Does Your Conversational AI Chatbot Really Need a Personality?

iQuanti: Does your conversational AI chatbot really need a personality? Simply put, the answer is yes. No one wants to talk to a robot with limited, impersonal responses about an extra charge on their phone bill. Your customers want to feel like they're talking to a live person even if they're really not.

Think about these questions when trying to figure out if your conversational AI chatbot needs a personality: 

How will you use your chatbot? 

Will your bot only need to answer a few easy questions, or will it need to have deeper conversations about your services? A chatbot empowered with conversational AI is capable of a variety of useful integrations, including helping to directly automate transactions, route people to higher levels of support, and recall an individual user's history to make connections. The most innovative conversational AI even has emotional intelligence, and can respond to upset customers with extra care.

What is your brand personality?

You'll want to make sure your chatbot's personality is on-brand. Customers should feel comfortable talking to your chatbot, but also have an experience that feels aligned with your broader UX vision. So, if you use wit and sarcasm in your marketing, make sure to use it in your bot's language too. 

What kind of personality does your bot have?

Your bot's personality depends on your brand personality and who your target customer is. Using slang words, GIFs, and emojis can confuse your customers if you sell medical supplies to baby boomers. Make sure your chatbot's language and personality are similar to your customer's. That way, they can get their questions answered without any issues.  

How to execute an AI personality

After deciding on how you envision your chatbot's personality and role within your ideal user experience, the next step is implementing it. Here are some quick tips to make your chatbot more engaging.

First impressions are important

The first thing you should do is let your customer know they're talking to a bot when they log on to the chat — but ideally, that can be paired with a certain amount of "humanity": think of Siri or Alexa.

Next, think about how your bot is going to welcome your customer. Think about the different personality projected by a change as simple as saying "Hi," "Hello," "What's up!" or "Hey there!" You can even include the customer's name to make it more personable. The beginning of the conversation should always start off on a good foot.

Limit repeated responses 

You don't want your chatbot to hit a wall with limited automated responses. Make sure it can explain questions it might not understand. Your bot also needs to give your customer a way out of the conversation if it can't give them the answers they're looking for, preferably by being able to direct them to the right kind of support.

Logging off

How your chatbot signs off with your customer is important too. Be sure to leave no questions unanswered. End with a phrase like: "Is there anything else I can help you with?" 

Source: iQuanti, Inc.