Meta's AI chatbots could become your new sales team

Meta's ads have just become much...chattier, let's say?

As of now, businesses using Meta AI can set up ad-embedded chatbots to have full-on conversations with customers.

When customers click an ad on Facebook or Insta, these chatbots will be available to answer questions related to your product or service.

In Meta's own words, 'From answering common customer questions to discussing products and finalizing a purchase, these business AIs can help businesses engage with more customers and increase sales.'

This new feature is part of a slew of new AI capabilities unveiled at the Meta Connect 2024 Developer Conference. Other updates included new image generation capabilities and AI voices powered by the likes of John Cena and Awkwafina.

It's also yet another result of Meta's absolutely bulbous $35B+ investment in AI earlier this year. And at this rate, it's probably not gonna be the last.

But wait - I thought Meta ads already supported chatbots?

That's right! But if you've used chatbots for your Facebook ads before, you already know they have limits.

The chatbots we've come to know have some level of AI in them already. These look for keywords in customers' messages and use them to respond with relevant - though not always helpful - information.

What makes this update significant is these bots now embrace generative AI. This is the same tech powering text-based programs like the Meta AI assistant and ChatGPT.

Very basically, you'd be able to load up a chatbot with all kinds of relevant info about your brand and what you're advertising. In other words, the kinda stuff a salesperson ought to know. Then, your chatbot will use this info to respond more accurately to customer questions (in theory, that is).

How 'human' are these conversations, though?

Fair question. As quickly as AI is becoming more 'human,' the trust isn't quite there yet.

One recent survey suggests most people would rather wait on hold to chat with a human than get immediate answers from a chatbot.

On top of that, Meta warns that AI-generated messages carry the risk of being 'inaccurate or inappropriate.' So the AI needs user feedback to make it better over time.

We asked our in-house paid ads strategist, Daniel, for his take on this new capability. He reckons this new AI is a net-positive for businesses. However, its early days might come with some faults.

'At the end of the day, it's just another tool for advertisers,' he says. 'It'll be interesting to see how the data stacks up!'

I couldn't agree more.

-Devin, Copywriter

🤖 Wondering if AI bots are about to run your life? We break it down in the full podcast. 🎧 Check it out here!