Chat bots – Game Changers

Over the last few months, there has been a lot said about chat bots. Chat bots have come to the fore this year as large technology companies like Facebook, Slack and Telegram have adopted them in a big way. Google at its recently held Google I/O 2016, introduced to the world, its smartest messenger yet called ‘Allo’. Allo is integrated with Google Assistant, or Google’s alternative to bots.

Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons Ltd, has invested in Niki.ai, a start-up that offers a chat-bot for users to perform transactions. With the increase in announcements and investments in companies developing Chat bots, it only tells us one thing - Chat bots are here to stay.

Chat bots are the latest evolution in technologies that are focussed on changing the way consumers interact with companies. If bots turn out to be the way firms like Facebook, Google and Microsoft expect - it could transform the digital landscape by allowing smartphone users to find information or make purchases with simple text messages, bypassing apps and search engines.

Chat bots provide one-stop-shop for most of your needs. It is going to define how your consumer interacts with your product or service. Whether you want to book movie tickets, order pizza, pay your rent, pay your bills or buy new shoes, chatbots are here to serve you. The reason for this is because of their ability to access multiple apps within a single convenient interface.

For example, the Assist chatbot aggregates apps such as GrubHub, Eat24, Uber, Lyft, Olset, StubHub, Flowers.com, and more, so you can order a ride, book a hotel, get something to eat, and even order flowers for your significant other just by messaging Assist via Facebook Messenger, Slack, Telegram, or SMS.

The trend of people using fewer apps and spending more time on chat platforms has given rise to the ‘botshop’ concept. Bots marketplaces like botlist.co, botsvector.com, etc., list all kinds of Chat bots to help consumers to perform their tasks more efficiently and cost effectively. For instance, ‘AppsOnChat’s’ bot ‘ACE’, is an intelligent day to day task manager on Slack, which manages every day tasks efficiently and easily.

Chat bots are the game changers in consumer – company interaction and it is clear that bots are here to stay. It is a natural extension of how consumers are used to doing things.

Reference: [https://www.business.com/customer-service/got-chatbot-how-small-businesses-are-using-bot-technology/]