What Is the Difference Between Conversational AI and a Chatbot?

The chatbot software industry is growing at a rate of more than 34% every single year. That rate of growth means the industry will become six times larger in just six years. In 2020, the chatbot andd conversational AI market was worth about $17 billion. But by 2026, the industry is projected to reach a value of more than $102 billion!

Modern chatbots improve customer experience ratings with the power of conversational AI. But this is just one of the way that chatbot integrations create so much demand for modern AI chatbot software. Advancements in artificial intelligence are sweeping whole industries and may soon become ubiquitous for everyone.

But what is so different about the latest generation of conversational AI? Read on to learn all about the most important things to understand about conversational chatbots and the benefits that they provide!

How Does a Traditional AI Chatbot Work?

There are a lot of misconceptions about chatbots. Of course, it might be more accurate to say that these are outdated facts rather than misconceptions. Most of them express truths about less advanced versions of chatbots.

However, it would be a mistake to imagine that the latest generation of conversational AI chatbots suffers from the same problems as old-fashioned chatbots. Old-fashioned chatbots were prone to errors. This made them much more likely to annoy customers and waste time.

Why? Because old chatbots were based on structured flows. That means that there were programmers that tried to figure out how to tell a chatbot to respond in an appropriate way to a small variety of possible customer messages.

This method generated some success. That is why these kinds of chatbots made it into many industries. And that is the reason that we are familiar with these chatbots and the problems that come with them.

However, new conversational AI chatbots are based on different technology. This is kind of technology was not available in the past. This more advanced technology has led to amazing improvements in the quality of the latest generation of chatbots.

New Conversational AI Chat Options

New conversational AI chatbots have a much more natural way of speaking with people. In fact, many companies have found that their customers do not know when they are speaking with a chatbot or a real person.

As a result, companies have started to tell their chatbots to inform customers when they are speaking with a chatbot. The fact that there can be confusion about whether you are speaking with a chatbot or a real person is a testament to how realistic conversation with a modern chatbot can be.

But why is it that modern chatbots are so much better than past generations?

How Conversational AI Technology Works

Conversational AI technology usually relies on linguistics or semantic engines that can interact and understand natural, human-like language. A semantic engine, an evolved version of the linguistics engine, uses multiple AI technologies to guarantee modern, instant and effective interactions.

Unlike a traditional chatbot, conversational AI isn’t just a set of structured flows of pre-built questions and answeres. In contrast, it uses different layers to establish open conversations.  

How does it do this? Let’s take a look at it most important capabilities, based on Aivo’s semantic conversational engine:

• To guarantee communication, the semantic engine identifies typos and spelling errors and gets rids of unnecessary characters. If the errors are more complex, it corrects the sentence on a deeper semantic level.
• There are different ways of saying the same thing, and sometimes one sentences can have multiple meanings. That’s why a semantic engine is also able to identify the message intent and relevance beyond the written text. 
• The engine’s short-term memory connects a question with the previous one to make sure the customer receives the information they're looking for.
• Aivo’s engine precisely evaluates possible answers and selects the best one. When faced with long or vague questions, it clarifies and offers suggestions for an effective conversation. Unresolved queries are sent to the platform’s Training section for continued evolution.
• Availability to adapt to multiple to multiple languages, including Spanish, English, Portuguese, Italian, German, French and others. It also understands regionalisms and slang, just like emojis and voice notes for human-like conversations.

Also, conversational AI has the power to integrate to multiple platforms and channels to deliver transactional, resolutive and personalized information. For instance, an e-commerce can integrate its AI chatbot to their CRM to remind a customer to complete a purchase, a bank can use an integrated AI chatbot to provide each customer with information about their accounts and credit/debit cards, and a healthcare provider can connect their chatbot to their software to send reminders about appointments.

Would you like to know more about this technology? Discover Aivo’s conversational AI.

The Value of Using Conversational AI Chatbots

There are some simple principles that can help people to understand how modern artificial intelligence works. One of these principles is that artificial intelligence is often better at completing tasks that are monotonous and boring for people.

Why is that the case? Monotonous tasks tend to be repetitive. And they also tend to be simple.

The fact that they are simple means that artificial intelligence is capable of understanding them. And the fact that they are repetitive means that it is boring and time-consuming for humans to complete these tasks.

This combination means that modern artificial intelligence can complete such monotonous tasks automatically and immediately, allowing humans to focus on more complex tasks that require their creativity, empathy, and ability to handle frustration.

Consolidating Customer Messages

Consider a problem like switching between many platforms and channels to check for customer messages. This is a problem that many industries struggle with.

Companies want to reach as many people as possible. However, that means getting set up on many social media platforms and communication channels.

Moving between all of these channels is time-consuming and monotonous, which is what makes it the perfect kind of work to give to modern artificial intelligence bots.

These bots can move almost instantaneously between all of the platforms and channels a company uses. They can then consolidate all customer messages on a single platform. From there, they can respond to each message as well as they can.

Bots can even integrate between communication and transaction platforms. That means that customers can start a conversation and finish a transaction without ever having to move between different platforms. That is the power of modern conversational AI!

Decreasing Monotony for Customers and Employees

The result of this advancement in technology is that you can eliminate monotony for many customers. In the past, customers needed to wait on hold to speak with human agents. Now, conversational AI chatbots can manage many of their problems.

When you understand how much customers hate waiting on hold, you can appreciate how much this improves the customer experience. Of course, there are difficult customer cases that require the attention of a skilled human operator.

However, even in those cases, conversational AI can help. Before a customer speaks to a human agent, a chatbot can get important information from them.

This is the kind of information that a human agent would otherwise have to get on their own. In the past, human agents have had to start every customer experience by asking the same boring questions over and over again. Now, all of that work can be done by a chatbot.

By the time a human agent is helping a customer, they can focus only on what is unique about each customer inquiry. That makes work for employees much less monotonous.

It also means faster service for customers. That is how modern AI can improve experiences for employees and customers at the same time!

Cutting Costs for Businesses

All of these benefits can also cut costs for businesses. Business leaders can now look at the single platform where conversational bots consolidate customer communications.

Bots may also be able to make customer service departments more efficient. Conversational AI can take care of simple customer inquiries, allowing a few skilled human operators to take care of the difficult customer problems that remain. There are similar cost-cutting opportunities for sales and returns. 

Artificial intelligence can manage those simple parts of sales and returns processes. Businesses can then hire a smaller number of skilled human talent to manage what remains.

Improve Your Customer Experience With Conversational AI

Modern conversational AI is a powerful way to improve customer experiences. As artificial intelligence continues to advance, savvy leaders in business will continue to make the most of it to take care of their customers. The more you understand how chatbot integrations can streamline your company operations, the better you can assess if they are the right choice for you.

To learn more about conversational AI, book a demo and learn about what chatbots can do for you!