What they do
An AI website chatbot answers visitor questions in a chat window. Modern chatbots use AI language models to understand questions in everyday language and respond naturally, often using information from your website or documents.
Potential benefits
- Answers common questions at any hour
- Collects contact details from interested visitors
- Helps visitors find the right page or service
- Reduces repetitive phone calls
Potential problems
Chatbots can give wrong answers, especially about prices, availability, or policies. A poorly set up chatbot can frustrate customers and damage trust.
Set clear boundaries
Limit the chatbot to topics it can answer reliably. Make it easy to reach a real person, and have it hand off complex or sensitive questions.
Keep information updated
The chatbot is only as accurate as the information it uses. Update it when services or policies change.
Be transparent
Let visitors know they're chatting with an automated assistant.
Decide based on volume
If you get many repetitive questions online, a chatbot may help. If most customers call or prefer personal contact, focus first on faster human responses.
Test before launching
Before putting a chatbot on your site, ask it the twenty questions customers ask most often, plus a few tricky ones. Note any wrong or vague answers and fix the underlying information. Repeat the test whenever you update services or policies.
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