An AI chatbot for your website answers visitors' questions from your own information, collects their details and passes enquiries to your team, including outside working hours. It works best for businesses that answer the same questions repeatedly. It should never be left to make up answers, so give it clear limits and a way to reach a person.
A chatbot should do two things well: answer common questions correctly, and say "let me connect you to the team" when it does not know.
Three kinds of chatbot
As an example, "Ask Harnika AI" on this site is an FAQ matcher. It answers from a list we wrote and calls no outside AI model, which is often enough for a small site. An AI assistant becomes worthwhile when visitors ask the same thing in many different ways.
What it can do
- Answer questions about services, prices, timings and policies.
- Collect names and phone numbers and save them to a sheet or CRM.
- Take bookings or share payment links.
- Guide people to the right page or product.
- Pass the conversation to your team, along with what was said.
What it should not do
- Give medical, legal or financial advice as if it were a professional.
- Promise prices, discounts or dates that are not in your written information.
- Hide that it is a bot. Tell people clearly.
- Block the way to a person. A frustrated customer should always have a way out.
- Collect more personal data than it needs. Mention the chat in your privacy policy, and check that your data handling is lawful.
How to stop wrong answers
- Use only your approved information. Base answers on a written document, not the open web.
- Tell it what to do when unsure. The right reply is to offer a person, not to guess.
- Test with real questions, including awkward and rude ones.
- Read the conversations each month and improve weak answers.
- Keep information current. Update it whenever prices or services change.
What it costs
Expect a setup cost and usually a running cost. AI assistants may also carry usage charges from the AI provider, which grow with the number of conversations. Our AI assistants start at ₹9,999 for setup, with a monthly plan from ₹2,999 that covers tuning, owner alerts and a usage report. Your written quote will set out what applies to your project.
Is it right for you?
If you ticked only one or two, a clear FAQ page and a WhatsApp button may be enough for now. That is a fine place to start.
Website chat or WhatsApp?
Many customers in India prefer WhatsApp since it is already on their phone and the chat stays there. Website chat suits people still browsing. Many businesses need both. See our guide to the WhatsApp Business API.
Common questions
Will a chatbot replace my staff?
It can take repeated questions off their desk, so they have time for the conversations that need a person. It should not replace people for complaints, complex sales or anything sensitive.
Can it answer in Tamil or Hindi?
AI assistants can work in several languages, but quality varies. Test with real customer messages, including mixed languages, before you go live.
Are free chatbots any good?
They can work for simple needs. Check message limits, branding, data handling and whether you can connect them to your tools.
Next step
See what our AI chatbot and automation service includes, or send us the ten questions you answer most often. We will tell you honestly whether a bot makes sense.