Companies are already reaping the rewards of conversational marketing tools such as website chatbots. Depending on the industry (and the quality of their campaign no doubt!), they report increased conversion rates that are between 2x and 10x higher than previously achieved through conventional digital ad campaigns.

Let’s look at what’s behind the success of conversational marketing. And more importantly, what we can do to build on that success even further!

Why conversational marketing works

It’s widely accepted that conversational marketing generates higher conversion rates (usually 1–5%) compared with digital display campaigns (0.2–0.8%) because it’s more personal. It’s designed to engage and respond to you personally in real time. Think of the chatbot that pops up and asks “Hi. How can I help?” when you arrive on a site. And then instantly gives you the answer you were looking for. (Admittedly, this doesn’t happen 100% of the time, but modern chatbots are getting much better at providing quality answers.😉) 

It’s no wonder that more people respond to such attempts at engagement – and that more of them end up converting into actual sales. It sure beats having to complete a form, read an automated response and then wait for a more detailed email or phone call (which you may or may not get!).

What happens when we add more creativity to the mix?

What’s even more exciting is that the potential of conversational marketing goes far beyond basic chatbots. At SMOC, we offer multiple conversation types, survey elements and campaigns to drive a wide range of actions – from visiting a website, watching a video, answering a question or finding a secret, to making an in-app, online or in-store purchase or referring a friend. 

These capabilities allow for exceptionally creative and engaging campaigns that attract and retain users’ attention – and thus further increase conversion rates!

And what about throwing in a few rewards too?

This is where SMOC really comes into its own. Imagine your name is John and you receive a text message from the airline you normally fly with. The message reads: “Hi John. Thank you for flying with us last month. If you can spare 3 minutes to answer 3 questions, we’d like to offer you 100 air miles in return. Just follow this link whenever you’re ready. Thanks!”

That’s just one example, of course. Another would be visiting a website and being offered a range of potential rewards – such as mobile data, parking minutes and climate-positive credits – to answer a few questions about certain brands.  

You get the gist – and no doubt recognise exactly why adding rewards to your conversational marketing campaign significantly increases conversion rates.

In closing – the proof is in the pudding

So perhaps it’s little wonder that SMOC-powered surveys achieve conversion rates that are similar to or higher than focus groups that reward participation with gift cards. We have developed a unique way of guiding users to answer questions. And by rewarding them for their valuable attention at every step of the way, we usually succeed in motivating them to complete the whole set of questions. It’s just like magic!

See also:
Part 1 - Conversational marketing – the most powerful online revenue-generator since pay per click

Part 2 - This article

Part 3 - Triple your sales with rewarded conversational marketing

Part 4 - Artificial Intelligence – the brainchild behind effective conversational marketing