The complete guide to add a chatbot to your WordPress site

Surely you’re familiar with these little dialog boxes that pop up on certain websites to offer you instant help, 24/7 ? Chatbots are becoming more and more common, because they’re so useful, both for the web user who benefits from their efficient assistance, and for the company that owns them, which can automate a large part of its customer service.

Surely you too would like to benefit from the advantages of a chatbot?

If so, and your site is built with the WordPress CMS, then you’ve come to the right place! In this article, we explain how to easily integrate such a chatbot on your WordPress.

But what exactly is a chatbot?

Definition of a chatbot

Chatbots are dialog boxes that enable users to chat with a robot using text messages, instantly, 24/7.

They can be installed in customer areas to help users take autonomous action, on websites like WordPress, on messaging applications like WhatsApp, and on social networks like Facebook Messenger and Instagram.

Chatbots have made great strides in recent years, with the development of generative AIs like ChatGPT.

As a result, they are increasingly being adopted by businesses, for their many benefits.

Key features of a WordPress chatbot

A well-configured WordPress chatbot can do many things for you.

Automate a large part of your customer service

A chatbot can easily be configured to take the load off your customer service department.

In this way, your WordPress chatbot can autonomously answer the most frequently asked questions. This is what we call a FAQ chatbot.

To do this, it analyzes your data and provides relevant answers to the questions put to it.

The WordPress chatbot can also provide quality assistance to your customers, whether it’s tracking a package, consulting prices, calculating shipping costs…

Your WordPress chatbot will therefore be able to relieve you of a significant proportion of frequently asked questions and simple recurring requests.

But it may not be able to provide a quality response to complex and novel requests.

In this case, it’s possible to trigger a livechat directly in the chatbot, so that a human can instantly take over.

Collect more and better qualified leads

Your WordPress chatbot can also be configured to collect leads:

• Newsletter subscription
• Lead qualification: first name, last name, company, needs, … and sending to your CRM
• Making appointments via synchronization with your sales reps’ agendas.

You can therefore use your chatbot to capture leads, by asking them a series of questions to qualify them, which can improve your conversion rate compared to less interactive traditional forms.

By having a chatbot, you can make your website more interactive and engaging for your visitors and customers.

What are the different types of chatbots?

We can differentiate chatbots into 3 main types:

1. Chatbots that follow a script
2. Chatbots powered by generative AI
3. Livechats

Each of these chatbots can be useful, depending on the goals you have for your WordPress chatbot.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these chatbot types.

The chatbot that follows a scenario

Such a conversational agent is based on a decision tree, a workflow established beforehand.

In other words, the chatbot will propose choices to the user, via clickable buttons for example, which will guide him along a path to find the information he’s looking for.

This type of chatbot can be very useful for quickly directing the user to the right resource.

On the other hand, it does require some thought to be given to thechatbot’s decision tree.

The ChatGPT generative AI chatbot

This chatbot replaces the chat bots that worked by detecting keywords in the user’s sentences.

Indeed, recent advances in artificial intelligence, with the democratization of AI like ChatGPT, have enabled chatbots to understand the requests made to them much better.

There’s no longer any need to detect pre-listed keywords, in order to provide a response that’s as relevant as possible. For example, if the robot detected the words “track my parcel”, it would suggest solutions for tracking the parcel. But this was imperfect, because if the user typed “what’s the status of my order?”, the chatbot might not detect the right keywords, and not know how to respond.

Now, with generative AI enabling a better understanding of natural language, the chatbot is much more versatile. It understands context well, to provide the best response, even to complex requests.

These AI-boosted chatbots can also be coupled with robots that follow a scenario, by being a sub-part of such a chatbot for example.

Livechat

Livechat is a very special type of chatbot. It has the same appearance as a chatbot, except that it’s not a robot that answers, but a human!

A livechat allows you to chat in real time with visitors to your WordPress site, via a mobile application or software for you, and in the chatbot’s chat window for the user.

A WordPress livechat interaction works like this:

1. The visitor enters his or her questions in the chat box on the WordPress site.
2. You receive their questions on your mobile application. You can answer live from anywhere if you have your phone with you.
3. You answer via your mobile application, and the visitor receives the answer live on your WordPress site’s dialog box.

But for that, you need to have a human available to answer right away !

It’s often best to combine a chatbot with a livechat: the robot starts a livechat if it can’t answer on its own and a human is available.

If no one is available, the robot can schedule a callback by an advisor.

The main disadvantage of livechat is that it requires human intervention. It can be very time-consuming and intrusive on a daily basis if you have a lot of questions.

And if you don’t respond quickly to your users’ questions, the livechat loses all interest: they’ll have left your website before you’ve had a chance to answer!

For a livechat to be useful to your website’s users, you’ll need to have someone available at all times to answer questions quickly.

This type of chatbot is therefore not available 24/7, unlike a chatbot.

What are the advantages of having a chatbot on your WordPress site?

Conversational agents appeal to businesses and users alike.

We carried out a study in 2022 on this subject:

• 89% of users say they like to get a quick answer from a chatbot
• 75% of users say they like not having to wait for an advisor to be available.

So here are the main benefits you’d get from integrating a chatbot on your WordPress site:

• Improved user satisfaction: rapid response, 24/7
• Savings on your customer service: the chatbot can take a huge amount of requests off your hands
• Better lead qualification and collection: more interactive and fun than a form, and connected directly to your CRM
• Improved conversion rate: the chatbot can highlight promotions, current products, a promo code for a first order… Learn how to create a Woocommerce chatbot with Botnation in less than 5 minutes.
• Omnichannel presence: your chatbot can be integrated on your WordPress site, but also on your Facebook page, in your Instagram DMs, on your corporate WhatsApp, on your solutions’ customer area, in-house…

Top 5 best WordPress chatbot plugins

Have you been won over by the benefits of chatbots, and want to integrate one on your WordPress site? We present our selection of the 5 best WordPress chatbot plugins, so you can have one without having to code! The first 3 are chatbots, and the last 2 are livechats.

1. Botnation AI 🇫🇷

We’re a French company specializing in the creation of no-code chatbots. We offer a platform that lets you create your own chatbot, with a simple drag-and-drop operation. You don’t need to know how to code, or have any particular technical skills!

You can publish your chatbot on your WordPress site by downloading our extension. But you can also publish your bot on all your channels: Facebook Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp…

We enable you to use the latest artificial intelligence technologies in your chatbot, such as ChatGPT.

You can also direct your users to a livechat if required.

We offer templates to get you started building your chatbot with a good foundation. By using one of our templates, you’ll be able to install a WordPress chatbot on your site quickly and easily!

We’ve also recently rolled out a new feature, Smart AI, which lets you create a FAQ chatbot or shopping assistant based on your data in less than 5 minutes.

Our solution is therefore ideal if you want the very best in no-code chatbots.

Our rates are affordable for most companies.

Creating your chatbot is free: you only need to take out a subscription (with no obligation) if you want to publish your chatbot.

Our subscriptions start at €39 per month.

At this price, you get access to one of the best SaaS solutions for creating a high-performance chatbot that will satisfy your users and meet your business objectives.

We offer French-language support, tutorials and even training to teach you how to create the chatbot you need yourself, without coding, using our intuitive drag-and-drop software.

And our solution is French, 100% RGPD-compliant, GAFAM-independent.

2. AI Engine

AI Engine is a WordPress extension created by Jordy Meow. This free plugin lets you have an AI-powered chatbot like Chat GPT.

To get advanced features like forms in the bot, use of your databases and statistics, you’ll need to upgrade to the paid version of the plugin at $59.

This may be an interesting solution if you’re looking to have ChatGPT directly on your website, to respond to your users.

You’ll be able to guide responses a little by providing context, but customization possibilities remain fairly limited compared to a full-featured solution expert in the field.

What’s more, your chatbot will only be usable on WordPress, so you won’t be able to publish it elsewhere. And the plugin’s interface is only available in English.

3. WPBot

WPBot is an AI chatbot specialized for WordPress. It can also integrate AIs such as ChatGPT.

Like AI Engine, this chatbot may be right for you if you’re looking for a solution with fairly basic functionality. You’ll be able to customize your chatbot’s appearance, name, etc.

WPBot also lets you fill in your questions and answers, associated with keywords so the chatbot can try to match the user’s requests with the right answer.

However, connecting your chatbot to your data, CRM and tools will be more complicated.

4. Tidio Live Chat

Tidio is a well-known live chat solution. Supplied with a mobile app, Tidio lets you chat in real time with your users.

If a user arrives on your WordPress site and wants to engage in a chat with your chatbot, you’ll receive a notification on your smartphone. All you have to do is quickly reply to the message in your mobile application.

The message is then immediately forwarded to the user’s chat window on your WordPress site, ensuring a fluid and instantaneous discussion.

Tidio has also introduced a new product to its livechat, Lyro AI, which is a chat bot similar to AI Engine and WPBot.

5. Crisp Live Chat

Crisp offers live chat for WordPress. In addition to a mobile application, you also have access to software so you can answer users’ questions from your computer, under Windows and MacOS.

Crisp is therefore a good solution if you’re looking for a high-performance livechat that lets you respond from your computer, which can be more convenient than on the phone for getting a quick answer.

Tips for choosing the best WordPress chatbot for your business

To choose the best chatbot for your WordPress site, and more broadly for your business, here are a few things that may help you in your decision :

• Do you need a chatbot for your WordPress site only, or would you like one on other platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp?
• Are you looking for an RGPD-compliant solution?
• Do you need a chatbot that can connect to your tools: CRM, calendars, ticketing software?
• Should your chatbot know your data (FAQs, useful information…) to respond in the most relevant way possible?
• Do you need a chatbot that can combine decision trees (buttons, QCMs), AI and livechat?
• Are you absolutely looking for a free solution, or do you have the budget for a more high-end solution that will enable you to create a good chatbot that can be deployed on a multitude of solutions?

Thinking about these questions can help you choose the chatbot best suited to your needs.

How to easily create your WordPress chat bot with the Botnation AI extension

In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to quickly and easily install a chatbot on your WordPress with the Botnation plugin!

1. Installing the Botnation AI chatbot WordPress plugin

Installing the plugin is simple. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Download the Botnation chatbot plugin to your WordPress site (free)
2. Create a free account on Botnation
3. Log in to your Botnation dashboard, and start configuring your chatbot for free! You can start from an existing template to make things easier! You’ll be guided through Botnation in detail as you create your bot.
4. Finish configuring the WordPress plugin with your Botnation account information to link the Botnation dashboard to your WordPress site and deploy your bot.

If you don’t yet have a WordPress site and would like to delegate its creation, we invite you to contact this web agency specialized in WordPress site creation.

2. How to add the Botnation AI plugin to your WordPress site

You can also proceed as follows:

1. Go to your WordPress site administration (back office)
2. Click on “Extensions” –> “Add”.
3. Type “Botnation” in the search bar
4. Click on “Install now
5. Activate the extension
6. Create an account on Botnation, and configure your chatbot on your Botnation dashboard
7. Once your bot is complete, go to “Settings” –> “Botnation Chatbot” to configure the plugin. You’ll find the necessary information in your Botnation account (https://start.botnation.ai/login).

Steps 1 & 2: Install the plugin and create an account on Botnation.ai

Step 3: Start with a Botnation chatbot template and customize it !

Step 4: Deploy your chatbot on your WordPress site !

Now you know how to create a WordPress chatbot for your website.