Map your chatbot’s path to success with the routing map view
Have you ever found yourself chatting away only to realize mid-sentence that the conversation just isn’t going the way you would’ve liked? Perhaps you spoke too soon, shared too much, or didn’t listen properly. Well, these chatty mishaps are, surprisingly, not unique to human-to-human interactions. It turns out that chatbots really are just like us in that they, too, can fumble their pitch and encounter the occasional miscommunication. Well, technically the fumble is on us as we create opportunities for them to do so, but you get the point.
We can usually correct these mistakes in situ and steer the conversation in different ways to ensure that the exercise is not entirely wasted. Until now, that wasn’t a viable option for the chatbots we create. Luckily, we’ve released a feature that allows you to get the full scope of your conversational marketing and see where things are veering off script and where you’re communicating at the right time with the right people.
With OnceHub’s new routing map view, you can see your dialogue from all directions and get control of your conversations from a unique point of view. As opposed to the list or builder view, which shows a long list of your routing rules in text form, the map allows you to navigate your conversational flows and interaction types in a visual way. This makes complex flows easier to configure, check and tweak whether you're a bot beginner or an expert. Let’s look at some ways you can use the chatbot routing view to test and optimize your conversations.
Make the route decision
Conversations are usually good when they're making sense. When we go into them unequipped or ill-prepared, the other party can usually pick it up and this can seriously impede further attempts to turn the chat into a conversion opportunity.
This is exactly why context reigns supreme and can improve your chances to pick up on the right cues and insights to improve your chances of making an impression and be of real assistance to someone. The need to route and qualify is not only a time-saving mechanism, but one that can add relevance and assist you further down the line.
Routing and qualification is a bit of art form and can be a difficult thing to master in your pursuit of the next lead, regardless of its temperature. Now, with our newly minted routing map, you can see and test exactly where you need to pull focus and troubleshoot your dialogues so you can make sense of the noise and create a narrative for your subsequent communications.
You can update the conversational flow of your chatbot
If your chatbot and its routing and qualification flow is not configured exactly to your specifications, you can use the routing view to assess it in full. Sometimes you need to see what you’re doing from a different angle to get some perspective and correct potential pitfalls, and this is the perfect way to do so. Perhaps you’re asking questions too soon or sharing information at awkward times. The routing map allows you to see where people might get stuck and how you could improve for a smoother road to conversion.
See exactly where your chat is going south
Trying to ascertain where exactly your chat is heading in the wrong direction can be extremely difficult when you’re confined to a linear list view. Human beings are visual creatures by nature and our powers of imagination can be hampered by a lack of visual stimulus. Thankfully, this is largely mitigated by enabling the routing map view, which helps you with testing to scope out any erroneous conversational activity and target problem areas with pin point accuracy. Simply navigate the paths of your flow and see where language could be vague or information creates a dead end and correct accordingly.
See visual indicators of your interaction types
Not all interactions are born equal, and if your chatbot is more complex, keeping track of all of them can be a bit of a hurdle. Luckily we have visual cues to alert you and help you distinguish between your interaction types so you have a firmer grasp on the journey you are presenting to visitors. These include text messages, videos, URLs, and more. These icons make it very easy to identify your interaction types and allow for quick scanning and assessing of your conversational balance so that it includes questions, actions and information shared in a variety of formats. For instance, you can easily differentiate between text questions and text messages, improving conversational clarity and making sure you’re using the correct interaction type from the start.
Create conditional routing
Conditional routing is a system that automates decision-making based on predetermined criteria. Every workplace and workflow has rules; your chatbot should be no different. By opting to review and test your rules in the map, you’re able to visually see what your routing is connecting to you and provide yourself with visual confirmation that your rules are on the right track. When you're attempting qualify and route leads, this aspect is especially important so that you can clearly define where your conversation is going and ensure you're capturing crucial information to be picked up at a later stage.
Embed contingencies and fallbacks
Going off script is one thing. Not having a script to begin is something else entirely! Create a contingency plan for your chatbot’s conversational flow and embed fallbacks that will allow it to get back on track and power through even when inputs are trying to veer it off course. The best way to bring a meeting journey to an abrupt stop is a dead end.
Get the full scope of your conversational marketing
Being able to take a step, inspect something from a different vantage point and get the bigger picture of your efforts is an invaluable tool in your arsenal. Configuring, testing, and troubleshooting is always going to be a part of any process’ optimization, so why not make it as easy and seamless as can be. To get started on creating your own chatbot’s conversation flow with ease, click here to sign up today.
