Here are the best chatbots to streamline your operations and personalize your customer interactions
Are you looking for ways to automate tasks and improve customer support for your business? Chatbots might be the solution you need. These computer programs mimic human conversation, making it easy for people to interact with online services using natural language. With so many options on the market, it can be difficult to choose the right one. That’s why Forbes Advisor has analyzed the top providers to find the best chatbots for a variety of business applications.
In this article, you’ll find a summary of the best chatbots for business in 2024, including HubSpot Chatbot Builder, Intercom, Drift, Salesforce Einstein, WP-Chatbot, LivePerson, and Genesys DX. We’ll also provide you with information on what to look for in a chatbot and answer frequently asked questions. With this information, you’ll be able to make an informed decision and choose the best chatbot for business.
The Best Chatbots of 2024
Looking for the best chatbot for your business? Check out these top options:
- HubSpot Chatbot Builder: The most user-friendly chatbot builder
- Intercom: The best chatbot for customization
- Drift: The best sales chatbot
- Salesforce Einstein: The best for Salesforce users
- WP-Chatbot: The best for WordPress sites
- LivePerson: The best for omnichannel messaging
- Genesys DX: The best for natural language processing
Choose the chatbot that suits your needs and start improving your customer experience today.
Most User-friendly Chatbot Builder
HubSpot Chatbot Builder
If you’re looking for an easy-to-use chatbot builder that doesn’t require any coding knowledge, HubSpot Chatbot Builder is a great option. As part of the Sales Hub, you can get started with it for free.
With HubSpot Chatbot Builder, you can create chatbot windows that match the look and feel of your website or product. The chatbot sequences are natural and personalized, thanks to the data that you can pull directly from your customer relationship management (CRM).
Who should use it:
HubSpot Chatbot Builder is a great option for businesses of all sizes that want to automate tasks such as booking meetings and qualifying leads. You can also visit www.talkie-ai.com to learn about other reliable AI Chatbots.
Pros:
- Pulls data from your CRM for personalized messages
- Requires no coding
- Setup takes only a few minutes
Cons:
- Limited to HubSpot Sales Hub users
In summary, if you’re looking for a user-friendly chatbot builder that doesn’t require any coding knowledge, HubSpot Chatbot Builder is an excellent option. It’s a great choice for businesses of all sizes that want to automate tasks and personalize their chatbot messages.
Best Chatbot for Customization
Intercom
Intercom’s Resolution Bot is a great option for businesses of all sizes that need a high degree of customization for their chatbots. The pricing for this chatbot is custom, except for very small businesses, who will pay at least $74 per month when billed annually. This pricing model includes customized logos, custom email templates, dynamic audience targeting, and integrations.
Intercom offers a range of add-ons, including product tours, WhatsApp, and surveys. Its solutions for larger businesses include features for support, engagement, and conversion. One of the advantages of Intercom is that it offers Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) support for Enterprise businesses.
Pros:
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) support for Enterprise businesses
- Custom bots
- Smart lead qualification
Cons:
- Pricing isn’t transparent
- Add-ons can be pricey
Overall, Intercom’s Resolution Bot is a great option for businesses that need a high degree of customization for their chatbots, but the pricing can be a bit opaque.
Best Sales Chatbot
Drift
If you are looking for a sales chatbot, Drift is a great option. Drift is an AI bot that helps businesses qualify leads and book meetings. One of the best things about Drift is that it comes with a customer success manager, strategy reviews, onboarding, and chat support. This means that you can get help every step of the way.
Drift’s Deal Room feature allows you to bring in other team members to discreetly help close a sale. This is a great feature for training new sales representatives. Drift also has more than 50 native integrations and can connect to more than 500 third-party tools using Zapier.
Pros:
- Each plan comes with a customer success manager
- Drift Deal Room
- A/B testing
Cons:
- Pricing isn’t transparent
Overall, Drift is a great option for businesses of all sizes that are looking for a sales chatbot, especially those that need help qualifying leads and booking meetings.
Best for Salesforce Users
Salesforce Einstein
If you’re a Salesforce user, then Salesforce Einstein might be the perfect chatbot for you. It’s specifically designed to help you make the most out of your Salesforce experience. The chatbot can find information about leads and customers without ever leaving the comfort of the CRM.
Salesforce Einstein is ideal for businesses of all sizes that use Salesforce and need a chatbot to help them get the most out of their CRM. It’s best used for customer support, but it can also be used for sales and marketing tasks. Additionally, there’s an Einstein Bot Framework that businesses can use to create their own bots.
Pros & Cons
Here are some of the pros and cons of using Salesforce Einstein:
- Works across your Salesforce channels
- Automatic triage and routing
- Offers a free trial
- Only available as part of Salesforce Service Cloud
- Plans and pricing can be confusing
Overall, Salesforce Einstein is a great chatbot for Salesforce users who want to streamline their customer support and sales processes. However, the pricing structure can be a bit confusing, so it’s important to do your research before committing to a plan.
Best for WordPress Sites
WP-Chatbot
If you have a WordPress site and need a chatbot to help engage with website visitors, WP-Chatbot is a great option. With its easy one-click WordPress install, you can create custom greetings for your visitors and start engaging with them right away.
One of the key benefits of WP-Chatbot is that conversation history stays in a user’s Facebook inbox, reducing the need for a separate CRM. Additionally, team members can access conversations and interact right through Facebook, making it easy to stay on top of customer inquiries.
However, it’s important to note that WP-Chatbot is limited to WordPress sites and requires a Facebook business page. Also, the branding options are somewhat limited.
Overall, WP-Chatbot is a great option for businesses of all sizes that have WordPress sites and want to engage with website visitors through a chatbot. Plus, it’s free and easy to install, making it a convenient choice for those who don’t know how to code.
Best for Omnichannel Messaging
LivePerson
If you’re looking for an omnichannel messaging platform to engage with your customers across channels, LivePerson is a great option. While it’s best known for its live chat capabilities, it offers much more than that.
One thing that sets LivePerson apart is its focus on self-learning and Natural Language Understanding (NLU). This means that it can learn from previous interactions and improve future ones, making it a great option for businesses that want to improve their customer engagement. Additionally, LivePerson offers engagement insights, which can help businesses understand how to best engage with their customers.
LivePerson’s Conversational Cloud allows businesses to create bots and message flows without ever having to code, which is a great feature for those who don’t have coding experience. However, it’s important to note that LivePerson’s pricing isn’t transparent, which may be a drawback for some businesses.
Overall, LivePerson is a great option for businesses of all sizes that need an omnichannel messaging platform to engage with their customers.
Best for Natural Language Processing
Genesys DX
If you’re looking for a chatbot platform that excels in Natural Language Processing (NLP), Genesys DX is a great choice. This platform allows businesses to create bots that can understand human language and respond accordingly.
One of the standout features of Genesys DX is its focus on engagement. It offers engagement history, which helps businesses understand how customers interact with their chatbots. This can be incredibly valuable for improving the customer experience and increasing customer satisfaction.
Who should use it:
If you need a chatbot platform with strong NLP capabilities to help you understand human language and respond accordingly, Genesys DX is a great option. It’s suitable for businesses of all sizes.
Pros:
- Powerful Natural Language Processing (NLP) capabilities
- Tons of prebuilt conversations
- Free trial
- Customizable branding
Cons:
- Pricing isn’t transparent
What To Look for in a Chatbot
When choosing a chatbot, it is important to consider your needs. Determine what you need the chatbot for, whether it is for customer support, sales, or marketing. Once you have identified your needs, you can narrow down your options.
Integrations are another important factor to consider. Check if the chatbot can integrate with the tools and platforms you already use. This will save you a lot of time and effort.
Multilingual support is also crucial, especially if you have customers or employees who speak different languages. Make sure the chatbot can understand and respond in those languages.
Lastly, consider the price. Chatbots can range from free to thousands of dollars per month. Determine your budget and choose a chatbot that fits within it. Keep in mind that a higher price does not always guarantee better quality.
Methodology
To determine the best chatbots for small businesses, you analyzed the top providers in the industry using various metrics. These included pricing, plan options, ease of use, and key features such as prebuilt conversation templates, AI-powered chatbots, and natural language processing. Additionally, you considered user reviews and customer support to gain insight into the actual customer experience. This comprehensive analysis allowed you to confidently identify the top chatbot providers for small businesses.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a Chatbot?
A chatbot is a computer program designed to simulate human conversation. It is used by businesses to automate tasks such as customer support, sales, and marketing. Chatbots can be embedded on a website to engage with customers.
How do Chatbots Work?
Chatbots use natural language processing (NLP) to understand human language and respond accordingly. They can be programmed to respond to specific keywords or phrases. Chatbots can be integrated with a website to provide 24/7 customer support, sales and marketing.
What are some of the Benefits of Using a Chatbot?
Chatbots can automate tasks, saving businesses time and money. They can provide 24/7 customer support and are available to interact with site visitors and potential customers when actual people are not. Chatbots can guide users to the proper pages or links they need to use your site properly and answer simple questions without too much trouble.
What Types of Chatbots Exist?
There are three types of chatbots that a business can use: rule-based chatbots, independent chatbots, and natural language processing chatbots. Rule-based chatbots are the most commonly used chatbots and require users to choose predefined questions and the chatbots respond to them accordingly. Independent chatbots are keyword-based chatbots and are artificial intelligence (AI) machine learning (ML) chatbots that use keywords entered by users to respond to queries. Natural language processing chatbots, sometimes referred to as contextual chatbots, are more advanced and are a combination of rules-based and natural language processing chatbots. Many businesses choose to work with an ai chatbot development company to create these sophisticated contextual chatbots tailored to their specific customer service needs.
What Features Should a Chatbot Have?
If you are planning to use a chatbot, ensure that it can be customized to your business processes easily. It should possess emotional intelligence, deploy easily across all channels, integrate with other tools you use, and talk in multiple languages. Additionally, it should keep your data secure and have a robust API.
What are the top chatbot applications currently leading the market?
There are a number of chatbot applications that are currently leading the market. Some of the top chatbot applications include:
- Dialogflow
- IBM Watson Assistant
- Amazon Lex
- Microsoft Bot Framework
- Chatfuel
How do AI chatbots compare to traditional customer service solutions?
AI chatbots have a number of advantages over traditional customer service solutions. AI chatbots are available 24/7, can handle multiple conversations at once, and can provide personalized responses based on the user’s history. Additionally, AI chatbots can learn from previous conversations and improve their responses over time.
What are the most advanced AI chat technologies available?
There are a number of advanced AI chat technologies available. Some of the most advanced AI chat technologies include:
- Natural Language Processing (NLP)
- Machine Learning (ML)
- Sentiment Analysis
- Speech Recognition
- Image Recognition
Can you recommend some high-quality, free chatbot services?
Yes, there are a number of high-quality, free chatbot services available. Some of the best options include:
- Dialogflow
- Microsoft Bot Framework
- Guru
- Chatfuel
- Tars
- MobileMonkey
What are the best chatbot options for integration with websites?
There are a number of chatbot options that are ideal for integration with websites. Some of the best chatbot options for website integration include:
- Tawk.to
- Zendesk Chat
- Intercom
- Drift
- LiveChat
Which chatbot apps for Android offer the best user experience?
There are a number of chatbot apps for Android that offer a great user experience. Some of the best chatbot apps for Android include:
- Replika
- Hugging Face
- Mitsuku
- Woebot
- Wysa
Overall, there are many great chatbot options available, each with their own unique advantages and disadvantages. It’s important to consider your specific needs and goals when choosing a chatbot solution.
Next Up In Marketing
As the world of marketing continues to evolve, it’s important to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and strategies. Here are some key areas to focus on in the coming months:
1. Personalization
Personalization is no longer an option, but a necessity in today’s marketing landscape. By tailoring your messaging and content to the individual needs and preferences of your target audience, you can create a more engaging and effective marketing campaign. Utilize data and analytics to gain insights into your audience and create personalized experiences that resonate with them.
2. Video Marketing
Video marketing has become increasingly popular in recent years, and it’s not hard to see why. Videos are an engaging and effective way to communicate your message and showcase your brand personality. With the rise of social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels, short-form video content has become even more important. Consider incorporating video into your marketing strategy to stay ahead of the curve.
3. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing has been around for a while, but it’s still a powerful tool for reaching new audiences and building brand awareness. By partnering with influencers who align with your brand values and target audience, you can tap into their engaged and loyal following to promote your products or services. Be sure to choose influencers who are authentic and have a genuine connection with their audience.
4. Voice Search Optimization
As more and more people use voice assistants like Siri and Alexa to search for information, voice search optimization has become an important aspect of SEO. By optimizing your website and content for voice search, you can ensure that your brand is visible and accessible to users who prefer to use voice commands. Consider incorporating long-tail keywords and natural language into your content to improve your chances of appearing in voice search results.
5. Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach marketing. By utilizing AI-powered tools and technologies, you can automate repetitive tasks, gain insights into customer behavior, and personalize your marketing efforts at scale. Consider exploring the various AI-powered marketing solutions available to see how they can benefit your business.
By focusing on these key areas, you can stay ahead of the curve and create effective marketing campaigns that resonate with your target audience. Remember to always keep an eye on emerging trends and technologies to stay ahead of the competition.
