If you’ve interacted with a business online, you’ve probably interacted with a chatbot at some point. Digital transformation means AI chatbots have grown from strength to strength, becoming incredibly reliable and effective methods of carrying out admin tasks and engaging customers.
A recent report predicted the most common reasons for engaging with a chatbot were:
- Getting quick answers in an emergency
- Resolving a complaint
- Getting detailed explanations to problems
It’s clear to see why chatbots and call center artifical intelligence are becoming the go-to-choice for businesses, then.
And one business type benefitting hugely from chatbots is home service providers, where customers require this level of support 24/7.
In this guide we’ll look at exactly how chatbots can help home service providers maximize their profits. But first, let’s look at what chatbots actually are.
What Exactly Are Chatbots?
Improvements in AI have led to many business processes being automated. From common HR tasks to automated mobile app testing, technology is making life easier for humans.
Chatbots exist in a few different forms. Some respond to button inputs, whilst others respond via keyword recognition. These types of chatbots will try and solve your problem by recognising inputs and finding the most appropriate solution.
Then there’s the more superior contextual chatbots. These bots utilize machine learning and AI to improve with each user interaction. Contextual chatbots can remember previous conversations and user details.
But in a nutshell, chatbots take a specific query from a user, interpret its meaning, and then give the best response to resolve it.
Ever sat on hold for 30 mins on the phone? Had to wait till Monday for an email response? Chatbots solve this by offering around-the-clock support for admin tasks usually undertaken by human staff (payments, queries, complaints, troubleshooting, etc.)
Businesses can utilize chatbots on their websites, social media pages, and messenger apps for instant solutions 24/7.
Chatbots For Home Service Providers
Home service providers communicate with customers more than many other businesses.
Customers often need help out-of-hours or in an emergency. And, with today’s more demanding and tech-savvy customers, they need fast solutions and top-notch service. Chatbots mitigate this problem by making sure there is always ‘someone’ there to help.
How Home Service Providers Can Use Chatbots
Now we know what chatbots offer, let’s explore some of the ways they can help home service providers boost their revenue.
Chatbots improve the customer experience
The chatbots of yesteryear were slightly awkward and basic. With only limited responses and a lack of understanding, they were hit and miss!
Today’s chatbots are a new breed. With Natural Language Processing (NLP), chatbots can mimic human understanding and conversations better than ever before. This means AI can give a faultless experience that is tailored to each individual, resulting in a superior customer experience.
For example, your boiler has broken down. You open the app to speak to a chatbot. The chatbot remembers your last conversation where you were advised on how to temporarily fix the problem. Just like a human would, the chatbot understands the next correct step is to send out an engineer. The chatbot also realizes your problem has worsened, and expresses apologies and reassurance.
By offering the best experience with chatbots, your customers are much more likely to stick around – becoming regular, repeat customers.
Chatbots increase new leads and customer retention rates
Growing your business means getting new customers – and keeping them. The problem is, many home service providers fall short when it comes to communication. This lessens the likelihood of attracting new customers and keeping existing ones happy.
Yes, ok. You’ve got your business’s phone number and email address on your ‘Contact Us’ page. But do you have staff working through the night to respond to calls and emails?
Customers need more in 2021. 57% of customers have hung up out of sheer frustration due to being on hold before – which is more than enough to ruin your chances of building new leads and keeping existing customers happy.
Chatbots instantly respond to requests, no matter the time. If someone has an emergency at 1am, no problem! A chatbot can offer support or even schedule a repair for the next day. Customers are going to favor you over other home service providers without chatbot support.
Also, some of the best automation software allows you to log user-chatbot interactions into your CRM. This way you can keep track of new leads, retention rates, and further insights to keep you ahead of the game.
Chatbots make for good reviews
In today’s market, reviews can be the difference between someone choosing you or a competitor. The good news? As we’ve mentioned above, chatbots lead to increased customer satisfaction, and that tends to lead to good reviews.
What’s more, chatbots can be tasked with collecting reviews themselves. After a sale or query has been completed, a pop-up chatbot can ask the user some questions for a review. Good software with sales marketing automation can process these reviews for insights, or automatically post them to your website.
Using chatbots in the review process is a great way to generate customer ratings and gain valuable customer feedback on your services.
Chatbots Save Costs and Resources
There are many costs and resources involved in being a home service provider.
For example, how much time do your customer service reps spend scheduling repairs or responding to the same queries over and over again? A hosted PBX for small business can offer a great solution, but chatbots go one step further.
By using chatbots, there’s no need to hire extra staff or even pay staff to undertake repetitive tasks in the first place. This is a great way to save time and money, as well as let your existing staff focus on the work that needs a human touch.
And now, chatbots can even help with more difficult tasks, like payments or bookings, by integrating with other software such as BPaaS automation.
Chatbots Keep Customers Feeling In Control
Customers know what they want, and how they want it. Chatbots can tap into this to keep customers feeling in control whilst you keep smashing those KPIs.
Ok, not every customer is going to be impressed right away by your super-friendly and helpful chatbot. But when they realize the control it gives them over traditional phone calls or emails, they might just change their mind.
Whether it’s changing their billing information, asking a question, or renewing a contract, chatbots give customers the freedom to make their own changes whenever they want to. No longer must they phone back tomorrow or wait until your accounts team is available to talk.
By utilizing chatbots, customers gain a sense of power and feel in control of important decisions. It also shows that as a home service provider, you’ve gone the extra mile by having around-the-clock chatbot support. With these perks, revenue will certainly improve.
So what now?
Artificial Intelligence is here to streamline business processes and increase revenue. For home service providers, chatbots offer an excellent use of AI that is sure to increase revenue and keep everyone happy.
With the chatbot market set to reach $10.5 billion by 2026, more and more businesses are likely to invest. So get involved now to make sure you’re chatbot ready and ahead of the competition!
