Want to build a chatbot for Facebook?
How about a chatbot for your website?
They actually might end up being the same chatbot! Learn it all in this article.
Remember the saying, “there’s an app for that?”
There was a time when that was absolutely true – seemingly every business was getting into the app game.
While apps are convenient in some ways, they can easily eat up room on your phone, computer, etc.
Which is why more businesses are entering the Chatbot business.
Chatbots are designed to offer all the ease and service of an app, without downloading or storing.
What is a Chatbot for Facebook or Chatbot For a Website?
I’m glad you asked.
Because whether you realized it at the time or not, you’ve more than likely interacted with one.
Chatbots are the boxes that pop up on websites and social sites to connect you with a company’s customer service.
Technically, the bots are software that’s designed to automate certain tasks and communicate with customers.
Often powered by artificial intelligence, they can interact with customers or clients via a chat box interface.
Chatbots serve a variety of purposes – some fun, some functional, some informational.
For example, if you go to an insurance website, a chatbot may appear to ask if they can help you with something. You type in any questions concerning your policy, and they reply accordingly.
Or, maybe you’re shopping on on site like Zappos.com – a huge online retailer primarily for shoes. Rather than browse through the listings to find what you’re looking for, a chatbot could pop up.
You have a quick conversation describing what you’re looking for, and the bot pulls the matches. (Example only – This doesn’t actually exist on Zappos yet, but very well could in the future.)
So, that’s an example of a shopping bot. Other bots could include:
- News bots: inform you when major news happens
- Travel bots: deliver train or bus timetables
- Cooking bots – gives cooking tips and advice
- Banking/personal finance bots – transfers and helps manage money
- Advice bots – tell it your problems and will help with a solution
These are just a few examples of the many kinds of chatbots available.
Chatbot for Facebook
In April 2016, Facebook launched its Messenger platform, which allowed businesses to build their own custom bots in Messenger.
With the Messenger app being the second most popular in iOS, this was pretty big news.
Rather than waiting for customers to come to their sites, businesses with bots have access to the 900 million monthly active users on the app.
Even better, it largely the eliminated the need for many businesses to have their own apps. Instead, they can provide their own services and interactions through messenger app.
Another unique aspect of Messenger bots is that they use Facebook’s wit.ai Bot Engine, which allows bots to understand conversational language as well as learn from it.
Basically, it means that over time your bot will continue to gain intelligence through interactions.
Chatbot for Facebook Examples
Some examples of businesses successfully using bots in Messenger include:
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CNN
The bot will send users top stories every day, or you can ask it about a specific topic you would like to learn more about.
Get Started: Type in “news today” and will respond with a list of the top stories.
Or, type in a subject like “politics” and will return with specific news related to the subject.
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Greatist
Greatist is a lifestyle bot that will send you a new healthy idea to try every day.
Get Started: Greatist makes the first move, offering to send you daily ideas. Respond positively, and the idea’s yours. Don’t like it? Choose to skip the day or be sent a new one.
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Blink
The Blink bot’s purpose is to keep you productive. Create a to-do list through the bot and it will send you daily reminders to stay on track.
Get Started: Blink’s suggestion is to start with “drink water.” Type it in, and it’s number one on the list. Continue to add tasks (exercise, buy milk, call mom, etc.), assign a time to them, and Blink will keep sending timely reminders.
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GymBot
GymBot helps set and obtain fitness goals by tracking your training efforts. Sample routines include ab workouts, bodyweight routines, weight splits, plank challenges and more.
Get Started: Choose whether you want to see routines or if you need help with tracking.
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DuoLingo
DuoLingo’ already has a popular app dedicated to helping people learn new languages, but its chatbot lets you translate words and phrases on the go – quick and easy.
Get Started: Select the language of your choice and respond with whatever words or phrases you need translated.
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Kayak
You’re probably familiar with the Kayak travel site – it connects travelers with flights, hotels, car rentals, etc. all over the world. Now, it’s even easier with its chatbot.
Get started: Find flights by typing in your starting location, destination and timeframe, and it will pull all available flights with a simple click of the “send” button.
And many, many more.
Should I build a Chatbot for Facebook or Website?
More and more businesses are turning to chatbots, and for good reason.
One of the biggest advantages chatbots over apps and other software is how intuitive it is to use.
Customers don’t have to take the time to search or learn how to interact, they simply have a conversation. And if done well, it can be an entertaining one at that.
They don’t have to call a representative or search Google for answers – the answers are right there.
Beyond that, it’s a great way to add a human element to your brand.
Rather than leave visitors with a bland or otherwise ordinary online experience, a chatbot can provide a little personality – funny, nice, deadpan or otherwise (check out the one on Ash Ambirge’s website to see what I mean.)
Another thing? When someone interacts with your bot through Facebook Messenger, you’ll receive their full name, language preference, timezone and gender from Facebook.
As the person interacts more with your bot, you’ll continuously learn more about them and push them down the sales funnel.
And anything that makes getting lead information easier is worth a try in my book.
Of course, before jumping you need to make sure you have the capabilities to support a bot.
Ask yourself:
- What is the purpose of your bot? What will it provide users, and how is it unique from others in your industry?
- Do you have time to monitor and answer inquiries your bot can’t?
- Can you fit promotion, testing and monitoring into your marketing plan?
If you have clear positive answers to the questions above, it’s time to build a bot.
Luckily, there are a lot of platforms out there to help you do it.
Chatbot for Facebook and Website Platforms
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Botsify
Botsify is a popular platform that works for Facebook Messenger and websites. Set up is easy with a drag and drop formula, making it more accessible for those without developers on hand.
One of its notable features is the human takeover. If your bot can’t answer a customer question, it can easily turn the conversation over to a human.
You can monitor conversations, and take over when needed with a click.
It provides in-app integration and can be used on websites, with Amazon Alexa and Google Home.
Brands like Apple, Shazam, UNICEF and more are using Botsify. Your first chatbot is free; for more you’ll have to sign up for a payment plan.
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Chatfuel
Chatfuel is another extremely popular platform that allows you to build bots without any coding knowledge.
It’s currently the largest platform for supplying Facebook Messenger chatbots, used for over 300,000 bots, including Adidas, Buzzfeed, TechCrunch and more.
Like Botsify, it’s a drag and drop formula so you can easily add video, buttons, images, etc. to your interface.
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Motion.ai
Another easy to use platform to build bots, Motion.ai separates itself with its flowchart setup, designed to let you see how a conversation could play out with potential visitors.
There’s also big news at Motion.ai – HubSpot recently acquired the platform, meaning that companies using this service will be able to integrate with HubSpot’s other marketing and sales software.
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Flow XO
Easy to use and set up for the even the least tech savvy, Flow XO’s real claim to fame is its impressive number of integrations – over 100.
It also offers pre-built templates you can customize to your liking, and you can use the same bot for multiple platforms.
These few are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to building Chatbots for Facebook and websites.
Other popular platforms include:
- Bottr
- Chattypeople
- Recast.ai
- Drift
Build Your Chatbot For Facebook or Chatbot for Website Today
Hopefully, now you see the ease and convenience a chatbot can provide not only your business, but your customers as well.
No more clunky apps or timely phone calls – an easy to setup chatbot on Facebook Messenger or your website can field questions and provide users with a relevant, interactive brand experience.
