Though chatbots are the need of the hour and everybody is using them, there are a lot of complexities that surround them. And more than that, they are super challenging to create.
This is why Facebook is discontinuing some of its bots. Many bots are not performing their functions properly which further irritates people to the extent that they are discontinuing the services of the platform.
In the process of creating a bot, we forget that they are a consequence of our actions. They’re useful, but not magical. So the question is, what mistakes you must avoid while building a kickass chatbot?
1. Concept
Building a chatbot starts with having a concept. What problem do you want to solve with the chatbot? What are your business needs? Seldom people want to solve a specific business problem, but when they dig deeper they realize only 2% of their entire customer base has that problem. Hence, you must start with conceptualization of it.
Now that you’ve pondered over a real-life problem, you must strike out all the possibilities to achieve a solution to it. Doing so you’ll ensure every topic is covered and gives the developer a clear guideline about what needs to be done.
2. Not having a user-centric approach
In 2018, chatbots became the most employed trend as many companies jumped the bandwagon of creating and incorporating chatbots in their business processes without having a customer-centric approach.
A lot of first time bot creators create bots due to sheer excitement without actually paying attention to the user experience. Yet some of the ‘smart’ creators end up creating bots that talk to the customers and frustrate them—a terrible practice!
Don’t create a bot just for the heck of it or because you know how to create one. Brainstorm, why do you need a bot?
- What problems your customers face, and how can your bot solve it?
- How can you achieve that?
The ultimate goal of a bot isn’t to look cool, and it is to solve a specific problem. Put your efforts in that direction.
3. Training your bot properly
Training the bot is an essential thing while determining the performance. If you don’t train your bot, it’ll perform poorly and will end up frustrating users. Make a proper flow of the conceptualization and fill them with expression.
But always ensure that your bot understands the technical slang as well as the ordinary people’s conversation. You must include general keywords while training the bot. Along with that, use entities that extract relevant information that you can code.
4. Not introducing your bot
Imagine how frustrating it is for the customers to perceive they’re talking to humans and end up talking to bots. The worst part? You keep on asking questions which the bot isn’t designed to answer. This is why it is necessary to introduce your bot. Additionally, it’ll also make your customers aware that they’re talking to a bot, and it can make people go easier on you.
This might sound a lot for you, but introducing the bot will solve half of your problems. You need to use a few introductory sentences like,” I’m a bot; how can I help you today?”
Wrapping up
Since AI is transforming technology and creating bots is still under process, the best bet here is to set clear expectations right from the beginning. Along with that, train your bot to answer basic questions and keep a user-centric approach. For a review of the best companies who are into bot development, you can click here.