As the natural human response to a world of digital assistants and chatbots appears to be “Let’s talk about it”, the natural response of brands does indeed appear to be “Let’s have a conversation about it.” Or in other words: Let’s use conversational commerce as a means of selling things. And why not? Consumers love interacting with brands through artificial intelligence (AI). It provides them with useful information – when they need it – and makes their lives easier. So if we combine AI with commerce, then that should open up some exciting new opportunities for brands. Read on for more…
What Is Conversational Commerce?
Conversational commerce, or C-commerce, is a way to perform commerce using natural language. It is the next evolutionary step in online shopping after eCommerce and mCommerce. There are many ways in which brands can engage with you via natural language. But the most well-known of these is AI-based bots. The most widely used type is chatbots, which are programmed to respond to user requests – and generate their responses too. Other types of C-commerce include voice assistance and augmented reality (AR). These are based on natural language too but in different ways. Voice assistants are often similar to chatbots but take vocal requests rather than typed ones. AR is used to place digital products in the real world, while they’re being discussed.
Why Is Conversational Commerce Important?
As noted above, consumers love interacting with brands via AI. A recent study found that the majority of people prefer to start a conversation with a company via a bot – rather than a human agent. So businesses can appeal to a wider audience – and make more sales – by adopting conversational commerce. C-commerce is also more cost-effective than most other forms of advertising. And it’s not just consumers who benefit from it – businesses can experience benefits too. For example, more sales could help them to meet their goals quicker. Being the best at C-commerce could also help companies fend off competition. Because the most popular AI platforms are those that meet their customers’ needs the best. So if your brand doesn’t make the most of these tools, your competitors might. And that could lead to your company losing customers – and money.
How Does Conversational Commerce Work?
Let’s take a look at how a conversation between a brand and a customer might work. We’ll use the example of ordering a pizza via a chatbot. The customer types their request into their smartphone: “Can you please tell me where I can get a large pepperoni pizza?” The chatbot recognizes the request, and displays the options: “Hi, I can help you with that. You can order from Little Pizza Place, Little Pizza Hut, Little Pizza Slice, or Little Pizza Box. Which one would you like to order from?” The customer selects their choice, and the chatbot asks for more information: “What size would you like?” The customer enters their information, and the chatbot confirms the order: “Great. Your pepperoni pizza will be there in 30 minutes.”
Types Of Conversational Commerce
There are many different ways in which brands can use conversational commerce. The two most popular are chatbots and voice assistants. Chatbots are AI-powered software agents that live on messaging platforms like Facebook Messenger or your brand’s website. They’re designed to interact with users – and eventually become like virtual assistants. You can program them to respond to requests, and even make suggestions of their own. Voice assistants are like chatbots, but they live on your smartphone. They can be programmed to take voice commands, and are most useful in the car. They also have an advantage over chatbots in that they can understand natural language – rather than just programmed requests.
How Do You Implement Conversational Commerce?
There are five steps to implementing conversational commerce:
Choose a platform: The first step is to choose the platform your brand will use. This is the place where users will be able to engage with your brand via chat. There are many different options here, including Facebook, WeChat, and your website.
Build a bot: The next step is to build a bot. This is the virtual assistant that will respond to your customers and take their orders. Like any other AI, it requires a certain amount of programming. And there are plenty of tools out there to help you do this quickly and easily.
Build a campaign: At the same time as building your bot, you should also create an overarching campaign. This is a plan that outlines your brand’s goals. And it helps you decide which platforms you should use – and how you should use them.
Run the campaign: Once your bot and campaign are ready, it’s time to run the campaign. While it’s life, you should monitor it closely. This way, you can identify any areas for improvement – and make changes accordingly.
Conclude the campaign: Once your campaign is over, it’s time to conclude it. This means taking note of everything you learned from it – and deciding how you can use that information moving forward.
Summary
Conversational commerce is a way to perform commerce using natural language. It is the next evolutionary step in online shopping after eCommerce and mCommerce. There are many ways in which brands can engage with you via natural language. But the most well-known of these is AI-based bots. The most widely used type is chatbots, which are programmed to respond to user requests – and generate their responses too. Other types of C-commerce include voice assistance and augmented reality (AR). These are based on natural language too but in different ways. Voice assistants are often similar to chatbots but take vocal requests rather than typed ones. AR is used to place digital products in the real world, while they’re being discussed. By following these five steps, your brand can implement conversational commerce. End-to-end, it isn’t a simple process. But it can help you to meet your goals – and fend off competition at the same time.