Best Chatbots for Customer Support In 2024

In a world where customer service and customer support is a critical factor for success, customer support chatbots have made it easier than ever to provide customers with fast, reliable support. By leveraging automated customer service chatbots, businesses can provide round-the-clock customer support without having to pay human agents to do so.

To help you make an informed decision about which customer support chatbot best suits your needs, we've compiled the top 6 customer support chatbots for 2024.

What are AI Chatbots for Customer Support?

Chatbots are computer programs designed to simulate conversations with humans. By using natural language processing and machine learning, chatbots can understand customer inputs and provide intelligent answers in return. This enables businesses to automate customer service tasks and scale their support operations without needing to hire additional human agents.

Chatbots can: 

• Provide instant responses to customer queries
• Handle frequently asked questions
• Handle level 1 support questions
• Collect customer information for lead generation
• Send order status updates and shipping information
• Schedule appointments or bookings
• Provide real-time updates on stock availability
• Offer 24/7 customer support
• Initiate proactive customer communication based on predefined triggers or user actions

Top Chatbots Solutions for Customer Support

While chatbots have some downsides, there's no denying that there are clear and compelling use cases.

The best chatbots on the market in 2024 include: 

• Zendesk for multichannel support
• Intercom for SaaS
• Drift for B2B businesses
• Freshchat for SMBs
• Dixa for in-app support
• Salesforce for enterprise support needs

1. Zendesk (4.3/5 stars on G2)

Zendesk is a multichannel customer service and support software designed to help businesses efficiently answer customer inquiries, address issues, and convert leads. With powerful features such as real-time conversations, automated chatbot workflows, and multilingual support, Zendesk Chat is the perfect multichannel support solution for companies looking to provide quick and efficient customer service.

One of the best things about Zendesk is the ability to integrate with Fullview. While a chatbot is a great tool for businesses, utilizing Fullview will make these chatbots much more comprehensive and powerful than they usually are. Why? Because chatbots are often best suited to simple level 1 queries, whereas Fullview's session replays, cobrowsing, and console logs are excellent when you need to escalate a support ticket from level 1 to level 2 or 3. 

Features:

Some notable features include:

• A searchable customer self-service portal
• Automated chatbot workflows to automatically route inquiries to the appropriate team member for faster resolution
• Robust ticketing system for more in-depth customer inquiries 

Price

Zendesk pricing starts at $69 per agent per month.

Pros

• Ticket escalation management is streamlined
• Abundant multichannel integration options
• Highly rated ticket response user experience

Cons

• Customization options are limited
• Analytics can be improved
• Mobile user experience is subpar

2. Intercom (4.5/5 stars on G2)

Intercom is one of the most popular chatbot services on the market, and is well-known as a tool for SaaS customers. Intercom is known for its ability to create custom, automated chatbot workflows that are tailored to your business and customer needs. It's also an excellent customer support chatbot support solution, with options to integrate it with popular third-party apps like Fullview. 

Fullview allows you to get a 360-degree view of all customer interactions. As soon as a message comes in on any of these platforms and a chatbot is engaged, you can use specific triggers and workflows to determine which customer inquiries merit escalation. When those come in, agents can quickly review that user's latest sessions in their app (using Fullview Replays) to quickly see bugs and issues in context and understand the support issue at hand. Then, armed with that knowledge, they can initiate a cobrowsing call with multi-cursor screen control and help the user solve the issue. 

Features

Some of the most popular features of Intercom include:

• Ability to send out automated messages when clients open your app or webpage
• Integrations with hundreds of existing software such as marketing platforms, CRM systems, and Fullview
• Ability to capture and store customer feedback within the platform

Price

For very small businesses, pricing starts at $74 per agent. However, Intercom can create a personalized pricing plan based on your specific business needs.

Pros

• Easy-to-use dashboard interface
• Integrations with third-party apps
• Highly customizable chatbot workflows

Cons

• Best suited for SaaS companies and may not be ideal for other types of businesses
• Customer service can be challenging to contact and slow at times
• Pricing can get expensive depending on the features you need

3. Dixa (4.2/5 stars on G2)

Dixa is a customer support software that can be used on your website as a widget. Instead of having to search for an answer or picking up the phone to contact support, your customers can receive the answers they need without having to leave the page. Plus, with an upcoming integration with Fullview, customer service teams will quickly be able to use session replays, cobrowsing and console logs to help customers more effectively.

Dixa features:

Some of Dixa's features include:

• Live chat options that can be integrated onto your webpage or app
• Knowledge base
• Intelligent routing, which ensures customers are routed to the appropriate customer service agent

Price

Dixa offers a variety of plans depending on the needs of your organization. The beginner plan starts at $39 per month, while the ultimate plan starts at $139 per month.

Pros

• Easy to setup and use
• Highly customizable for your customers' needs
• Integrations with popular third-party services

Cons

• Not as comprehensive a chatbot support software as the other options on this list
• Lack of auto-updates
• Missing a proper mobile application

4. Salesforce (4.3/5 stars on G2)

Salesforce is a software that provides all the tools you need to manage customer conversations in one place. With options for multichannel communication, you can easily integrate your service across platforms like email, SMS, and social media. It's also easy to set up automated workflows so that customers are routed to the best support agent for their queries when contacting your business via chatbot.

With its Fullview integration, customer support teams can vastly improve their support process and workflows. With the ability to see customer issues in real-time through the use of session replays, they can quickly solve complex customer issues and help improve customer satisfaction.

Salesforce features:

Some of Salesforce's features include:

• A multichannel platform that integrates with popular communication sources
• Ability to create custom fields for customers based on their support needs
• Analytics tools to measure customer satisfaction 

Price

The entry-level Salesforce plan starts at $25 per user per month.

Pros

• Unlimited multichannel support capabilities
• Analytics tools to measure customer satisfaction
• Integrations with Fullview for enhanced customer support

Cons

• Pricing is not transparent and may be expensive for small businesses
• May require extensive setup time to customize the platform to your needs
• Customer service may be slow at times

5. Freshchat (4.4/5 stars on G2)

Freshchat is a customer communication platform that combines live chat, messaging, and customer data to provide a seamless and personalized customer experience. With the ability to engage your customers on channels they already love, such as WhatsApp, Apple Business Chat, and Facebook messenger, and integrations with Instagram, email, SMS, Facebook Messenger, and more, Freshchat is the multichannel support software for companies looking to engage users on all channels. It also has a bunch of chatbot capabilities and customizations — you can build a bot to answer customer conversations, you can build one to auto-update customer data — or one that does it all!

Freshchat features:

Some notable features of Freshchat include:

• Customizable chat widgets
• Automated chatbot conversation flows
• Multichannel integration (e.g. Facebook, WhatsApp, etc.)
• Team collaboration tools
• Customizable chatbots

Price

Freshchat offers a free plan with limited features, as well as paid plans starting at $15/month per user.

Pros

• Easy to set up and use
• Intuitive interface
• Robust automation capabilities
• Good value for the price
• Customization for chatbots

Cons

• Some users have reported issues with the chatbot's accuracy
• The free plan lacks some important features.
• No cobrowsing or session replay integrations

6. Drift (4.4/5 stars on G2)

Drift is a chatbot network that helps businesses have personal and relevant conversations with their customers at scale. Using their conversation cloud, you can engage with customers in the right way to efficiently answer their questions, solve their problems and close more deals. 

Plus, with integrations on various channels like Salesforce, Databox, Fullstory, Google Analytics, HubSpot, and more, you can track customer conversations and quickly learn more about their needs.

Drift features:

Some notable features of Drift include:

• Chatbot automation
• Lead capture and qualification tools
• Meeting scheduling and calendar integration

Price

Drift offers a small business plan for $2,500/month which includes custom chatbots, intel, real-time notifications, and conversational landing pages. There is a free trial available.

Pros

• Great for conversational marketing
• High AI accuracy
• Deep integration with other platforms

Cons

• Poor analytics tools
• No multilingual support
• The mobile app needs improvement
• No Fullview integration for cobrowsing and session replays

Companies Using Chatbots for Customer Service

These examples demonstrate how companies in different industries leverage chatbots to improve customer service, streamline processes, and enhance user experiences.

Banking and Finance:

Bank of America (Erica)

Bank of America's virtual assistant, Erica, helps customers with various banking tasks such as checking balances, transferring funds, paying bills, and providing personalized financial insights. Erica uses AI to learn from customer interactions and offer tailored recommendations.

Capital One (Eno)

‍Capital One's virtual assistant, Eno, assists customers with account inquiries, transaction monitoring, and payment reminders via text message. Eno employs AI to understand natural language and provide helpful responses.

E-commerce

Shopify (Kit)

Shopify's virtual marketing assistant, Kit, helps merchants manage their online stores by automating marketing tasks such as running ad campaigns, sending thank-you emails, and creating social media posts. Kit uses AI to analyze data and make recommendations to optimize sales.

Sephora (Virtual Artist

Sephora's Virtual Artist chatbot allows customers to try on makeup virtually using augmented reality technology. Customers can chat with the bot to get product recommendations, try on different shades, and make purchases directly within the chat interface.

Hospitality

Marriott International (ChatBotlr)

‍Marriott International's ChatBotlr assists guests with various hotel-related inquiries such as room reservations, service requests, and local recommendations. Guests can interact with the chatbot via Facebook Messenger, Slack, or SMS to enhance their hotel experience.

Hilton (Connie)

‍Hilton's robot concierge, Connie, utilizes AI and natural language processing to provide guests with information about hotel amenities, local attractions, and dining options. Connie aims to enhance guests' stay by offering personalized recommendations and assistance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use chatbot for business?

Yes, you can use chatbots for business support tasks. Just make sure your chatbot fits your brand, adds value, and integrates smoothly. Regular monitoring and optimization are key for ongoing success.

What are the different types of customer service chatbots?

Here are some common types of chatbots:

1. Rule-Based Chatbots: Basic, rule-driven responses.
2. AI-Powered Chatbots: Adaptive, intelligent responses using machine learning.
3. Transactional Chatbots: Facilitate transactions directly.
4. Hybrid Chatbots: Blend rule-based and AI functionalities.

Conclusion

When selecting customer support chatbots for your business, consider the features and price of each option to find one that best fits your budget and needs. By considering the pros and cons of each customer support chatbot software, you can make an informed decision and choose the best option for your business.