Best AI chatbots for ecommerce. Platforms | AI in business #117

Chatbots for ecommerce

Implementing a chatbot for customer service means savings. This is the result of automating simple inquiries and increasing the efficiency of service departments, which can focus on more complex cases. According to a November 2023 study, 44% of customers are already willing to use AI chatbots for ecommerce.

Źródło: Statista (https://www.statista.com/statistics/1422346/interest-in-chatbots-as-shopping-assistants/)

AI chatbots have found wide application in the ecommerce industry. They have completely changed the way businesses communicate with customers and handle their queries. Here are the key areas where AI solutions are being used for ecommerce:

• 24/7 customer service – Traditional customer service departments are often limited by working hours and their ability to handle multiple inquiries at once. AI chatbots, on the other hand, are available 24/7 and can handle hundreds of calls simultaneously. This allows them to answer questions about products, order status, or finding the right item in a store’s inventory almost instantly. One example is the Drift platform, where 50% of the conversations that take place after service department’s working hours involve AI chatbots. As a result, potential customers can always count on expert advice and information,
• personalized shopping experience – in addition to answering questions, AI chatbots learn each customer’s preferences based on their purchase history, behavior, or information from the CRM system. This allows them to create personalized experiences, from recommending products based on interests, to suggesting complementary items, to providing comprehensive assistance with the next steps in the purchase journey. Salesforce’s Einstein tool uses advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence to create these personalized AI assistants. It is used by Uber Eats, Gucci, and Accenture, among others, to streamline customer requests and inquiries,
• support for reservation processes – in rental, transportation, and catering industries, it’s critical to process bookings efficiently. AI chatbots are great for this, for example, Expedia’s solution for booking hotels and airline tickets via Messenger. At chains like Domino’s, virtual assistants make it possible to place orders online and track their status,
• education – AI chatbots are increasingly used in education. A great example is the popular language learning app Duolingo, where interactive dialogues and exercises are conducted by AI chatbots.

Types of chatbots in ecommerce

Chatbots are not a uniform group of technological solutions. Indeed, there are several basic types of chatbots for ecommerce. Their key difference is the level of sophistication and the way they process natural language.

Understanding these classifications is critical for companies that want to implement the right tools for their processes and customer expectations. So let’s take a closer look at how chatbots are divided.

Rule-based chatbots

These are the simplest solutions, where responses to user queries are predefined by the system developers. They can contain static information, such as store hours or return policies. Their advantage is that they are easy to implement and configure, while their disadvantage is their limited ability to interpret the context and intent of the caller.

An example of a simple rule-based chatbot could be an assistant on a product site that presents pre-prepared answers to the most frequently asked questions.

AI chatbots

What distinguishes this group of tools is the use of advanced solutions such as machine learning and natural language processing (NLP/NLU). Thanks to these, AI chatbots can not only answer well-defined questions but also interpret the user’s intentions and provide helpful, personalized responses.

AI chatbots recognize not only the intent of the customer’s question, but also the context – for example, the customer’s location, the day of the week, or a reference to a previous answer. This enables it to provide an accurate and useful answer.

Task-oriented and predictive chatbots

Another criterion for division is the way a particular system works and is used. Here we can distinguish:

• task-oriented chatbots – they focus on a single function, such as providing information or performing simple transactions. A good example would be the so-called skill bots of the voice assistant Alexa, which enable people to order food, for instance,
• predictive chatbots – more advanced solutions, based on data analysis from CRM systems and user profiles. They not only respond to inquiries but also anticipate customer needs and initiate their own actions, such as product recommendations.

Custom chatbot or off-the-shelf solution?

Choosing the right AI chatbot solution is one of the key challenges for companies looking to invest in this technology. There are both off-the-shelf platforms and custom systems. Which option should you pick?

For smaller companies and more modest budgets, ready no-code or low-code platforms can be a good solution. They make it easy to deploy chatbots for basic tasks, from pre-qualifying inquiries to providing informational materials to assisting with the buying process.

Such simple drag-and-drop solutions are offered by Tidio, among others. Their advantage is their affordable price and the possibility of self-configuration by people without advanced programming skills. Simplicity, the biggest advantage of such solutions, is also their disadvantage. Here, it is impossible to introduce a unique tone of voice for the chatbot or teach it to use, for example, a custom database used by the company. Combining it with a non-standard recommendation system or an existing website can also be a headache for a person without advanced skills.

On the other hand, companies planning for growth and needing tailored solutions, as well as larger e-commerce companies, can opt for AI chatbots created on demand. Their advantage is full customization – from adaptation to specific processes, to integration with the company’s systems, to the ability to train the language model according to industry requirements. Such solutions are not always more expensive than standard “off-the-shelf” chatbots, as the cost of use is not associated with a high monthly subscription.

Such a personalized solution is offered by smaller companies operating locally, as well as, for example, Ada (described in detail later in the article) or Amelia, which can be integrated with any large language model, including open source. The disadvantage, of course, is the higher cost of implementation and the need to involve skilled AI specialists in the process.

Platforms for creating chatbots in ecommerce

Let’s take a closer look at some of the leading AI chatbot platforms. They offer turnkey solutions and are widely used in e-commerce.

Intercom

Intercom Fin (https://www.intercom.com/fin) is a solution based on OpenAI language models that enables full automation of the customer support process. The virtual assistant understands the customer’s intent and then – based on the support content – provides accurate answers in casual and natural-sounding language.

The key benefits of implementing Intercom Fin are:

• reducing the number of inquiries to service departments by up to 60%,
• ability to converse in 43 languages,
• support for text calls, but also via WhatsApp or SMS.

Source: Intercom (https://www.intercom.com/fin)

An excellent case study (https://www.intercom.com/fin/gallery) for this solution is MailerLite, a company where the implementation of a chatbot increased the percentage of automatically resolved cases from 18% to 29% in just one week.

The cost of using Intercom Fin is $0.99 per case resolved. This may seem like a small amount. However, you have to add the Intercom subscription at a price starting at $39 per month per user. Unfortunately, there is no option in the base package to create dedicated scenarios for Fin – so it can answer questions, but it will not perform actions such as redirecting to customer service if the AI chatbot cannot handle the problem. This option is only available in the Advanced package (Advanced, $99 per month per user).

Thus, if the team consists of more than one person, the monthly cost of use will be from 800 PLN upwards, plus 4 PLN for each successful conversation. You must also add the cost of hiring an Intercom specialist who will be able to properly configure the chatbot, create appropriate scenarios, and then train the team.

Salesforce Einstein

Salesforce Einstein (https://www.salesforce.com/products/einstein-ai-solutions/) is a comprehensive e-commerce platform that includes not only chatbots for customers but also complex AI solutions for sales, marketing, and analytics departments. Its key feature is the combination of advanced data analytics with machine learning and natural language processing capabilities.

Einstein’s capabilities include:

• creating virtual assistants integrated with Salesforce, or Einstein Bots,
• personalized sales recommendations and more effective lead nurturing processes,
• predictive modeling to anticipate trends and campaign success,
• ability to integrate with any major language model, including GPT-4, or open source solutions.

Salesforce Einstein is used by companies like Uber Eats, Gucci, and Accenture. It helps them resolve customer service issues faster and enables marketing and sales departments to work more efficiently.

Source: Salesforce (https://www.salesforce.com/products/einstein-ai-solutions/)

Ada

Ada (https://www.ada.cx/) is a complex customer service process automation platform using artificial intelligence and machine learning solutions. Its key components include:

• virtual assistant – The AI agent understands the customer’s intent and provides consistent, contextual responses. Ada uses a proprietary “reasoning engine” to do this,
• integrated analytical tools and supporting decision-making for customer service management departments,
• ability to integrate with voice systems , chats and other communication channels.

Ada’s unique architecture allows it to deliver a fully automated customer service experience, from initial contact through problem diagnosis and resolution.

This end-to-end platform has proven itself at companies such as Wealthsimple, where it has doubled the rate of auto-resolved queries and increased CSAT by 10 points (https://www.ada.cx/case-study/wealthsimple/). At Indigo, meanwhile, Ada has resulted in savings of $150,000 (https://www.ada.cx/case-study/indigo/).

Source: Ada (https://www.ada.cx/)

Amelia

Amelia (https://amelia.ai/) is a platform that enables the widespread use of conversational artificial intelligence and business process automation. Its key feature is a flexible, code-free environment. It allows for the creation and management of intelligent virtual assistants (IVAs).

The benefits of using Amelia include the ability to build assistants that support more than a hundred languages, seamless integration with voice systems and process automation.

Amelia has an open architectural model with the ability to use any language model (including Llama, GPT, or Vicuna).

The solution has been successfully implemented at Resorts World Las Vegas, where AI serves 3,500 hotel rooms and more than 20 food and beverage outlets.

Summary

The development of artificial intelligence, particularly language models and machine learning, has revolutionized the way businesses communicate with their customers. AI virtual assistants and chatbots for ecommerce are becoming a reality, bringing a number of tangible business benefits.

First, they enable round-the-clock service at the highest level – a solution that is particularly important in an era of increasing customer expectations in terms of responsiveness and availability of support.

Secondly, AI chatbot systems for ecommerce improve customer satisfaction by delivering personalized shopping experiences. Through integration with CRM systems and data analytics, they are able to learn each user’s preferences and tailor communications, product recommendations or the purchase path.

The future undoubtedly belongs to more and more advanced conversational bots that are able to have fully natural conversations and make decisions on their own. In particular, the development of large language models (LLMs), such as GPT-4 or Anthropic’s Claude, holds great promise. They provide the necessary “depth” of interaction and the ability to constantly learn new language patterns.

Of course, understanding the context of the conversation and the user’s true intent remains a challenge for AI. Some customers still express frustration with chatbots that can’t fully interpret complex requests or nuances of communication. The cost of implementing the most advanced solutions can also be a barrier, especially for smaller businesses.

In conclusion, AI chatbots and conversational artificial intelligence systems are becoming a necessity today to build a competitive advantage. Companies that choose to use them and continuously improve them will be able to deliver new and better experiences to their customers. And that, in turn, will translate into increased revenue, brand loyalty, and more efficient processes within the business. AI chatbots for ecommerce is therefore not a passing trend, but a stable pillar of the industry’s development for years to come.

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