E-commerce chatbot ultimate guide

As e-commerce grows, you must witness significant incoming customer queries and online purchases. You should rely on automation to deal with this ongoing flux and ease the burden on your customer support team.  An e-commerce chatbot might be just the tool you need.

An e-commerce chatbot is a virtual sales assistant that helps customers browse your products, answer the most frequent questions and order directly from the WhatsApp app.

To stay on top of your customers' needs, integrate WhatsApp API and build a chatbot that will assist you in skyrocketing your revenues.

Why is a WhatsApp chatbot essential?

A chatbot is typically an automated conversation companion. It’s used on all digital platforms to help with customer service and incoming queries. It’s a service as old as technology! But what if there’s more to this virtual assistant?

Well, a WhatsApp chatbot is just the upgrade you need for your e-commerce store. It’s more than just a robot; it’s your sales representative, customer support, and marketing team all in one!

Here are the top reasons you need to rely on a WhatsApp chatbot:

Efficiency

One of the reasons why customers love using a chatbot is that it’s always available. It’s like a personal assistant to each customer. Indeed, a chatbot will respond to queries and guide customers 24/7, unlike human agents restricted by work hours and personal needs. Providing immediate replies will enhance response time and decrease wait time, increasing customer satisfaction.

Besides, a WhatsApp chatbot is the meeting point of all your communication channels. Whether people reach out to you from Facebook, Instagram, or your website, you can easily redirect them to your WhatsApp inbox, thanks to WhatsApp entry points. (details below) The result is pre-eminent, data-driven, and insightful customer assistance.

Save on customer service costs

E-commerce chatbots will likely help customers with 80% of their queries, calling for minimal interference from human agents. You can save a fortune by cutting expenditures on customer service.

Chatbots will come in handy in your efforts for customer retention. The process will be much easier thanks to automation and self-service, which means no need for many human agents again.

Boost sales

An e-commerce chatbot, as we said, is a sales assistant. This assistant is available 24/7 and is just one click away. It will retain customers and help drive them down the funnel.

An e-commerce chatbot will help your customer shop directly from the WhatsApp storefront. They will not have to juggle between different web pages or social media accounts.

In addition, the chatbot will register your leads' contact information whether they purchase, create a cart, or even initiate a conversation. This will allow you to launch retargeting campaigns to optimize your revenue per acquired lead.

Well, isn’t the e-commerce chatbot promising? Let’s determine how you will make the most of this assistant.  

How to attract customers to your WhatsApp chatbot?

Check these 6 list building strategies for e-commerce

For your chatbot to succeed in attracting leads, you must first plan a strategy to promote it. First, let your audience know you have the service available, and then brainstorm tactics to lure them in.

We will help you get started with your chatbot use cases, but first things first! Let’s build awareness.

Promote your chatbot

There is no lack of methods to promote your WhatsApp chatbot. The best part is that you are probably using some variation of these methods. Then, all you have to do is adjust to WhatsApp requirements.

Social media ads that click to WhatsApp

You must know that pushing people to chat with you is one of e-commerce’s oldest strategies to attract leads and qualify them. Traditionally, click-to-chat ads on social media did the trick. But, unfortunately, messenger and Instagram DMs are losing momentum.

The best alternative is to send people to your WhatsApp account. Ads that click to WhatsApp allow you to direct potential leads to your WhatsApp account, where you can nurture them thanks to the chatbot or human agents.

Besides, Meta decreased the cost of ads that click to WhatsApp by 50% compared to other types. You will be spending less and winning more leads since the app is already a favorite among your target audience.

Social media profile buttons

You can promote your WhatsApp chatbot in the profile section on your social media accounts. Simply add a WhatsApp button instead of the messenger button on Facebook, for instance.

As for Instagram, you can add a link in your bio section or, as of recently, add a button. This option is visible only on mobile display, though. Again, these WhatsApp buttons will entice people to click since they already use the app and don’t have to wait for far-fetched customer support on messaging apps they no longer rely on.

Website widget

You might be familiar with the live chat widget usually installed on websites. But what if we tell you there’s a better version of that service?

Embed a WhatsApp widget on your website and direct your leads directly to your inbox on WhatsApp. The first version of the chatbot might help with frequently asked questions, but it cannot compete with your e-commerce chatbot.

First, the WhatsApp widget will help you enhance your customer database, as the chatbot will automatically register all contact information.

Second, the WhatsApp widget is free and lets you keep the conversation open even after the lead leaves your website.

QR codes

One of the easiest ways to promote your WhatsApp chatbot is to use QR codes. You can place them everywhere: on your product packages, social media ads, offline ads, etc. once scanned, QR codes will direct the customer to your WhatsApp inbox, where a guided chatbot will help them discover your brand or get to know it better.

Website “ WhatsApp Us” buttons

Conversational e-commerce is the key to driving sales and winning customers. Promotions on your website don’t have to lack communication. For example, you might include a phone number on your website ads, but who is still calling businesses, especially when they know they will not get a quick answer?

The optimal solution is to include a WhatsApp button in your website ads, be it a pop-up, a landing page call-to-action, or anything else you have in mind.

There will be ample opportunities to qualify your leads once they arrive in your inbox.

Deploying these entry points will help you quickly raise awareness on your WhatsApp chatbot. Also, you can prepare a predefined message to track where leads are coming from and provide answers per the customers’ needs by customizing your chatbot menu.

Check these 19 tactics to build a WhatsApp contact list for e-commerce.

Still, what tactics can you use to bring customers to your inbox?

E-commerce chatbot use cases to attract leads

Product Promotions

Promoting your products is easier said than done. Conversational e-commerce could solve any loss of interest or friction in brand awareness and product promotions. Your ads might work perfectly, and they might as well fail their target. When promoting your products, redirect leads to your WhatsApp account and let your chatbot handle the process. It can effectively guide leads through the funnel.

Still, if they do not purchase anything, you can retarget them with subsequent promotions and marketing campaigns since you’ve got their contact information registered.

Quizzes

Gamify your communication with quizzes by creating competitions, asking questions, and letting your target audience send you the correct answer on WhatsApp to win a gift, a coupon, or a discount code. Quizzes have high conversion rates and will definitely bring you significant leads

Coupons

Sharing coupons is a successful way to attract people to contact you. Everyone loves a good coupon now and then. You can promote a coupon on your social media accounts and invite your audience to WhatsApp you to receive the coupon code. Predefined messages will help you customize the chatbot accordingly and provide people with the necessary information.

Giveaways

Giveaways are the one tactic that will always bring leads to your inbox. Who doesn’t like free stuff? Traditionally, you would ask your audience to leave a comment or like the page to participate in your offer. Instead, all you have to do to drive people to your WhatsApp chatbot is add a WhatsApp button with a CTA. Of course, you can customize this however you want. For instance, you can follow up with a discount campaign for those who did not win.

These tactics and others, think out of the box, will help you build a significant customer database and gather helpful information on your leads. This data will be extremely valuable in determining the content of your chatbot and how to grow your business.

The e-commerce Chatbot content

As we said earlier, an e-commerce chatbot is more sophisticated than a regular live chatbot. It doesn’t just book appointments or send reminders. Instead, the e-commerce chatbot assists with customer service, sales, and post-sales support.

So, what content should you include to power your chatbot and drive growth?

Product Catalog and collections

You can use this version of the virtual assistant to promote your products. With WhatsApp API, you can easily integrate your Facebook catalog and automatically manage inventory.

Better yet, your customer can browse your online shelves, discover your products, and order directly from the WhatsApp app.

You can categorize your products to make navigating them easier for our customers. The chatbot will guide your customers and send them collections or single product messages to discover similar items or one item per their choice.

The Kartly WhatsApp inbox provides an exportable catalog report that tracks gained revenue and orders created, allowing you to stay on top of your growth data.

Here's how to connect your Facebook catalog with WhatsApp

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Customer service/ FAQ

Now that you know the essential functions of an e-commerce chatbot, let’s dive into some other services that are still vital to your store.

Customer service is part and partial of e-commerce 101. When you are not promoting your products or trying to grow your customer database, you still need your WhatsApp chatbot to answer frequently asked questions and assist people in every way possible.

The chatbot will answer all inquiries timely and effectively. So whenever a customer worries about their order, wants to check their pending delivery, or needs any other transactional or other services, they will receive valuable assistance from your bot.

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How to re-engage users with automation?

Check these WhatsApp marketing for e-commerce: 29 use cases

An e-commerce chatbot’s first and foremost function is to sell your products.  But what shall you do if your leads are not buying?

Well, here comes the power of integration and marketing automation in handy. Previously collected information is your weapon to win customers' loyalty and drive revenues. So let’s figure out how.

Cart abandonment notifications

Statistics show that almost seven out of 10 shoppers abandon their carts for various reasons. So naturally, that is detrimental to your store. Thanks to automation, WhatsApp API can help you address this problem effectively.

Simply set an automated flow that can be triggered whenever a customer abandons their cart.  Sometimes, a reminder is all it takes to win the person back. Offering discounts, of course, or other incentives will help convince the customer to come back and finish the purchase.

Product recommendations

To retain customers, you must first understand their preferences, likes, and dislikes. Then, you can use your analytics to understand the customer’s behavior and customize the chatbot to ask the right questions. The purchase history is one way to dig deeper and get an in-depth view of your customers.

Use your collected information to send personalized recommendations relevant to the customers’ needs and interests. For instance, cross-sell, and upsell messages have high conversion rates and will likely boost your sales beyond expectations.

Remember, product recommendations aim to provide value to the user, so focus on providing helpful and relevant suggestions.

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Seasonal campaigns

WhatsApp API allows you to send unlimited seasonal marketing campaigns with relevant offers. Analyzing the data you collected and understanding your customers based on your conversations can be very helpful in crafting a campaign that will convert.

You can customize your chatbot specifically for each campaign to provide relevant advice and suitable answers per your customers' expectations.

Personal offers

Conversational commerce allows you to build a personal rapport with your customers. Then, you can continue to build on these relationships with customized offers so that your customers feel they matter and increase loyalty and satisfaction at the same time.

Using automation, send birthday offers, for instance. In addition, quick reorders are one more way to tailor your service to the needs of your leads.

Automation will make your task easier and more profitable. You just need to understand your customers first and provide them with timely and useful information, all of which is within reach, thanks to the e-commerce chatbot.