordingly. For example, if you need a developer to create a long-lasting backend for your product, you should hire dedicated node js developers.

• Screening 

Before investing in a remote developer from a service provider or a company, understand the security and confidentiality of the project you wish to assign to choose a company you can trust. In addition, you must understand the developer’s capabilities and use them to your business’s advantage. Leveraging advanced technologies like ChatGPT and AI can also streamline the selection process. You can use screening software for this purpose which reduces and simplify the recruiters’ work.

• Communication

In a remote setting, constant communication is necessary to ensure that your needs are conveyed correctly and that there is no gap, which saves time. A secure communication channel, team collaboration tools,  and an approachable environment are necessary to coordinate appropriately between you and the development providers. 

• Flexibility

Hiring a remote team or employee enables the possibility of either of you being in a different time zone. Consider having flexible work timings so it becomes easier to coordinate and work together on the projects. 

• Reliability 

When hiring a remote employee or team, you must understand that you might share a simple presentation video but you can’t always monitor them. In such situations hiring reliable and responsible employees is crucial to ensure that your investment will be fruitful. Thus hire professionals who are passionate about working and are self-motivated.

Now that you’ve got a fair idea of remote working, custom software development companies, and software developers, here is a list of the world’s top remote software development companies.

1. WISHUP
2. TOPTAL 
3. REINTECH
4. WE WORK REMOTELY
5. ITCRAFTSHIP
6. RELEVANT SOFTWARE
7. ARC
8. INTUZ

Source: Wishup

#1 Wishup

Wishup is one of the top remote virtual assistant companies worldwide, as they hire the top 1% of talent. In addition, they provide businesses and startups with remote software developers and testers who are pre-vetted and experienced. 

Wishup has a training process and client success teams that help the clients and the virtual assistants coordinate and work towards the growth of the client’s business while providing quality outcomes. In addition, they have a stringent hiring process that ensures only proactive, talented, and self-motivated people become part of their team. 

Key benefits –

• Virtual assistants are trained in-house in 70+ skills before being assigned to clients.
• 7-day trial period before you make a decision to subscribe.
• Instant, no-questions-asked replacement is provided in case the primary virtual assistant is unavailable.

Source: Toptal

#2 TOPTAL

Toptal is a platform that helps businesses and organizations of all sizes to find freelance software developers, engineers, programmers, and coders. It is an excellent marketplace for finding the right remote team for your business, regardless of size. 

Successful companies and expanding startups chose Toptal to support their existing teams and work towards growth and expansion. Remote developers in Toptal have a range of experience and can build well-equipped teams across any platform. 

Toptal has a stringent screening process for people applying for work and a five-week vetting process that ensures that only the best talent makes it. Only 3% of developers manage to pass the screening process, ensuring the best quality. 

Despite the screening process, it is not necessary that the hired professional suits your needs. To fill this gap in their process, they provide their companies with a two-week trial period to test the developer’s abilities, and you will not be billed for the same. 

Source: Reintech

#3 REINTECH

Reintech offers companies a dedicated platform that helps to connect with experienced remote software developers. They also assist companies in filtering the best talent and building their dedicated software development team. 

Reintech offers manually vetted software developers and programmers who are experienced professionals deploy. If you do not wish to outsource, you can build your team with Reintech. 

Source: We Work Remotely

#4 We Work Remotely

We Work Remotely (WWR) works as a channel that hosts the largest community of remote workers. The site offers excellent solutions for businesses and companies by providing remote workers specialized in their fields. In addition, the platform offers a wide variety of databases for remote software developers. 

There are several advantages of hiring from WWR, as they offer faster hiring, cost-effective solutions, and accessible listings. They also have an 80% customer return rate over one month. 

Source: Itcraftship

#5 ITCRAFTSHIP

provides businesses with recruitment services, including remote work, outsourcing, and staff augmentation. In addition, ITCraftship provides programmers and software developers to software companies and software development teams. 

They also study the client’s business or startups and analyze the development needs that must be considered to boost their sales and growth. They ensure to source their developers carefully and work for 100% efficiency through their hiring process. 

Their hiring panel consists of experienced software developers who make it easier to find the right talent with the best skills. Besides, the developers must surpass specific coding tests that establish their expertise and capabilities.  

Source: Relevant software

#6 RELEVANT SOFTWARE

Relevant Software is a remote development provider that offers complete product development from creativity, planning, design, coding, testing, deployment, and maintenance for businesses and startups across the globe. In addition, they offer various services, including mobile app development, CRM systems, business software development, UI/UX design, and analytics. 

They also conduct regular status meetings, including all team members and existing services, to ensure a smooth workflow. In addition, their team works with specific procedures where daily and weekly goals are met, and bi-monthly meetings are conducted to ensure timely completion. 

Source: ARC

#7 ARC

Arc is another software development service provider with a vetting process similar to Toptal. It has a lower pass rate for qualifying, which helps ensure better quality. The contractors on their website are more organized and will help you find the best developers and programmers for remote work and full-time employees. 

Their hiring process includes discussing your needs and vision with a consultant in their team who will then shortlist several software developers to help you make the process faster. The pricing can be negotiated depending on the size of the project and the time duration. 

Source: Intuz

#8 INTUZ

Intus is a software development company that also provides technological services. The company offers remote development services to help businesses and startups hire developers and create development teams. The developers in Intuz work on a real-time basis where the client can monitor their progress and work in a secure environment. 

Final Words

Software development services are growing at a high pace as more and more businesses prefer outsourcing their developers or hiring remote workers, as it helps save costs and choose the best talent without geographical restrictions. 

Remember that if you are new to hiring remote workers in your team, you need to communicate and be clear about your expectations and goals to be on the same page while working on a project. 

So if you are considering extending your remote software development team or wish to hire software developers or programmers, you can choose from the list above! 

The post Top 8 Remote Software Development Service Providers Worldwide appeared first on Botsify.

 However, since consumer expectations evolve over time, businesses must adapt in order to keep and expand their client base. You should keep up with the most recent developments in customer service if you want to keep your consumers pleased.

It goes without saying that automation is essential to corporate success in the modern digital age. More and more businesses are making investments in technologies that will enable them to increase customer satisfaction and optimize their operations.

Speed is essential in customer service, according to a study. 90% of customers want answers to their questions very far away, and they anticipate getting them in ten minutes or less. There are delays and a longer response time since each customer support agent can only average handle time for one client issue at a time. Because they are impatient, many customers attempt to solve their own problems. In actuality, 88% of US customers anticipate self-service portals from businesses.

What is self-service driven by chatbots?

Chatbots provide self-service solutions that let consumers receive immediate online responses without interacting with live people. AI-infused conversational chatbots and assistants build a digital self-service environment by utilizing the capabilities of Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Natural Language Understanding (NLU). 

Making conversational chatbots sophisticated to have genuine interactions with people requires a combination of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Chatbots for service desks operate differently from those for customer service. Therefore, the chatbot development process as well as the ruleset, NLP engine, dialogue management (which establishes the context), and chatbot architecture varies depending on the business requirement.

The Function Of Conversational Chatbots In Self-Service For Customers

Chatbot use is rising quickly among the self-service options available. In actuality, it has grown by 92% since 2019.

Additionally, it is anticipated that the worldwide chatbot market will reach $1.25 billion by 2025.

These statistics demonstrate how effective chatbots are at providing happy consumers.

A conversational chatbot is a computer software that can interact with clients and give them whatever information they may need in real-time. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing, and natural language understanding enable it to maintain a dialogue.

Customer interactions appear real because chatbots have human-like qualities. Customers can still sense that someone is helping them even when there isn’t a human operator there.

Because of this, conversational chatbots are sometimes known as virtual agents or virtual assistants.

You may provide 24/7 customer service with chatbot technology, making your company more accessible to clients whenever they need assistance.

Uses for Conversational chatbots

Large companies in many different industries have started using conversational chatbots to improve the customer experience. You might be surprised to learn that 86% of consumers are willing to pay more for superior customer service.

More customers will become brand loyal and eager to spend more if chatbots continue to enhance CX.

According to research, chatbots boost revenue by an average of 67%.

For clients

Instant response

To quickly answer questions, chatbots use chat support scripts and information retrieved from your online knowledge base. Asking for conversational chatbots is quicker and more practical than looking up information on various online pages.

24/7 accessibility

Chatbots don’t require sleep like people do. They are available to provide customer service day and night because they are able to operate around the clock.

Global customer service

You can serve customers from around the world because time zones are not an issue. Chatbots that speak multiple languages can converse with users in the language of their choice.

Conversation history

 Like other messaging services, chatbots keep track of previous conversations. This enables clients to look back on earlier conversations if necessary.

Personalization

Because chatbot dialogues are dependent on the responses provided by the user, all chatbot suggestions and replies are tailored to the user’s requirements. Customers can interact with the bot as much as necessary because there is no time limit on each interaction.

Digital payments that are seamless

Chatbots can assist users in making payments without having to leave the chat window. To make it simpler for clients to complete purchases or online transactions, several banks and fintech businesses, including Paypal, have introduced sophisticated chatbots with payment capabilities.

For companies

Customer engagement

It will increase because conversational chatbots can converse with numerous consumers at once, unlike human employees. Customers will continue the interaction as long as chatbots offer reliable responses and helpful information.

Reduce customer service costs

These days, hiring extra people for customer care may be highly expensive for organizations because of the rising labor cost. You can save money on salaries, training, and infrastructure by adopting a conversational chatbot system.

Lead generation 

It is improved since conversational chatbots may help qualify leads by asking pertinent questions. By providing them with individualized recommendations, they may nurture quality leads and entice them to make a purchase.

Higher conversation rate

It can be achieved by using chatbots, which can help clients at every stage of the purchasing process, from information research through post-purchase. Your consumers will become repeat customers and your sales will rise thanks to this convenience.

Boost business tactics 

Chatbots’ collection of customer data can assist you in boosting your customer service, marketing, and sales plans. To create customized messaging or campaigns that can increase engagement and conversions, you can keep an eye on consumer purchasing trends and evaluate their online behavior.

How to pick the best conversational chatbot platform for your company?

You must carefully select the conversational chatbot provider that best suits your company’s demands from the many available on the market.

The good news is that you can get started with just a few easy steps thanks to no-code chatbot solutions like Botsify.

Here are some factors to think about in your selection process to aid you:

Pricing 

It goes without saying that you should never go over your budget. There are various pricing structures available, and they change depending on the number of chatbots, users, and plan features. Most businesses give savings if you want to pay annually rather than on a monthly basis.

Business

It grades security You must ensure that your platform is secure because your conversational chatbots will be gathering sensitive consumer information, which could lead to data breaches and other security problems. Gaining your client’s trust and putting them at rest so they feel comfortable doing business with your company is crucial.

Integration of channels

 You should be able to contact and communicate with your clients via the channel of their choice. Ensure that the company you choose provides you the freedom to integrate chatbots into your website, social media accounts, and other channels.

Multilingual AI 

Reaching a global audience is possible when you’re online. Your chatbot needs to speak the consumers’ native tongue if you want to attract clients from abroad. Don’t worry, adding new languages to chatbots is simple because they are computer programs.

Hybrid chat

 There isn’t a chatbot that is flawless, of course. There will be occasions when they are unable to respond to complex inquiries because they solely use scripts and a knowledge base. In this kind of circumstance, it’s best to select a platform that enables human agents to take control.

Final Thoughts

AI chatbots represent a new step in client self-service, as opposed to traditional chatbots, which are only capable of performing simple tasks. Due to advancements in NLP & ML in this digitally shifting AI era, you may use conversational chatbots to give up conventional customer service procedures and prepare your company for the future.

Finding the finest AI platforms to enable self-service support for is crucial after delving deeply into the requirements for chatbots, AI-driven self-service, and their approaches.

You’ll do far more than just appear tech-savvy by implementing the best AI chatbots for your customer care. Conversational chatbots enable you to speed up client interactions, enhance the user experience, and develop a more capable support system for your website or app.

The post Use Of Conversational Chatbots In Customer Self-Service appeared first on Botsify.

1. Use analytical tools

I just mentioned costs. Hiring a professional is much more costly than doing things yourself for your website, but if you can, by all means, use some sort of web analytics tool, even if it costs money to buy and use. Using analytics tools such as heatmaps, session replay, or customer feedback collectors can help you understand and get to know the users who interact with your site. Several types of heatmaps are distinguished. There are clicker, scroll, and segment heatmaps. Each of these tools can give you insight into what visitors think about your website. Which areas are popular and which are less popular within your website? In addition to heatmaps, I also recommend using session replay, which allows you to easily see where your customers clicked, scrolled, or read more or less. Speaking of tools, while chatbots are not analytics tools, they can be important tools that can save you time and effort in your day-to-day business, not to mention help you generate conversions, but I’ll talk more about chatbots later. 

Other tools that can be relevant and helpful to increase your sales include a sales CRM system or even a meeting agenda tool to help run effective sales meetings. 

2. Use paid campaigns on social media

As I’m sure you know, one of the big advantages of paid campaigns is that you can target well. They help you reach potential customers more easily and TikTok lead ads are a good example. The disadvantage, of course, is that they are not free. But believe me, they are worth using to build an effective e-commerce system. Getting potential customers is a key step in building an e-commerce system.

One of the best ways to do this is to target your ads to people who have already visited your site once or even several times. Using an example, if you might be selling handsets and one of your customers has already placed the latest earpiece in their basket, but for some reason hasn’t bought it, it’s time to remind them that the earpiece is still waiting for them. Show him a related ad on your social media profile. The more times she sees that advertisement, the more likely she is to buy that particular device. 

If you aren’t familiar with campaigns, then delegating work to a digital marketing expert in Europe can be a great way to increase your success because they know how to optimize retargeting techniques so that prospective customers see your content multiple times and come one step closer to conversion. Additionally, they will use innovative, research-driven approaches to create ads that reach your target market and stand out from competitors.

Of course, it’s also important to know which age group you’re targeting, as Instagram is more relevant to 15-35-year-olds, so make sure you choose a social media platform for paid campaigns where you can reach the people you want. Positioning is a key step in e-commerce, which if done properly will lead to conversion rate growth and lots of satisfied users.

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3. Influencer marketing

If we have already talked about social media, I think it is important to mention the related influencer marketing. Find out which influencers are present in your industry and which ones have already established a relationship of trust with their followers. As prominent players on bloggers and social media, influencers are highly trusted by their supporters and are keen to promote or even recommend products to their followers. So with their help, you can achieve increased traffic to your e-commerce system. Of course, engaging an influencer sometimes involves costs, but it’s very difficult to achieve success without investment. So never give up an opportunity because it is sometimes costly. There will always be costs, but success is not free.

4.Take time for content marketing

Nowadays, anyone can open an e-commerce store if they want to. The question is who can stay on top and who can stand out from the competition. One of the best tools to stand out can be content marketing. Content marketing is considered a time-consuming field, which is why many people don’t even apply it, even though it can be a great success. 

Content that is interesting, engaging, and stands out can attract customers to your online store and website. It is important that the content is unique and of high quality. Don’t get into content marketing just to have one. Get started if you can dedicate enough time, to unique and interesting content for your audience. Remember, you’re creating content for your audience to convert them into a loyal and paying customer. So, make sure to keep your content both informational and focused toward converting those customers. You can even take ideas from some best books curated for salesperson. They will give you some addtional tactics to create quality content that converts your visitors into customers.

Speaking of content marketing, I would like to come back to web analytics tools, specifically the role of heatmaps. There are several types of heatmaps, and I would highlight the role of scrolling heatmaps, which can help you in content marketing. The point of scrolling heatmaps is that they help you to know how long users scroll down your blog interface, so you can know where to place important links within your blog, and how long to plan your articles. Feel free to use them if you want to be successful.

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5. Use email marketing alongside influencer marketing and content marketing

Email marketing is one of the most cost-effective and simplest methods of customer acquisition. It is very simple to use, but effective. As I mentioned earlier, it is important to get potential customers as quickly and efficiently as possible. Email marketing is one way to do this.

You can use it to send messages to your mailing list that are personalized, i.e. not templated. You can also reach them through any device if they have subscribed. And yes, how do you get them to subscribe? This is a very good question, and it’s often where things tend to fail. I suggest you offer them discounts. Provide them with value. Make them feel that it will only be to their advantage, not their disadvantage if they sign up. However, you should remember that you must always remove invalid email addresses from your database by using an email validation service. This helps you to increase your email deliverability and engagement rates. For example, you can check how to find someone’s birthdate and then use this information to create personalized messages, offers, and promotions that are suitable for them.

Email marketing is especially important in areas of e-commerce such as blogging or newsletter creation. If you engage in these areas, asking users to promote your blog or share your newsletter with others will also increase the number of subscribers to email marketing, which will lead to increased e-commerce. If you have more and more potential customers, this will be reflected in the numbers on your website. I am thinking here of an increase in traffic to your website, which is a very important factor for SEO. Increasing the number of visitors will also lead to more conversions, not to mention that user satisfaction will also be boosted by the success of your website.

6. Use chatbots

Chatbots are software programs that can work on multiple tasks, even difficult ones. They can schedule appointments with potential customers, and answer common questions. It only takes a few seconds to complete these tasks and tasks and customers can have their questions answered. I didn’t say at the beginning that chatbots can save you a lot of time. And in today’s world, it’s clear that speed is of the essence, as customers are not willing to spend time waiting. 

Of course, many people question whether chatbots can be smarter than humans. That’s right, they are not smart, but they are faster. That’s why, if chatbots can’t solve potential customers’ problems, chatbots should redirect customers to platforms where they can be sure to get a good answer. For example, customer service. 

But that’s not the only reason to use chatbots. They have the potential to create value for users, who will use their satisfaction to generate conversions on your website, which will make your e-commerce business a success. 

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Today is even easier to create chatbots through dedicated chatbot builder software that let you configure them as you wish and build them in a few minutes.

7. Pay special attention to automation

You should extend marketing automation to several areas, such as:

• Market segmentation
• Email marketing
• Social media marketing
• Cross-selling
• Inbound and outbound marketing

Automation is also software that can help you automate various marketing processes to reach potential customers. I’ll share with you a few of the reasons why marketing automation can be an effective area for both e-commerce and e-commerce. With automation, you can set it up so that potential customers are notified of what’s most important to them through the right channels, at the right time. Not least, you can reach customers who are at a higher level. 

The above 6 factors will take you just enough time and money if you want to apply them all to your e-commerce, but even though some of them are time and money-consuming, believe me, these investments will pay off 100% in the future, just be patient. However, here’s another tip to automate your activities, as it will help you save time and money if your activities are coordinated. 

Automation is not a simple area, so there are areas where you can easily make mistakes if you don’t pay attention. Don’t ruin customer loyalty with spammy emails, use personalized messages instead. Marketing automation is not enough to set it up once and let it do its job. You need to constantly monitor changes if you want to stay effective.

+1.Reward loyal customers

Who are loyal customers? Those who could get your products or services elsewhere, maybe even at a lower price, but still buy from you. That’s why it’s important to reward them. You shouldn’t lose them, because they usually buy several times a year, plus they’ll be happy to recommend your product or service to people they know if they’re happy with it. Their role is key.

If you reward them from time to time, you’ll always stay top of mind. You decide the rewards. Many will offer them coupons, discounts, even branded men’s collections of perfumes from the online store, and maybe free home delivery over a certain amount. Test to see which method generates more traffic, and which they prefer the most. It’s important to know that e-commerce works on a give-and-take system. It is also important to note that the demand for the following discounts and rewards varies from age group to age group. It is important to assess who is happy with what and what gives them added value. If you are already providing discounts or any kind of coupons or gifts to your loyal customers, they should be of real value to them.

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Summary

The 8 methods mentioned above cannot always be introduced overnight. They can sometimes be costly to plan, but they are certainly time-consuming. However, if you include tips such as automation, you can already save time as the activities will be coordinated with each other, so you don’t need to pay attention to them separately. However, it is important that you apply the tips mentioned above if you want to own an efficient e-commerce system. If you feel that things are not working as you had planned, consider using an e-commerce website development company or a mobile development firm like Diffco. I mentioned at the outset that this may not initially fit into your budget, but hiring a professional will produce results that will give your site a boost. I may have shared a lot of things with you all at once right now, so if you want to remember the 7+1 tips I mentioned above, save this blog article and pick it up when you need it again. Go for it!

The post 7+1 Actionable Strategies to Win More Sales appeared first on Botsify.

Failure to conduct adequate testing results in lower-quality products, delayed delivery, poor customer service, and higher costs. Such problems can arise due to an unplanned test management strategy, a delay in development, or an underestimation of the effort required to create a test case.

When it comes to custom software development, testing throughout the development cycle is critical. There’s no doubt that test engineers work hard to find bugs or errors before releasing a software product. However, the harsh reality is that you cannot catch every bug! So you deploy a quick fix following your production, and then regression testing kicks in. Although it takes much time, regression testing is vital for preserving product stability.

In such circumstances, you will be caught in a vicious cycle where your deployment window will keep getting smaller. So how do we tackle such situations?

The solution is Test Automation!!

Image Source: Freepik

The future of automation testing is bright!

Automation testing, as opposed to manual testing, is an effective way to improve the effectiveness and coverage of the testing process. It shortens your execution cycles, relieves testers of tedious work, requires less human effort, and gives immediate feedback.

This article will discuss what automation testing is and why it is the right call for your Software Development Life Cycle.

What is Automation Testing?

 Automation Software testing comprises a QA tester creating test scripts (write codes) to automate the testing process. The software tester creates test scripts and validates the software using various tools. Automation software testing typically consists of pre-scripted tests that are run automatically to compare the actual performance of the software to the expected performance.

This kind of testing enables the execution of repetitive and regression tests without the involvement of a manual tester. However, creating the initial testing scripts for these tests requires some manual labor, which is made easier by codeless automation testing.

Automated testing tools run tests that consistently carry out predetermined actions. When the program’s goals and outcomes line up, your project is successfully operating and almost certainly bug-free.

Nevertheless, a problem must be fixed if the two cannot agree. It would be necessary for a tester to review the code, make changes, and keep running tests until the expected and actual outputs are matched.

Now let’s jump back to where we started – The benefits of Automation Testing!

Although every software development team tests its products, the delivered software may still have flaws. Even with the best manual testing procedures, some errors always remain hidden from detection before the product is released and frequently reappears. Test automation is the most effective, efficient, and comprehensive method for improving software testing services.

It is helpful because it replaces many manual testers and improves overall accuracy with little or no manual intervention. In addition, it ensures that software of standard quality is released as pre-written scripts are tested.

The following are a few benefits of automation testing:

Image Source: Freepik

1. Rapid and efficient:

Automation testing allows for the rerunning of tests, which is advantageous for regression testing on continuously evolving codes. It is handled automatically, hence, also named as QA automation.. Manually performing repetitive tasks is possible but requires significant effort from software testers.

A QA Automation Tester can automatically test new features by creating algorithms to perform repetitive tests. A test script can run tests five times faster than a person. It finishes manual tasks at a fast pace while simultaneously writing several scripts.

2. Greater accuracy

Errors are inevitable, which could lead to missing crucial information. On the flip side, machines do not make mistakes when adequately developed. If there is an error in the program code or execution, one can see it immediately because the test will fail. Embracing codeless test automation further streamlines this process, allowing non-developers to create and execute tests efficiently, reducing the risk of human error.

In automation testing, there is no such thing as a software product performing as expected; it either works or doesn’t.

During laborious manual testing, even the most meticulous tester can make mistakes. However, automation testing repeats the same steps every time the tests are run and never fails to record detailed results. In addition, testers who are no longer subjected to repetitive manual tests have more time to develop new automated tests and deal with complex features of products.

3. Long-term cost-effectiveness

Your business will make money using an automated test environment because fewer resources will be required to test your product. Undoubtedly, installing and setting up an automated testing environment will take time and resources. Furthermore, you will probably spend substantial money on a suitable test automation tool to help you set up a reliable testing environment.

However, when a tester works on a project for a short period of time, it costs significantly less. This point is frequently raised in conversations about manual vs. automated testing, which is mostly accurate. Therefore, automating everything that can be automated will save you many man-hours and, consequently, much money in the long run.

4. 24/7 testing

The ability to conduct tests at any time, anywhere in the world, is one of the main advantages automation testing has over manual testing. For example, to test a web application manually, you would have to navigate your way through a computer. Your laptop or computer, however, cannot go everywhere with you.

That is why automated testing is preferable to manual testing. It enables you to

• Schedule your test case execution to run remotely at any time of day or night.
• Use the reports your test suite generated to analyze the test results.

5. Public outcomes

 In manual testing, only one person conducts the test, making it impossible for the entire team to monitor the results. However, additional team members can log in and view the output for automated testing. As a result, team communication is enhanced, and better outcomes are produced.

6. Interesting to work on

 Writing a similar document over and over again can be tedious and precisely dull. On the other hand, setting up automation test cases necessitates coding, effort, and creativity, keeping your best technical talents engaged and devoted to the testing process without getting bored.

Automating the testing process relieves QAs of significant stress. Once the time-consuming manual processes are eliminated, software testers can develop applications to help improve the testing suite. It also increases job satisfaction and reduces the stress and boredom associated with their daily testing routines.

7. Instant feedback

Instant feedback is yet another benefit of automated testing. When tests are run quickly, developers get testing reports quickly, allowing them to react quickly to any potential failures.

Instant feedback is constructive if your application has already hit the market. Manual testing will only slow the process when urgent bugs need to be fixed. However, test automation allows you to update your application quickly. Automated testing consequently improves user experience, customer satisfaction, and team responsiveness.

8. Superior performance and quality of apps

 Due to the extensive test coverage provided by automated testing, your app will be of the highest quality and performance. It enables you to run thousands of automated test cases simultaneously, making it simple to test your app across various platforms and devices. Additionally, complex and time-consuming test cases can be quickly created in large quantities using automated testing.

9. Improved manual test quality

Although automation testing is comparatively more beneficial than manual testing, it is not the only method. Manual testing is essential for developing one-of-a-kind test scenarios and cases. Good manual test cases will assist you in writing better automation test scripts.

And one of the most widely accepted advantages of automation testing is that it gives manual testers more time and bandwidth to develop better test scenarios. Manual testing serves as the foundation for automation testing.

The fact is that both manual and automation testing go hand-in-hand.

After performing manual testing, you can use QA automation tools to cross-check the results. The results generated by automation test tools can assist manual testers in improving the quality of manual test scripts.

All these test automation advantages have favored customers, developers, and software testing teams in recent years.

Conclusion

Image Source: Freepik

There may be additional advantages given how far the automation testing field has come. However, the benefits of automation testing discussed above are the most significant ones.

Test automation is unavoidable if you want to streamline your workflow and use the most up-to-date development methodologies. The truth is that the benefits of automated testing will only grow in the future as more effective tools emerge and testing frameworks mature.

So, if you don’t want to be left behind in technological evolution, start implementing test automation now. It will accelerate development and delivery, make CI/CD easier to implement, and improve test efficiency, accuracy, and productivity. The most noteworthy part is that you will get these benefits without sacrificing the app’s quality or performance.

To get the most out of automated testing, combine a trustworthy automation QA engineer with your current QA automation tools and efficiently run automated concurrent tests on hundreds of real devices.

The post 9 Benefits of Automated Software Testing appeared first on Botsify.

Customer service now focuses on providing the best experience. Companies know that 60% of consumers will abandon a brand because of poor customer support. Social media can especially help businesses provide an extraordinary experience.

These platforms are easily accessible. Users get immediate support whenever they interact with a company. It’s no surprise that over 4 billion people are active on social media. Your brand should be there too.

You need to develop a social customer service plan to provide the best support. In this article, we’ll go over the three steps you should take.

Let’s start with the basics first.

What is social media customer service?

Social media customer service refers to the practice of providing support on social media platforms. Agents respond to all kinds of messages they receive—from complaints to product-related queries.

Brands can engage with customers on social media in:

• Direct messages – consumers send queries directly to your business account
• Posts – your social media reps can tag customers in posts to spark conversations with them or vice versa
• Comments – users leave public comments on your posts. Some of them require a response, e.g. if they are order-related queries.

Traditionally, customer service used to engage with consumers through touchpoints like phone and email. This isn’t enough anymore as consumers crave personal interactions. That’s why they’ve shifted their attention to social media.

Social media customer service aims to provide a positive experience by responding to queries as simply and quickly as possible. You can create that positive experience if you have a good social customer service plan.

Why is social customer service important?

Brands must create experiences. This is what attracts people to their products or services. Whether you use VoIP for call center, offer email support or respond to consumers on social media, your goal should be to develop a positive customer experience.

Customer support isn’t only about solving issues. According to research, 81% of consumers will make another purchase after experiencing great customer service. This shows that your agents can have an impact on your company’s revenue.

Use social media to drive consumers’ interest in your company. If you implement a social customer service plan, you can reap the following benefits:

• • Stronger brand awareness – you can build your brand awareness by being active on social media platforms. On average, users spend 2 hours and 27 minutes on social media. There’s a high chance they’ll find your business if you provide great support there. As a result, you’ll increase brand awareness.

• Better customer engagement – consumers can only engage with your company in a store in real life. On the internet, however, they have more chances to come into contact with you. Your social media customer support can host giveaways, share user-generated content and offer instant support. All of this engages your audience base.
• Quicker responses – customers use social media to share a positive experience or reveal their frustrations. They don’t expect a response in most cases. What if your brand responds to them in a timely manner? They would be pleasantly surprised. You can use social media to provide solutions in real-time. This is quicker than sending emails.

Social media customer service has a way of impressing consumers. They feel like their favorite brand is always there for them—just one tweet, comment or post away!

Be active and present on social media

Remember that social media is a public space. Every feedback, comment or post is visible to all users. That’s why your support team should always be present and carefully respond to queries.

The way you respond to an inquiry on social media tells a lot about your business. Answering all questions leaves a lasting impression on your customers. It tells them they can always rely on you for help and advice.

Selectively responding to inquiries, however, shows you aren’t concerned with all of your customers. If you disregard negative comments, people will think you aren’t customer-centric.

According to Statista, more than 45% of US customers have a better opinion about brands that deal with customer queries and complaints on social media. This creates a positive brand image and increases brand loyalty.

You need to develop a social customer service plan if you want to impress your audience base. We’ve prepared some tips for you to help you along the way.

3 steps to creating a social customer service plan

Your company should focus on providing unique social customer service. If you only respond to a few complaints now and then, you’ll come across as unprofessional. You should always be there for consumers on these platforms.

Your social customer service plan should:

• Reactively resolve customer complaints
• Create impressive customer stories
• Proactively offer customer support
• Build a positive and inspirational brand

Three steps can help you achieve this. Let’s check them out.

Set your goals

You should develop a social customer service plan when you have goals in mind. The plan won’t be as effective if you create it just for the sake of creating it. You can answer the following questions to make the process easier:

1. Why do you want to provide customer support on social media?
2. What do your consumers expect from you?
3. How can your brand help customers on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram?
4. Which business goals do you want to accomplish with social media customer service?

When companies have a social customer service plan, they usually set these goals:

• Customer retention – the majority of consumers turn to social media as a last resort. They tried to resolve an issue on other support channels, but there was no progress. They hope social media can give them the answer they need. This means that offering customer service on social media can be used for customer retention. Your agents can offer a solution in real-time and impress a customer. As a result, they will not turn to your competitors.
• Create positive experiences – this is the number one goal of most brands. They want to use social media to build communities of satisfied customers. The best way to achieve this is by answering your followers’ questions and solving their issues. Customers will share their great experiences with friends and family, increasing your revenue.
• Hint at self-service support – setting up a knowledge base can be another goal. Inevitably, your support team will receive the same questions on all channels. It can become tedious to answer the same question over and over again. What your social customer service team can do is introduce your knowledge base to consumers. They can link to responses to save time. Other customers will see the links and know they can find answers themselves.

The plan will make much more sense if there is a goal. Choose a goal that best fits your business and try to create a plan that revolves around it.

Figure out your response times

You should treat social media as an official support channel. Just like on email or phone, customers expect to receive a response promptly. That’s why you should figure out your response times on social media.

Of course, response times may vary. They usually depend on the size of your team and their resources. If they have everything they need, the agents will respond to issues quickly.

The first step is to determine how quickly you’ll provide first-touch support to a customer. Let’s say that a customer contacts you on social media for the first time. How long should they wait for your answer? If you have a social media customer service team, they shouldn’t wait longer than two hours.

Then, you can’t commit to any response time if your team can’t handle the workload. You should analyze how long it takes for a team member to respond to queries on social media. After that, you can say to the team how many queries you expect them to resolve per day.

Practice makes perfect. Your team will get used to responding to queries within a specific timeframe.

Track your metrics

You should monitor the performance of your social media customer service team. Add specific metrics to the plan so you’ll know what to follow.

Tracking and analyzing metrics will help you understand how successful your team is. It will also point to the areas which need improvements. Some of the metrics you can track include:

• Customer demand per hour
• Automated resolution rate
• Ticket volume
• Average response time
• Goal completion rate

Remember to include the metrics in your plan so that the team members know what they should work towards.

Conclusion

Social media has transformed the business world, including customer support. It has made it easier for businesses to interact with customers and provide solutions to their problems. You should use this channel to deliver support as well.

Follow the three steps we mentioned to create an effective social customer service plan. When you have a plan, every team member will be on the same page. You’ll then easily accomplish your goals on social media.

The post What Are the 3 Steps to a Social Customer Service Plan? appeared first on Botsify.

Shopping, whether in person or online, sometimes involves s sometimes the circular pattern of research, consideration, reading reviews, and visiting a website before a customer finally decides to purchase or pass.

Fear not!

There are ways to streamline the customer journey that involve little time or investment.

How Customers Discover Brands

Most consumers learn about a business either through social proof, that is, hearing about a company from someone else, or through marketing and customer engagement.

They see a post on social media, find a company through search, link to your website via an email or landing page, and investigate your business by searching for social proof.

What are they searching for?

Customers want to work with companies that understand their pain points and offer solutions. Whether B2B or B2C marketing, customers either want something unique or a brand that helps them do something better.

They also want a more personalized, granular service that’s tailored to them.

But, how does a company serve a global market and still provide personal service when more than 2.14 billion people per year do the bulk of their shopping online without ever talking to an actual person?

A large part of branding is telling your brand story. In a perfect world, you’d have the time and ability to personally engage customers and connect with them on an emotional level.

But, the nature of eCommerce doesn’t work that way. There are only 24 hours a day, and even the most dedicated customer service team has to sleep.

There are also differences in time zones. Can you have someone there to answer phones or emails when there’s a customer service emergency on a holiday or in the middle of the night?

When you’re unable to engage your audience personally, one-on-one, technology is able to step in and oversee the conversational marketing on your behalf.

What is Conversational Marketing?

Simply put, conversational marketing is a dialogue-driven form of customer engagement that provides answers and support in real-time. It’s become the go-to form of customer interaction in the digital age.

By initiating a dialogue with leads, you’re better able to steer them through their journey faster. Questions get answered, objections countered, and the journey from consideration to conversion is shorter and more efficient.

This provides an overall more satisfying, value-packed customer experience that’s more likely to drive conversions and improve customer retention rates.

But, a growing business in the 21st century needs all of the help it can get.

Although conducting customer service via technology became a necessity in the age of social distancing, AI-powered customer service applications were already the emerging trend well before 2020.

The Importance of Customer Experience

What factors go into ranking your website? Is it the way it’s designed? The products you sell? Or is it a good customer experience?

In an environment where competition is fierce and more businesses need to find innovative ways to carve out their market share, a personalized experience is more important and harder to achieve.

Customer experience describes how a customer interacts with a brand as well as how that brand is perceived.

According to the ever-evolving Google analytics, customer experience is the most important factor for evaluating the quality of your content.

It’s also a critical factor in how your audience evaluates the quality of your brand.

You can produce a so-so product and still support high levels of brand loyalty. But, even the most superior product will sit on virtual shelves if the customer experience is bad.

People will tell a few friends about a great experience or product. A terrible customer experience will be announced to the world on social media, review platforms, and industry forums across the globe.

Need some statistics to back that up?

Consider these numbers:

• 95 percent of customers will tell someone about a bad experience with a brand
• 86 percent of customers are willing to pay more for a better buying experience
• 57 percent of existing customers will switch brands if they can find a better experience elsewhere
• Customer churn accounts for about $10,000 in lost revenue for every $100,000 spent

How do you level the playing field if you’re an SMB with a smaller budget, high competition, and more to lose?

One of the fastest-growing trends in customer service is the chatbot.

How exactly do chatbots work, and how can you leverage this sometimes overlooked but always a present bit of technology and use it to your advantage?

How Chatbots Improve the Customer Experience

Chatbots seem ever-present in the business world. From the automated internal messages distributed to your team to the dialogue box that pops up on almost every website, bots are all around us.

Rather than unnerving you, that thought should inspire you to consider the ways that you can use technology to increase awareness, initiate customer engagement, and add value to your brand.

According to Dr. Nicola MIllard, head of BT’s global services team, automation can:

“… effectively steer the customer through the “known knowns”, without the customer having to plough through lists of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) or lengthy IVR menus. This works when things are simple, but complexity, emotion, and complaints can throw a spanner in the conversational works.”

Targeted, intuitive automation, such as a chatbot, resolves these issues and streamlines customer interaction.

You’ll also improve the efficiency of customer care and save time.

For example, the answers provided during the chat can help drill down the nature of the interaction, steer the querent toward correct information or move the conversation on to a live associate.

As part of your conversation marketing strategy, chatbots allow you to increase your reach beyond time zones or borders and provide personalized assistance in real-time.

In addition to providing more efficient, targeted interaction, this type of marketing supports consistent quality, instills trust, and increases brand loyalty.

Customers come to count on your brand. They know that you care about their experience, and you’ll be there to offer help or support 24/7/365.

Use Cases: When to Integrate a Chatbot Into the Customer Journey

Chatbots don’t just interact with customers on a conversational level at the point of consideration. They also gather valuable data that helps shape the customer journey and informs your marketing strategy.

The information can be used by your sales team to refine and segment leads, upsell or cross-sell products, and initiate offers or flash deals that can transform consideration into conversion and support customer retention.

You can even reduce bounce rates, another factor in search engine page ranks (SERPs).

But, when and where are they most effective?

You can improve the customer experience with the strategic use of chatbots in:

• Social media messaging
• Shopping cart management
• Website FAQs
• Home page greetings
• Lead generation
• Help desk ticketing and support
• Product information dialogue boxes

Now that you know where you can use a chatbot and why the question becomes:

“How do I incorporate chatbots into my marketing and turn cold. impersonal technology into a more personalized customer experience?”

Read on to learn the important components of a conversational marketing strategy that you can take and incorporate into your customer service model.

5 Solid Ways to Implement Chatbots for a More Personalized CX

There are potentially dozens of touchpoints on the buyer’s journey where a chatbot can be used to provide information or steer the interaction to a mutually beneficial conclusion.

You can insert intuitive chatbots at strategic points or place one at each avenue for interaction.

The following tips and best practices will increase their effectiveness and support a great ROI wherever and how many chatbots you deploy.

1. Convert Your FAQ Into an Interactive Experience

The common vernacular online is TL;DR. Rather than having the customer sift through a long, text-dense FAQ, you can turn that value-added information platform into an efficient way to manage common queries.

Don’t have an existing FAQ section?

Use information gathered during customer surveys, search engine or keyword research, and through analytics to construct the most common questions prospects have about your brand. You can even use a chatbot to conduct the survey and parse the data for you.

2. Map the Chatbot Dialogue

Much like people, automation needs to be taught social interaction. The whole point of the chatbot is to cut through the clutter and indecisiveness to steer the narrative while still being friendly and conversational.

How those conversation proceeds depend upon the purpose and placement of the bot.

Using flowcharts, you can better visualize how chatbot conversation should flow.

It might look something like this:

In general, the interaction should always begin with an introduction and greeting. This should always be followed by asking the customer how they can be helped. Are they looking for information, having difficulty, or ready to buy?

The trajectory of the conversation will then be triggered by how the customer responds. Because AI is intuitive, each succeeding interaction will become more granular and refined.

3. Deploy Chatbots to Refine Leads

Say what you want about Facebook. They’ve got automated marketing down to a science.

Using their model, chatbots can be used on your website or in direct messaging apps to initiate engagement and refine leads.

Automated lead generation qualifies and segments your audience by type or where they are in their journey by asking relevant questions that are designed to determine interest. This can help potential customers make informed decisions faster and come away with a sense that your company cares about customer satisfaction.

4. Capture Cold Leads and Convert Then Faster

Not all segments of your audience arrive at your website in the consideration stage. Some – I would say most – aren’t sure what they want.

When they do have a specific pain point, they need to be convinced that you’re the brand that will provide relief.

Lead conversion begins when you capture their attention and transition a general query into consideration. The information you gather during the capture phase can be used to construct a bot dialogue designed to nurture leads and nudge them further along their way to purchase.

This information can also be used to further refine leads by audience segment, which can then be directed to the proper channel to address them at that specific point in their journey.

For example, one chatbot can answer further questions or direct the buyer to a live associate for an immediate close.

Once you’ve steered the lead on to decision making, the chatbot can help the lead navigate your website to find the right product or service.

H&M uses this method to help shoppers build a wardrobe or purchase accessories based on information gathered as customers browse their websites.

5. Deploy Chatbots for Aftersales Customer Care

The customer journey doesn’t end when the transaction is concluded. Chatbots can upsell a customer, increasing both value and the dollar amount per sale. It can also help customers get updates or track shipping after the sale is completed.

This goes beyond simply deploying GPS-powered tracking information or providing an order number and sending them to the shipping company’s website.

Your chatbot can be programmed to answer direct queries about order status, delivery times, or current location. The customer can also use the chatbot to direct the shipment to a specific location, set a date for shipping, or engage a shipping company.

Final Thoughts

Customer engagement is one of the best ways to attract new business and keep the customers you have. One of the most effective ways to support engagement and increase conversions is also among the easiest and most passive:

Let the technology do the work for you.

Chatbots will take your customer service game to the next level with insightful, data-driven planning and strategic placement.

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