where to use and where not to use bots in a community

I am a person who gets excited to head to a community and hold conversations with people who are like-minded and I believe you all are one among them. But is it only me who has encountered a bot’s voice in place of a human’s voice in a community? There have been incidents where we all have had conversations with bots in a community. This draws down the excitement we have to get to a community.

Imagine you go to a community wanting to know something and a bot answers, you go to another community and again a bot comes to help you go elsewhere, and it’s the same bot voice. It makes you feel left out and odd in a world full of humans, right?

You all would have come across the genie from the movie Aladdin, and the genie keeps telling throughout the film that he’s fed up seeing brass everywhere around him. He was so fed up that all he wanted in life was freedom from the world of brass. This is not something that happens only in a Disney movie, but it’s starting to happen in our real world, too, and you shouldn't be surprised to know that you are building it. If the voice of bots is getting more, our situation does not differ from the genie’s life.

The solution you’ve been searching

In life there is always a solution, let’s see what could save us from bots overrule in communities

Humans are special creatures who love human talks, we can’t help it, so here is where you have to #saynotobots

Answers: When the question is not just about stats and is about something personal and human, having a bot to answer is not the best choice. #saynotobots.
Quick, but also appropriate: Leave alone FAQs, there are definitely other questions that people ask and expect a quick response that could help. That is why there are in a community. When these questions are taken up by a bot the conversation ends by saying, “give us a moment our head will contact you shortly” this reply would make the person dissatisfied. Community builders use bots to give quick responses but if the response is not appropriate, they might fail in their service. #saynotobots
Complicated stuff: Yes, I know a bot is a sophisticated tech creature, but humans are even more complex and sophisticated creatures. So things that are complex enough should be left to humans. #saynotobot
Human touch: Never, I say again, never use bots cause if it is a bot that a human needs they wouldn’t have come to a community in the first place. A person like me needs a person with flesh and blood at times, so #saynotobot
Satisfaction: If you want to satisfy a human, there is a need for a human to do it. Communities are built to give customers the best customer experience and satisfaction. If that’s your aim bits alone is the option you should choose, so #saynotobot.

Nevertheless, we can put this tech to use in a way it can benefit humans #sayyestobots

Cost-efficient: As in a business, cost plays a vital role. And having a human service force can drain your pockets. So choosing bots to do basic services can save a chunk in your finances. #sayyestobots
24/7 Response: We humans need rest, but bots don’t. When you are in a place to provide responses 24/7, you can get a little help from bots. #sayyestobots
Common FAQs: If the answer is going to be the same, you can ask your bot to repeat those. This will be quick and will at the same time solve the issue for your community members. #sayyestobots #sayyestobots
When there is no need for a human touch: You can see a distinctive difference between things for which humans expect a personal human touch, like testimonials, etc and at the same time there are things that do not involve a human touch like steps to do something, documentation, etc. find out the distinction and make use of bots whenever a human touch is not needed. #sayyestobots

Note: Never try to fill a human touch need with a bot.

Slack and Discord bots might not be what people expect out of a community

People choose slack and discord to build their community. While starting a community is a smart choice, but here is where the mistake happens. People select the option to allow bot’s interference and assign bots in places where humans can only cater to the need just to reduce cost, energy, and time. Here is the truth: building a successful community is not easy, it takes time and energy to invest in it. And bots are not the cheat step that can get to success. Community builders might see this as an option to run the stairs easily. But, this choice will definitely bite you back later. It is best to choose slack and discord in the initial stages of community or when your community is in need of a chat base process. But as the community grows and people’s connect and relationships are needed for your community it is best for you to have a forum for your community.

Community is a place where people come in to hold conversations with people who are just like them. And bots can never fill that space. If they are okay with conversing with bots, they wouldn’t have come in search of a community.

Bots can be super helpful and fruitful if you make the wise choice of putting them to use in appropriate places. Have in mind that humans fall in love with humans and not with bots, if you succeed to create a next-door human feel, your community is going to blossom. Hope your community is blossoming, if not you still have a chance to do it. If you want a hand in it reach out to Habitate.io or write to us at people@habitate.io

This is not the only question that is nagging a community builder, if the other nagging question is when and how to make the transition from WhatsApp to a community forum, don't worry we've got it all covered!