Messenger Chatbot is another breakthrough in today’s innovating trends when it comes to business. Since their introduction in the year 2016, chatbots have proven to bring significant impacts on entertainment, communication, and most especially on various fields of businesses. It helped business owners provide excellent customer services, as well as expand their businesses by growing customer base.

What is a chatbot?

As defined by Techopedia, A chatbot is an artificial intelligence (AI) program that simulates interactive human conversation by using key pre-calculated user phrases and auditory or text-based signals.

Bots we know today started in 1950 with the idea of the Computer Scientist Alan Turing. He asked the question, “can machines think?” and then developed the Turing test. He theorized that there is a high possibility wherein humans won’t be able to distinguish a mechanism in a conversation which only contains text. In the Turing Test, Alan Turing challenged other computer scientist and some of his students to create a machine that could think the same way as humans. Or at least a machine that can’t be distinguished by humans.

In 1966 the first thinking machine named ELIZA was created. It has then set the basis for building chatbots that are being used today, such as specific phrases, keywords, and pre-programmed responses. After ELIZA, other bots have followed such as PARRY, Jabberwacky, ALICE, and Dr. Sbaitso.

In 2001, SmarterChild was introduced. It was considered as the predecessor of Apple’s Siri, Samsung’s S Voice, and Amazon’s Alexa. All this said bots don’t just give fun conversations, but also play music, search the web, and compose a message, depending on what the users want.

Nowadays, business owners started to include chatbots on their websites. And in the year 2016, Facebook introduced a messaging platform that supports the use of bots. It enabled developers to create bots that will interact with thousands of users of Facebook.

Where is Messenger Chatbot Used?

There are a lot of chatbots existing as of today, which have several different purposes. With its integration to the Facebook messenger, thousands of users use messenger bot in many different ways. Here are some of the top uses of messenger chatbot:

1. Suggesting Products

All customers know that they want something but can’t think of a specific product in mind. Messenger chatbot can be used to suggest customers certain products based on their preference in terms of brand, material, and color, also considering their budget.

Let’s say a customer wants to buy a watch, but can’t decide what to purchase. The customer can talk to a messenger chatbot and type the description of the watch they want. The messenger chatbot shall then show the customer options of watches that are relevant to what they want.

2. Give assistance in terms of Finance

To make it clear, messenger chatbot won’t give you actual money. However, it can help you track your investments and your personal finances. It can notify users regarding the latest news about the stock market, as well as to help make trades. In addition, even some banks today created chatbots that enable users to check their bank accounts and even their latest transactions.

3. For travel

There are a lot of chatbots today that can be used when you want to travel. These chatbots can show you several tourist destinations around the world. In addition, some chatbot can enable you to book flights and find places for you to stay.

One messenger chatbot for traveling to check out is the Hipmunk. All you have to do is send your location, and it shall show you all the destinations near you, or even international destinations if you wish.

4. Tracking Flights

After finding an ideal place to go to, there are chatbots that can help you to find and track flights. These chatbots shall give you options for flights where you can compare and select the most appropriate flight based on your budget and schedule.

5. Order foods

Chatbots can also be used to order foods, such as pizzas, burgers, and other more foods that you are craving to eat. All it takes is one conversation with a chatbot and just wait for your order to be delivered.

One excellent example of a messenger chatbot where you can order food is the Domino’s chatbot. It allows you to make your own pizza with just simple clicks, or order pizzas on their standard menu. You can now satisfy your cravings without the hassle of going out.

6. Productivity

There are chatbots that can help you in terms of productivity. These chatbots can remind you of the tasks you need to do. You just simply type in the thing you need to be reminded about and set a specific time. Some chatbots also provide services wherein you can track your schedule and even set-up meetings.

There is also a messenger chatbot which enables you to print documents with printers that are connected online. Moreover, there are also chatbots that can help you find your most-awaited dream job. Very convenient, isn’t it? You can now be the most productive person you could ever be.

7. News

Chatbots can also bring you the latest breaking news, not only in your country but international news as well. In addition, if you subscribed, these chatbots will send you articles, stories, and headlines which are relevant to your interests. You will be regularly updated and won’t miss any important news happening around you.

8. Finding Music

Chatbots not only can inform you of the latest news but the latest music as well. Chatbots can keep you updated about everything inside the music world. You can build your playlist, find new songs, and know the details about your favorite singers and songwriters.

One interesting messenger chatbot for music lovers is the Scope Bot. Scope Bot enables you to search for a song just by typing in a part of the lyrics that you remember. Results will be shown to you together with the title, singer, release date and the recording studio. If the song is not the one you are searching for, you just type “wrong,” and it shall show you more results until you find the right one.

9. For amusement

There are lots of messenger chatbot games in which you can play in times of boredom. Whether you want to play as a detective, soccer player, or even mage who wants to slay dragons, there is a gaming messenger chatbot for you. These chatbots are the perfect instrument to pass the time, in addition, will offer fun and amusing conversations. There are also chatbots which helps you to connect with the right person and may help you find your true love. Interesting, isn’t it?

10. For Business

This is now the latest trend and by far the best use of chatbots. A lot of businesses now use chatbots to provide better customer services. Chatbots allow businesses to have a deeper connection with their customers, in addition, chatbots enable business owners to attract more potential customers.

There is indeed a lot of use of messenger chatbots. The list above is just the most important use of chatbots in our life, and there are even more purposes where chatbots can be used. Want to start exploring chatbots? By clicking here, we will show you a list of best chatbot of Facebook messenger that might interest you.

The Perks of Using Messenger Chatbots in Business

As indicated in the list above, the best use of chatbot nowadays is for business use. Especially now that Facebook supports the use of chatbots, business owners find it a lot easier to connect with consumers. According to statistics, there is a total of 2.38 billion monthly active users of Facebook worldwide as of today. Imagine getting at least 3% of those monthly active users as your regular customers. You would already have more than enough customer pool to bring your business to the top and make it last for ages.

With the use of Facebook messenger chatbot, you can boost your marketing strategy significantly. Moreover, you can provide better customer services, as messenger chatbot can respond to the customer in an instant. If a messenger chatbot is designed properly, you will be able to save a lot of money, as well as maximize your time to attend more important matters of your business.

Messenger chatbot can work tirelessly and interact simultaneously with several different customers at the same time. Chatbots are immune to diseases making them a 100 percent efficient worker. Furthermore, creating a personalized chatbot shall engage customers in more interesting conversation, making them more interested in your product. Chatbot shall retain all your current customers and acquire more potential customers as well, giving you more opportunity to increase conversions.

As of today, chatbots prove to be very beneficial to businesses. Surely it will bring more advantages and become an essential component for every business in the future. Now is the time to start your business venture with your own chatbot. Unsure where to start? Don’t worry! In Herobot, we shall guide you in every step to building your own messenger chatbot that will outrank your competitors and bring your business to the top.