Building Proactive AI Chatbots to Keep Customers Engaged

Building Proactive AI Chatbots to Keep Customers Engaged

Got bots?! Building proactive AI chatbots has become a powerful strategy for businesses looking to enhance customer engagement.

Unlike reactive bots that wait for customers to reach out with questions or concerns, proactive chatbots take the initiative. They engage customers at key moments, offer assistance, and create a more seamless and personalized experience.

In this article, we will explore the benefits of building proactive AI chatbots, how they differ from traditional chatbots, and the best practices for developing bots that will keep customers engaged and satisfied.

What Are Proactive AI Chatbots?

Traditional chatbots react to customer inquiries by answering questions or resolving issues once the customer initiates the conversation. While useful, these bots can sometimes fall short in terms of delivering a truly engaging and dynamic customer experience.

Proactive AI chatbots, on the other hand, take engagement to the next level.

They anticipate customer needs, initiate conversations, and offer help based on specific triggers, such as time spent on a webpage or customer behavior patterns. Instead of waiting for customers to seek assistance, proactive bots open up the conversation, offering guidance, promotions, or help just when it’s needed most.

Think: Conversational AI, which we’ve talked about before.

If you’re still not convinced, below I’ll share a few use cases of proactive AI chatbots.

Proactive Chatbot Examples

Here are some examples of proactive AI chatbots that help enhance customer engagement across various industries:

1. E-Commerce Chatbots Offering Real-Time Assistance

Proactive AI chatbots used in e-commerce platforms help guide customers during their shopping experience. For instance, if a customer lingers on a product page without making a purchase, the chatbot can pop up to offer help, suggest related items, or provide a discount code to encourage conversion.

Example: A customer is browsing a pair of shoes but hasn’t added them to the cart. The proactive AI chatbot could pop up with a message like, “Having trouble deciding? These shoes have a 5-star rating! Here’s a 10% discount to help you make your decision.”

(Side note: I need this shoe bot on every shoe site, STAT!)

Or, you could take a page from Domino’s pizza bot.

Now I need pizza ...

[Domino’s Pizza]

Domino’s bot is a straightforward example of a menu-based chatbot. It offers customers three choices and requires minimal effort on their part. For returning customers, ordering a pizza is as simple as sending a pizza emoji, as the bot remembers their previous order.

While AI chatbots tend to be in the spotlight, Domino’s bot shows how chatbot technology can effectively serve both the business and its customers. By focusing on one task — ordering pizza — it creates a smooth and enjoyable experience that customers appreciate.

Sometimes, simplicity is all your customers need. Especially when it’s pizza!

2. Banking Chatbots That Prevent Account Issues

Banks and financial institutions use proactive AI chatbots to engage customers and prevent potential issues before they arise. For example, the chatbot might alert customers about an upcoming bill payment or unusual account activity. This proactive approach not only helps customers but also reduces inbound support inquiries.

Example: A chatbot could help a customer pay a bill, like the example below from IBM Watsonx Assistant.

So coooooool!

[Image Source]

IBM’s chatbots offer a hybrid approach, blending AI-driven and rule-based chatbot capabilities, making it ideal for teams seeking the best of both worlds. This means the bot can interpret and respond to natural language inputs while adhering to predefined rules and workflows.

Pretty cool, right?!

3. Telecommunications Chatbots for Reducing Churn

Telecommunication companies use proactive AI chatbots to monitor customer usage and intervene when necessary. If a customer is considering canceling their subscription, the chatbot might reach out with a special offer or suggest relevant service upgrades.

Example: After noticing a customer’s decreased use of data or services, the proactive chatbot can send a message like, “We noticed you haven’t used much data this month. Would you like to explore a plan with more flexibility or discounts?”

For another example of this, check out Docsbot’s post on how they reduced churn by over 30% with their proactive bot.

That's a big number!

[Source]

4. Travel and Hospitality Chatbots for Personalized Assistance

In the travel and hospitality industry, proactive chatbots engage with customers by offering personalized assistance based on their booking history or upcoming travel plans. They can send reminders for check-ins, offer travel tips, or suggest itinerary updates based on customer preferences.

Example: If a customer has a hotel booking, the chatbot might initiate a conversation a few days before the trip with a message like, “Your stay at Hotel ABC is coming up! Would you like to upgrade your room or arrange transportation from the airport?”

5. SaaS Chatbots for Onboarding and Feature Adoption

In the software-as-a-service (SaaS) space, proactive AI chatbots assist customers by providing onboarding support and guiding them through product features. If the system detects that a new user hasn’t completed their setup or is struggling with a particular feature, the chatbot can offer immediate assistance.

Example: If a user hasn’t completed the setup of a new software tool, the chatbot can engage with a message like, “It looks like you haven’t finished setting up your account. Need help with the next steps? Let me guide you through.”

Love this for SAAS brands.

[Source]

Check out Chatfuel as a tool that can help you build this type of chatbot!

6. Healthcare Chatbots for Appointment Reminders and Health Tips

Healthcare providers use proactive chatbots to engage patients with appointment reminders, medication notifications, and general health tips based on the patient’s profile. These bots help patients stay on track with their treatments and medical care, improving overall health outcomes.

Example: A chatbot might remind a patient, “Don’t forget your appointment tomorrow at 10:00 AM. Would you like to reschedule or confirm?”

7. Entertainment and Streaming Services Chatbots for Content Recommendations

Streaming platforms leverage proactive AI chatbots to keep users engaged by recommending new content based on their viewing habits. This keeps users coming back to the platform and reduces the risk of subscription cancellations.

Example: After a user finishes watching a TV series Netflix, a chatbot can pop up with, “We noticed you loved XYZ show! Here are some similar series you might enjoy.”

Netflix is great to emulate.

[Source: Mahendra Kadam on LinkedIn]

The above seven examples highlight how building proactive AI chatbots is much different from the reactive customer care bots we generally think of. Proactive bots can help your business engage customers in meaningful ways, driving higher satisfaction, retention, and conversions.

How Proactive AI Chatbots Differ from Traditional Chatbots

The key distinction between proactive and reactive chatbots lies in the bot’s ability to anticipate needs and take initiative.

Here’s how they differ:

  1. Initiation of Conversation: Traditional chatbots wait for customers to ask a question, whereas proactive bots initiate the conversation, offering help before the customer even asks. (#ThinkConversation, not campaign!)
  2. Customer Engagement: Reactive bots are largely focused on answering questions, while proactive bots engage customers with personalized offers, support, and guidance.
  3. Triggers and Actions: Proactive AI chatbots rely on predefined triggers, such as time spent on a page, user inactivity, or browsing patterns, to engage customers in real-time. These triggers enable the bot to provide contextual assistance without waiting for user input.
  4. Intent Prediction: Proactive bots can predict customer intent based on their behavior and past interactions, offering relevant suggestions or information without the customer needing to type a single word.

The Benefits of Building Proactive AI Chatbots

Investing in building proactive AI chatbots offers your brand numerous advantages.

Here are some of the key benefits:

1. Enhanced Customer Engagement

Proactive chatbots keep customers engaged by initiating timely conversations, offering support, and presenting relevant offers. When customers feel like a brand is actively trying to assist them, they are more likely to engage in meaningful ways.

For example, if a customer is browsing a product page but hasn’t added anything to their cart, a proactive chatbot might pop up and say, “Can I help you find the right product?” This kind of personalized engagement keeps the customer interested and builds rapport.

2. Reduced Cart Abandonment

One of the most common challenges for e-commerce businesses is cart abandonment. In fact, the average cart abandonment rate worldwide is around 73.9% (yikes!).

See also: Guilty!

Not me, going to check out and being like, "HOW MUCH?!?!"

[Source]

Proactive chatbots can significantly reduce this issue by stepping in when customers are about to leave the site without completing their purchase.

By offering assistance, answering last-minute questions, or even providing a discount code, the chatbot can nudge customers toward finalizing their order.

3. 24/7 Customer Support

Proactive AI chatbots provide around-the-clock support, ensuring that customers receive assistance whenever they need it.

This can be particularly valuable for global businesses, as proactive bots can engage customers across different time zones without the need for human intervention.

4. Personalized Customer Experiences

Your customers expect personalized experiences from you.

Proactive chatbots can analyze customer behavior and preferences, providing tailored recommendations, offers, and support. The more personalized the interaction, the more likely customers are to feel valued and remain engaged with the brand.

For an example, Sephora uses several chatbots to help with user experience (UX). One of my favorites is their Facebook Messenger Bot that helps with color matching.

So useful!

[Source]

5. Increased Conversion Rates

Proactive chatbots can improve conversion rates by guiding customers through the purchasing process.

For instance, if a customer is spending a lot of time on a product page, a proactive chatbot can offer detailed product information or suggest similar items. This not only enhances the customer experience but also increases the chances of a successful purchase.

6. Better Lead Generation

Chatbots that are proactive can also assist with lead generation by collecting information from potential customers during interactions.

For instance, a chatbot might ask visitors for their email addresses in exchange for a special offer or newsletter subscription, allowing businesses to build their contact lists while offering a valuable incentive.

Best Practices for Building Proactive AI Chatbots

To create successful proactive AI chatbots,  follow a few best practices:

1. Define Clear Objectives

Before building your chatbot, it’s crucial to define the objectives you want to achieve.

Are you looking to …

  • Improve customer support?
  • Boost sales?
  • Increase engagement?

Clear goals will guide the development of your proactive chatbot and help measure its success.

2. Use Behavioral Triggers

Proactive chatbots rely on “triggers” to engage customers at the right moment.

Behavioral triggers such as time spent on a webpage, cart inactivity, or browsing history can help the bot determine when to reach out and what type of assistance to offer.

For example, if a customer has spent over two minutes on a product page without taking action, the chatbot can initiate a conversation like, “Need help deciding? Here’s what other customers say about this product.”

Additionally, proactive chat triggers can also include situations like:

  • When a customer leaves the checkout page without completing their purchase, the chatbot could remind them about the items left in their cart or offer assistance with selecting a payment method.
  • If a customer is browsing two or more similar products, the chatbot could ask if they’d like to see additional options to help narrow down their decision.
  • Upon a customer’s return to a website, the chatbot might greet them with a message such as, “Welcome back!”
  • When a visitor is on the website while a live agent is available, and they’ve been inactive for a few minutes, the chatbot could ask if they’d like to speak with an agent.

3. Leverage AI and Machine Learning

Building a truly effective proactive chatbot requires AI and machine learning capabilities. These technologies allow the chatbot to analyze customer data, predict behavior, and offer personalized assistance in real-time.

Machine learning enables the bot to learn from past interactions, improving its performance over time and making it more efficient at predicting customer needs.

I am no AI expert, but my friends at Trust Insights are! Check out their courses on AI if you want to level up your game.

4. Focus on Personalization

Customers expect personalized interactions, and proactive chatbots should deliver just that.

Use customer data—such as past purchases, browsing history, and preferences—to offer tailored recommendations or support.

For instance, if a customer frequently purchases athletic wear, the chatbot can recommend similar products or offer a discount on their next purchase.

5. Maintain a Human Touch

While proactive AI chatbots are highly efficient, they should still maintain a human touch. And, use chatbots with caution!

Recent data reveal a whopping 45% of US adults find using customer service chatbots unfavorable, up from 43% in 2022. [Source]

The language used by your bot should be conversational and friendly, and there should always be an option for customers to connect with a human if needed.

6. Monitor and Optimize Performance

Once your proactive chatbot is live, it’s essential to monitor its performance.

Some of the metrics to track include:

  • Engagement Rate: How often are customers interacting with the chatbot?
  • Conversion Rate: Are proactive chatbot interactions leading to increased sales or completed actions?
  • Customer Satisfaction: Are customers satisfied with the assistance provided by the chatbot? Use surveys or feedback forms to gather insights.
  • Response Time: How quickly is the chatbot responding to customer inquiries or engaging proactively?

By monitoring these metrics, businesses can optimize their proactive chatbot to continuously improve customer engagement and satisfaction.

Challenges of Building Proactive AI Chatbots

While building proactive AI chatbots can offer many advantages, there are challenges to consider. Here are my top three.

  1. Data Privacy Concerns: Proactive chatbots rely on customer data to offer personalized experiences. However, collecting and using this data comes with privacy concerns. Businesses must ensure they comply with data protection regulations such as GDPR and CCPA to avoid legal complications.
  2. Over-engagement: While proactivity is valuable, over-engagement can backfire. If a chatbot becomes too intrusive or frequently interrupts the customer’s journey, it may lead to frustration and disengagement. Finding the right balance between helpfulness and disruption is key.
  3. Implementation Costs: Developing and maintaining AI-powered chatbots can be expensive, particularly for small businesses. It’s important to assess whether the investment will provide a significant return in terms of improved customer engagement and satisfaction.

As you can see, the pros far outweigh the cons! And, for what it’s worth, I think these proactive chatbots will have a large role in the future of customer experience.

Building Proactive AI Chatbots for the Future of Customer Engagement

As businesses continue to prioritize customer experience, building proactive AI chatbots offers a significant opportunity to enhance engagement and satisfaction.

By taking the initiative to reach out to customers with timely and personalized interactions, proactive bots can help you reduce cart abandonment, improve support, and increase conversions.


Howdy! 👋 If you liked this post, you're going to LOVE my book, Conversations That Connect. Get a free excerpt here: bit.ly/B2book or purchase directly on Amazon here.

Sean McGauley

Digital Marketing Strategist @ Growth Spurt | Helping Good Companies & Great People Grow with HubSpot | Boston HubSpot User Group Leader | HubSpot Certified X 15 | Proud Pet Parent

1mo

These bots have come a long way in just a short time. I remember when they first came out feeling like they weren't all that helpful and somewhat of a nuisance. But now, they can do so much more like offering a discount, making recommendations, and other ways to boost engagement. I'm going to need to try out the Domino's pizza bot tonight...you know, for research! 😂 🍕

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