A chatbot or virtual receptionist is a computer-controlled application that has the ability of answering questions about your company, products and services immediately.
Here is the result of a recent conversation that our chatbot Abi, had with someone visiting our website:
User: what are you
Abi: I am chatbot or virtual customer assistant designed to help visitors to find out more about Daden
User: what
is daden
Abi: Daden is a virtual worlds and virtual
characters solution provider.
User: can
you learn
Abi: I can only learn by being
programmed at the moment
User: what
can you do
Abi: I work at Daden's offices in
central Birmingham and also on our island Daden prime in second life
User: what
is second life
Abi: Second life is a virtual world,
one that only exists on the servers of linden labs, and in the
browsers and minds of its users
User: can
i get a chatbot
Abi: If
you would like to get a quote for a chatbot for your web site or
virtual world presence please email sales@daden.co.uk and
we will discuss your requirements with you
User: thanks
Abi: Good
User: byb
Abi: Sorry,
I only have limited knowledge. I can only talk about Daden
User: bye
Abi: Bye.
I'd be grateful if you would fill in a short survey on me. Link
below.
Daden check Abi's conversation logs frequently and update her regularly and this conversation is a good example that shows how people do build a rapport with a chatbot and are willing to talk to it - and thank it too!
Daden have given Abi a personality outside of her main duties - which are to talk about Daden and to point people to pages on the website. Here's an example:
User: i
want us to be best friends.
Abi: My best friend is Halo Rossini
but I do have other friends
User: can
i be your friend too?
Abi: Oh dear. I'm sure we could
be but I'm at work I'd rather concentrate on answering questions
about Daden's services and products
User: so
you keep saying, but i want to chat about something else.
Abi: I
like to talk about what we do at Daden
User: yes
i know, but i want to talk about how lovely you are.
Abi: Say
again? I only have limited knowledge. I can only talk about Daden
Most organisations we work with choose not to give their chatbots a personality but use their chatbots to act as a virtual assistant available 24hrs a day to guide people around their website or act as an FAQ. Research in the US (where chatbot use is more advanced) has shown that the average cost-per-contact using a chatbot is under 60p compared to over £3.50 for live text-chat or over £4 for a telephone contact. Leading analyst Forrester reported in 2010 that chatbots "offer compelling business benefits, including enhancing customer experience, reducing live help costs, and driving cross-sells".
Chatbots can be placed on websites, on Facebook and inside virtual worlds. For example, Abi also lives on Daden's island, Daden Prime in Second Life, where she acts as a virtual receptionist and answers questions. One of our clients has their chatbot answering questions by SMS, email as well as via their website. It's multi-lingual too answering questions in both English and Arabic!
Talk to Abi, our Virtual Receptionist yourself here.
Daden have a white paper available to download titled: Deploying Chatbots to Customer Advantage
Click on this link to download your copy
If you'd like to learn more about chatbots or have visitors thank your website email soulla.stylianou@daden.co.uk or call us on 0121 250 5678.
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