Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
The intelligent direct messaging capabilities unleashed by chat channels such as Facebook Messenger are enhancing each industry where it is present. The revolution will evolve as chat options emerge as the latest key channel for customer acquisition and retention. Though chatbots may seem like nothing new, customer service oriented chat platforms are making a killing in the following industries.
1. Retail 
Chatbots provide a key channel through which brands can grow their e-commerce presence, from branding all the way through their sales process. Retailers will streamline retail fuse marketing, customer service and sales tactics through the same AI engine. On the other side of that, a retail educated bot answers questions of consumers that flow their way. This can better optimize the user experience depending on the following:
- Needs
- Past Needs
- Purchase History
These platforms act as an interactive hyper-personalized shopping experience for consumers, informing them about promotions, loyalty programs, hours of operation and more. AI-powered retail bots act as one’s very own personal stylist offering virtual try-on features and a guided selling process. Overall, they are making it easier on you to shop, with less decisions to make. A chatbot is a powerful re-marketing tool. It can send out regularly scheduled and segmented messages right to a consumer’s messaging app, right under their nose.
2. Hospitality Chatbots
Chatbots in this industry hav to the power to do more than its human counterpart. Messaging bots can run functioning check-ins for concierge services and even successfully book restaurant reservations for guests. Whether done through the host hotel’s site or on third-party site such as Kayak, SnapTravel or Expedia, these virtual concierge services provide you with resources at your fingertips. This takes the pressure off of human travel/hospitality agents and provide guests a 24/7 around the clock resource instead of limited hours like typically offered.
3. Financial-Bots
Generally speaking chatbots function to the best of their ability when handling discrete tasks. From everyday banking transactions to tasks that require clearly defined demands, they can excel in any condition. Expanding off of that, tasks that require minimal supplemental intelligence may show larger chatbot success than others. Tasks to that nature include the following: 
- Checking account balances
- Transferring money to friends securely
- Viewing recent transactions
- Locating the nearest ATM
Chatbots 101
A good chatbot has to satisfy some basic expectations like its awareness of the shopper’s history on the user’s profile and much more. This can all be built from the ground up though internal data, especially if the user is a repeat shopper. The more content known about the shopper, the better equipped that chatbot is in formulating a stronger relationship. Ask yourself some questions to keep your feature in check with delivering an authentic experience to consumers.
- Does my chatbot keep itself updated on the taste profiles of the shoppers, based on data from outside of my own website?
- Can shoppers ask my chatbot to find matches for the ensembles they’ve shown interest in while scrolling through their social media profiles?
Tip #1: Enhancing Interactivity
Natural Language Processing (NLP) has enabled chatbots to have almost human-like conversations with consumers. They can even be assigned a brand-specific personality that fits the need of the situation and enriches the customer experience. Funny memes and pun-filled responses are tagged to messaging apps to give chatbots a unique voice to appeal to varying demographics.
Tip #2: Managing High Volume Queries
Business owners may find frequent spikes in query generation are handled simply through enabling chatbots. Marketers can easily handle large volumes of messages by offering a uniform engagement experience for all consumers through using these messaging bots. They also free up human agents and professionals to focus on more complex projects. Chatbots are able to complete tasks and perform multiple actions by helping enterprises enhance their overall efficiency. 
Through an algorithm-based engagement mechanism, business owners are able to offer a personalized engagement experience to each customer. Remembering minor details from previous conversations and transactions, will help chatbots excel with nurturing that customer relationship as well. To act as a pre and post- purchase/experience assistant for the customer is the key motive for businesses everywhere.
