Advantages Of Chat Bots In African Developing Countries

As artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep neural network applications mature, every new generation of chatbots is getting better and better. Most people in Africa access the Internet through smartphones. It's no secret that internet charges in a majority of developing countries in Africa are high, which brings challenges for citizens to obtain readily available information easily. Chatbots are now playing a pivotal role in providing more affordable resources or services to meet demand, since they consume less data, and can provide information almost instantly.

In Zimbabwe a country that is at an economic cross roads where internet services are increasingly becoming a luxury, the use of Chat bot technologies are now helping citizens find more affordable ways to search for products and services online.

Chatbots, have been a popular discussion topic since 2016 and are enjoying increasing popularity, with further developments ensuring their longevity and proven benefits to businesses. Many reports highlight the importance of improving the customer experience, with chatbot apps providing direct benefits to users. Chatbots are mainly used for customer service, information gathering or lead generation. The most advanced chatbots are powered by artificial intelligence to understand complex requirements, personalise responses, and enhance interactions over time. With everything going toward automation today, people with chatbots can get rid of routine tasks and focus more on a strategic side of the business. With more conversational bots being developed, more and more companies will increase sales and productivity. With more than 1.2 billion active users per month on Facebook Messenger, companies that are on Facebook can instantly see the value of a chat messenger for their messenger presence. However, if you want to immerse yourself in Facebook messenger chatbots, you need to know your existing customer base.

Some Chat bots that are popular in Zimbabwe are;

Mobie - A WhatsApp based service called that allows you to to look for products and services via WhatsApp.

Batsi - This was the first service of its kind in the local banking sector and Batsi is now deployed on Facebook, Square Mobile App along with the online Steward bank banking platform.

Bud e - The Econet Chabot on Facebook Messenger or Inbox assists you with Data, Line Registrations, SMS, EcoCash, Value Added Services, ZESA Queries, FAQs, Promotions and Econet Shops

Fuelbot - A bot that uses your location to find the nearest place with fuel.

Kulibot - A useful bot that you can use to buy electricity and airtime. Best of all the bot is on WhatsApp so you don’t have to be getting data or incurring any extra costs just to use the bot.

Are there other chat bots we missed? Let us know in the comments section.