Chatbot development
Today, chatbots (and chatbot development as a whole) acquire huge popularity, turning into a pre-built function of many applications (both iOS and Android). Although some time ago this was more considered as a small entertainment for geeks, now it is the built-in capability of almost every large Internet resource or messenger. It is worth noting that in many cases, chatbots are used to achieve certain goals, rather than for user’s entertainment. But why?
The rise and rapid development of chatbots are consistent with the emergence of new type of users as well as the popularization of Access economy (or On-Demand economy). Such user needs more comfort and demands a level of service, which means that the service should be available around the clock, and the answers should be given by an expert immediately.
How do chatbots work?
Communication with bots takes place in the usual human form – in the form of an ordinary dialogue between two people. Just like in real life, we do not write any commands to talk with a friend, just meet and talk face to face. Ideally, the bot must understand users without words – for example, monitor users actions, analyze and help them at a time when they really need it.
Speaking about the technical side of the question “how do chatbots work?”, the bot uses machine learning to “understand” the necessary word order and intonations. This allows to accurately simulate human conversation and responds to various user requests to provide the necessary data (or services) to clients / users. On the other hand, the chatbot can be used as the data layer for the user interface, which can be connected to the required application or website for further work. For example, to provide the necessary information or to simulate person’s presence.
How to make chat bots
There are several ways to create chatbots: the first one is to develop your own custom solution. This approach involves painstaking manual coding and also use of machine learning, which implies a huge amount of resources and streaming data.
On the other hand, it’s possible to use specialized cloud services or open source solutions to deploy the bot on your platform. But in this approach there are also some disadvantages – the use of freely distributed software (or source code) can impose restrictions on the monetization of your application or service. But such project can be used for training and creating free projects.
Chat bot app development
Which tasks chat bot app development could help to solve:
- Routine task automation. There are quite a lot of monotonous tasks that need to be done in the work process of every company. Bots perform such tasks without reminders and always with pleasure, it does not need to force itself to work. In addition, in this way you can free up time for more human-dependent tasks;
- Data aggregation and search. If you need to collect a large amount of data for analysis or vice versa – to distribute important information, bots are exactly what you need, especially in those cases where the response from users is important;
- Work with clients. Bots are always there, where you need help in solving trivial (and sometimes not) tasks, entertaining or providing the necessary information. Or, as an option, it can clarify the information about the problem and shift this information to the right employee. On the other hand, this approach can be used during non-working hours to create a positive impression of the company. Answer to sample questions, help on the site or even advice on the choice of certain goods or services – all this and much more a bot can do.
Сhatbot startup ideas
Looking at such giants of the digital world as Amazon, Google, Facebook, Oracle, and Twitter with their platforms for the creation and launching chatbots, you might start to think that this market has long been divided. But some startups prove the opposite, adding new opportunities and making a small revolution in this area – and this is a good reason to build a chatbot. Best ideas for chatbot startups would look like this:
- Incident Management and Security Operations. The company works with the ChatOps platform in the field of automating and optimizing incidents management and security processes. This product provides ample opportunities for analysts to investigate various incidents, share experience and for time scaling;
- Virtual afterlife. The service is aimed at studying the model of speech, behavior and life experience of customer’s stories, with the subsequent creation of virtual avatars to communicate after customer’s death. Developers want to save all of your stories, thoughts and all kinds of memories;
- Talented AI recruiting assistant. High-tech solutions can help choose the right candidate using AI and machine learning. Now the recruitment process can be automated and monotonous tasks can be simplified too.
In healthcare app development one of the most disturbing parameters is confidentiality and bots can provide the necessary level of security of patient data. In this area, bots can simplify tasks such as: calling a doctor, searching for drugs in the nearest pharmacies (and their availability), and obtaining test results. But, moreover, we can see some other examples:
- Healthcare. For example, chatbots can be used for supporting those faced with the problem of cancer. Bot allows you search necessary and reliable information through special categories, so patients or their relatives can easily find the information they need. The database allows users to find important and reliable information collected and presented in a convenient form, through simple chat requests, so even in this case, bots can make the life easier.
Read also: How to Port an App to Another Platform
Conclusion
As we all can see from the recent year’s trends, the development of IT and AI every time gives business more options to enter the market, regardless of the type or the size. In turn, for the e-commerce industry chatbots are a very promising trend, allowing not only to save funds or involve workers into more human-dependent tasks but also create a positive image of the brand.Also, do not forget about the increase in efficiency and speed up the process of interaction.