Chatbots vs Conversational AI: A Complete Guide

Also known as toolkit chatbots, these tools rely on keyword matching and pre-determined scripts to answer the most basic FAQs. A chatbot is a tool that can simulate human conversation and interact with users through text or voice-based interfaces. They do this in anticipation of what a customer might ask, and how the chatbot should respond. If you’ve ever tried to seek out customer support, then you’ve likely come in contact with both typical chatbots and conversational AI. With the proper AI tools, messages that don’t explicitly say, “Where is my package? This goes a long way for many scaling customer support teams and enables them to automatically deflect incoming customer queries with artificial intelligence while still maintaining high customer satisfaction.
They have limited capabilities and won’t be able to respond to questions outside their programmed parameters. See how Conversational AI can provide a more nuanced and effective customer service experience. From multi-intent recognition to natural language understanding, witness the future of interaction.

Are Chatbots AI? How to Differentiate Chatbots From Conversational AI

AI solutions like those offered by Forethought are powered by machine learning and natural language understanding that can learn from your data and understand the intent of a customer inquiry. Conversational AI is trained on chatbots vs conversational ai large datasets that help deep learning algorithms better understand user intents. Conversational AI, on the other hand, refers to technologies capable of recognizing and responding to speech and text inputs in real time.

Conversational AI chatbots have revolutionized customer service, allowing businesses to interact with their customers more quickly and efficiently than ever before. Chatbot technology is rapidly becoming the preferred way for brands to engage with their audiences, offering timely responses and fast resolution times. Whether you use rule-based chatbots or some conversational AI, automated messaging technology goes a long way in helping brands offer quick customer support. Maryville University, Chargebee, Bank of America, and several other major companies are leading the way in using this tech to resolve customer requests efficiently and effectively. That’s why chatbots are so popular – they improve customer experience and reduce company operational costs.

Customer Service Chatbots: Examples, Use Cases and Best Practices

Rule-based chatbots follow predefined rules and patterns to generate responses. Chatbots are like knowledgeable assistants who can handle specific tasks and provide predefined responses based on programmed rules. It combines artificial intelligence, natural language processing, and machine learning to create more advanced and interactive conversations. Yes, traditional chatbots typically rely on predefined responses based on programmed rules or keywords. They have limited flexibility and may struggle to handle queries outside their programmed parameters. On the other hand, conversational AI offers more flexibility and adaptability.


Because the user does not have to repeat their question or query, they are bound to be more satisfied. In fact, advanced conversational AI can deduce multiple intents from a single sentence and response addresses each of those points. The voice AI agents are adept at handling customer interruptions with grace and empathy. They skillfully navigate interruptions while seamlessly picking up the conversation where it left off, resulting in a more satisfying and seamless customer experience. Now, let’s begin by setting the stage with a few definitions, and then we’ll dive into the fascinating world of chatbots and conversational AI. Together, we’ll explore the similarities and differences that make each of them unique in their own way.
There’s a lot of confusion around these two terms, and they’re frequently used interchangeably — even though, in most cases, people are talking about two very different technologies. To add to the confusion, sometimes it can be valid to use the word “chatbot” and “conversational AI” for the same tool. This causes a lot of confusion because both terms are often used interchangeably — and they shouldn’t be! In the following, we explain the two terms, and why it’s important for companies to understand the difference. This software goes through your website, finds FAQs, and learns from them to answer future customer questions accurately. It may be helpful to extract popular phrases from prior human-to-human interactions.

After you’ve prepared the conversation flows, it’s time to train your chatbot to understand human language and different user inquiries. Choose one of the intents based on our pre-trained deep learning models or create your new custom intent. To do this, just copy and paste several variants of a similar customer request. Chatbots operate according to the predefined conversation flows or use artificial intelligence to identify user intent and provide appropriate answers.

Why are Companies Switching to Conversational AI?

However, with the advent of cutting-edge conversational AI solutions like Yellow.ai, these hurdles are now a thing of the past. Conversational AI brings a host of business-driven benefits that prioritize customer satisfaction, optimize operations, and drive growth. With its ability to generate and convert leads effectively, businesses can expand their customer base and boost revenue.

“Rule based or scripted chatbots are best suited for providing an interaction based solely on the most frequently asked questions. An ‘FAQ’ approach can only support very specific keywords being used,” said Eric Carrasquilla, senior vice president and general manager of Digital Engagement Solutions at CSG. When people think of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) their first thought is often the chatbots they might find on enterprise websites.

What is a Bot?

You can set it up to answer specific logical questions based on the input given by the user. While it’s easy to set up, it can’t understand true user intent and might fail for more complex issues. The critical difference between chatbots and conversational AI is that the former is a computer program, whereas the latter is a type of technology. A few examples of conversational AI chatbots include Siri, Cortana, Alexa, etc. Depending on the sophistication level, a chatbot can leverage or not leverage conversational AI technology.

As more businesses embrace conversational AI, those that don’t risk falling behind — 67% of companies believe they’ll lose customers if they don’t adopt it soon. In the chatbot vs. Conversational AI debate, Conversational AI is almost always the better choice for your company. It takes time to set up and teach the system, but even that’s being reduced by extensions that can handle everyday tasks and queries. Once a Conversational AI is set up, it’s fundamentally better at completing most jobs. Chatbots and conversational AI, though sharing a goal of enhancing customer interaction, differ significantly in complexity and capabilities. Consider your objectives, resources, and customer needs when deciding between them.

Conversational AI is the future

For example, they can help with basic troubleshooting questions to relieve the workload on customer service teams. They use rule-based programming to match user queries with potential answers, typically for basic FAQs. Where basic chatbots show their limitations is if they receive a request that has not been previously defined; they will be unable to assist, and spit back a “Sorry, I don’t understand.” response. This solution is becoming more and more sophisticated which means that, in the future, AI will be able to fully take over customer service conversations.

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