May 1, 2018

6 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Building a profitable business is no easy task. After all, you can design your online shop to look and function the way you want it to, promote it across many channels and even drive a ton of traffic to it on a daily basis. But just because people visit your online store doesn’t mean they’ll actually buy anything.

Related: 25 Ecommerce Conversion Hacks to Make Your Website Profitable (Infographic)

In fact, it’s only after you have your shop up and running that the real work begins.

In that context, here are the best tips out there to help you skyrocket your ecommerce conversions so you can start generating more sales.

1. Start building trust.

Not everyone that visits your site is at the right stage of the buying cycle to convert. In fact, some may be visiting your site for the very first time and may be hesitant about making a purchase. That’s why establishing trust, in tiny increments, is the key to helping move those in the early stages of the buying cycle towards a decision to buy something.

One of the best ways to do this is to start small and ask site visitors for their email address, just as Nike does.

By encouraging people to trust you enough to provide their contact information, and later sending your campaigns to them via email, you can convince those that aren’t sure about buying from you to go ahead and give you a try.

2. Use quality images.

People that are shopping online rely on your shop’s images to make their purchasing decisions. After all, they can’t physically see or touch your products. But they definitely want to know that the money they’re about to spend is worth it.

Related: 5 Strategies for Turning Ecommerce Browsers Into Buyers

To get around this problem, Ikea, for example, does a great job of giving online shoppers a look at what it’s selling.

Leverage the power of high quality images like these throughout your own ecommerce shop to help increase sales. Make sure the images are large enough to show detail, are crisp and clear and have good descriptions to back up the imagery.

3. Eliminate the risk.

Another common reason people shy away from finalizing an online purchase is the fear that it won’t fit, won’t be what they expected, will come damaged in the mail — or any other number of concerns.

If you eliminate these risks, your customers will be more likely to make a purchase from you. For instance, make returns easy and free of charge. Offer free shipping and product guarantees. Even consider allowing hassle-free returns to your brick and mortar shops if that’s possible.

Take it from successful ecommerce shops likes Hugo Boss. Not only does the brand offer free shipping on all purchases, it makes all returns by mail free of charge.

Your customers are sure to appreciate that buying from you carries no risk.

5. Add social proof.

When it comes to making a purchase, no matter what the cost, your customers will want to know that others before them made similar purchases and were happy with the products or services they bought.

That’s why adding social proof to your online storefront is a good strategy for boosting conversions. Not only does it help establish you as a reliable store to purchase from, it gives customers on the fence reason to take the plunge and finalize their transactions.

After all, 84 percent of people trust online reviews and testimonials as much as they would a personal recommendation.

For example, B-School is an online business school dedicated to helping modern entrepreneurs. However, courses like this can be pricey and a lot of them out there have been proven to be scams.

But Marie Forleo takes the right approach in having satisfied customers testify to their success:

She also uses celebrity endorsements to lend credibility to her course:

Social proof like this can be added to your online store in multiple ways:

All you have to do is find the type of social proof your target audience relates to the best, and use it to your advantage to boost conversions.

6. Create an easy checkout process.

As one of the biggest exommerce giants in the world today, Amazon can teach every online shop owner a thing or two. And, while your ecommerce shop may not be as large, study Amazon: The way it runs things is efficient and could help you increase your shop’s sales.

For example, many people abandon the checkout process because of things like unexpected shipping costs, the requirement to create an account, concerns about security and, most importantly, a difficult checkout process.

Sure, your online store may need multiple steps in the checkout process, no matter how hard you try to avoid this. But making things as easy on customers as you can is the way to reduce cart abandonment.

Again referencing Amazon, take a look at how this ecommerce store offers a one-click checkout process:

And for those that don’t want to engage in one-click checkouts, Amazon still makes the multiple step process easy to follow and understand, helping customers to feel at ease as they pay for their items.

Notice how each step is broken down into a progress bar so customers always know which step they’re on and how many more steps there are to go until the end.

And, there you have it! Six quick and easy ways to optimize your ecommerce shop for increasing conversions and boosting sales.

Related: 6 Mistakes Your Ecommerce Store Must Avoid

Just remember, it doesn’t matter what you sell, how you promote it, or how much traffic comes to your online shop if no one’s buying. Take the time to apply some of these tricks so you can generate the most revenue possible and continue to build your business.

April 30, 2018

10 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

As an entrepreneur, your time and energy are in constant demand. If you’re not careful, too many “Yeses” to distractions and invitations—like coffee with no precise purpose—will sabotage your creative and productive output.

Accomplished entrepreneurs and members of The Oracles divulge how to say “No,” once and for all. 

Molly Bloom

Image Credit: The Oracles

1. Run every opportunity through a litmus test.

In my early 20s, I thought that ambition meant leaving no stone unturned, no potential client, contact, or lead untapped. With maturity, I’ve realized:

• We have limited bandwidth—burnout is a real, crippling reality.
• Maintaining a balance of work, relationships, sports, and spiritual practice (for me, it’s meditation, yoga, and being in nature) is not only healthy but also results in higher quality work.
• Playing the long game and looking at the big picture is a better strategy than making decisions in the moment—which often come from a fear-based notion of missed opportunity.

I run every opportunity, request, meeting, or invite through a litmus test: Will this move the needle forward in my career? Is it a way to be of service? Does it meaningfully nurture me mentally and emotionally? Is it reciprocal for someone who’s done something for me?

If it doesn’t fall into one of those categories, I politely pass so I can be available and fully present for an opportunity that does. —Molly Bloom, entrepreneur, author, and inspiration for the Oscar-nominated “Molly’s Game”; built the world’s most exclusive poker club for billionaire tycoons and Hollywood celebrities. Watch Molly’s Game on iTunes!

Mark Divine

Image Credit: The Oracles

2. Create an auto-response that says ‘No’ for you.

I’ve tried to teach myself to say “No” to serve the bigger “Yes” over the years but found that my willingness to please others and agree to their non-stop barrage of requests is too deeply ingrained in my system.

Email has been the biggest offender; I give myself an “A” for effort, but an “F” for execution. Disgusted by my lack of discipline in this crucial area, I hired an assistant to say “No” for me and implemented this auto-response (which my daughter jokingly penned). This tactic works like magic, eliciting many delightful responses—which I ignore!

“Thanks so much for reaching out.

As a way to avoid electronic distractions, I’m no longer using my computer and will be hiding in a cave in the Himalayas. However, if you need to reach me, you can do so by carrier pigeon.

While carrier pigeons typically take weeks to reach Tibet, we have trained ours to achieve 20X what they thought possible … so, your message should arrive within a day.

But for those messages that are urgent and timely, I will use the mental toughness techniques learned during my time with the Aborigines — and get back telepathically. (Or you can contact support@unbeatablemind.com)

May The Force be with you!” —Mark Divine, retired U.S. Navy SEAL commander, founder of SEALFIT and NYT/WSJ bestselling author; follow SEALFIT on YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram

Dottie Herman

Image Credit: The Oracles

3. Only say ‘Yes’ to meetings with a clear and precise purpose.

Don’t be afraid to say “No;” I’ve learned it’s one of the best ways to set clear boundaries and focus on what’s truly important. It’s especially important to have an assistant who’s a gatekeeper of your time. A great assistant knows your schedule, priorities, and availability better than you.

As a CEO, I receive many offers and invitations to attend meetings with no clear, precise purpose. Although appreciative, time is our most precious commodity, so I have to wisely allocate it. If something doesn’t have a purpose, I simply can’t commit, so politely decline.

My secret to not disappointing people is to have a great support team. I rarely schedule a meeting I don’t want to take. My assistant gets as much information about the invitation or opportunity as possible, researching the person or company before presenting it to me, so we can respond accordingly.

Remember, there’s a difference between being busy and productive. When it comes to effective leadership, I choose productive. —Dottie Herman, CEO of Douglas Elliman, a real estate brokerage empire with more than $27 billion in annual sales

Sharran Srivatsaa

Image Credit: The Oracles

4. Clone yourself to deliver value.

Here’s the paradox: Precise questions elicit thoughtful answers. However, most inbound requests are vague because people need your help with clarity; although you can help, answering every request is logistically unscalable.

Whenever I get an unfocused request or general inquiry, I respond with extreme specificity to create clarity. Instead of saying “No,” I refer people to a resource that answers similar general questions.

For example, over the years, I kept getting asked the same tactical real estate question disguised as a vague meeting request. After having the same conversation dozens of times, I stopped and created a comprehensive resource bundle.

My response now? “As you can imagine, I get this question often … so I spent numerous hours deconstructing this topic and created a blueprint for you on a video, podcast, and a detailed blog post. You will be unstoppable with this head start!”

Imagine the multitude of ways you could leverage a resource bundle: as a lead magnet, as part of your follow-up sequence, or a free gift when you’re speaking. Every opportunity to say “No” is a chance to deliver a thoughtful resource to someone who needs it, without actually being there. —Sharran Srivatsaa, angel investor; grew Teles Properties 10X in five years

Shawn Rawls

Image Credit: The Oracles

5. Hire a ‘Director of No.’

The root of your business success is the fundamental ability to say “Yes” to what’s important and “No” to anything else. Two of the most important things I’ve learned are: one, “No” is a complete sentence and doesn’t need explaining, and two, when you say “Yes” to something, you’re declining something else.

Having a clear understanding of your priorities—and a calendar reflecting them—makes saying “No” easy, even if you experience difficulty saying it. An open calendar is dangerous; it should be filled with your most important tasks. It’s hard to say “Yes” when you don’t have any free time.

Finally, hiring an “offensive lineman” to screen my calls and respond to my emails proved to be invaluable. I jokingly referred to her as my “Director of No.” She knew my priorities and goals; her job was to keep my time and tasks protected from the trivial pursuits of others.

Remember, what’s usually missing from your business is a “Who,” not a “What.” —Shaun Rawls, lifelong entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Rawls Consulting

Marina Rose

Image Credit: The Oracles

6. Lock in your calendar, unplug, and work in uninterrupted blocks.

Creating value and building a business only comes from focused attention and discipline. Although I’ve missed delightful social time, saying “No” to invites and distractions has enabled me to say “Yes” to extraordinary success. Here’s how you can too:

One, establish your social calendar three months at a time. I use both Wall Calendar and DayRunner planner so I can make notes. I look at my invites, then determine which I’m unable to miss. Simultaneously, I look at my projects and put my social and business schedule together like a priceless jigsaw puzzle.

Two, break down your quarterly schedule into weeks. Time is your most precious resource; create boundaries for your week regarding what you want to complete. I fast-track my goals by being strategic with time management: I turn off my phone, disengage from checking email, and withdraw from social media to ensure that I complete projects in an easy, effortless, and efficient manner.

Three, carve out your time daily so you can work in blocks. I will usually block off eight to 10 hours without distractions. By doing this, it takes pressure off, knowing that I have time to enjoy my life. It also sustains my brain bandwidth for productive output. I work out when I want to work out. And eat when I want to eat. —Marina Rose, QDNA®, founder and developer of Quantum DNA Acceleration®, a revolutionary technique for quantum growth in health, life, and business; connect with Marina on Facebook

Eileen Rivera

Image Credit: The Oracles

7. Practice turning people down.

The best way to get better at anything is practice! Start practicing these responses right now:

“No, thank you.”

“No, not at this time.”

“No, I can’t.”

“I’m unavailable.”

“No, not interested.”

“No.”

Decide now what you’re willing to give up by saying “Yes”—productivity, money, family time, or exercise? Don’t wait until you’re asked. Say “No” to anything not adding value to your life or business. Rid yourself of the disease to please!

Also, be direct. Don’t say, “I’ll think about it,” if you’re not interested. Although we want to be agreeable and liked, as entrepreneurs, what we want most is to build our businesses. To succeed, you must surrender the illusion that you can make time for everything. You can’t. Say “No” to distractions; say “Yes” to your artistry. —Eileen Rivera, CEO of The Rivera Group; real estate coach, speaker, and licensed California realtor with over half a billion in sales

Ken Lebovic

Image Credit: The Oracles

8. Decide quickly.

Asking for something is hard. Maybe it’s someone’s time, money, or opinion. I’ve been on both sides, so appreciate the effort when someone reaches out. Always help someone when you can. If you can’t, the best thing you can do for everyone is to give a quick answer.

Never drag someone along when you know the answer will be “No.” You’re giving false hope and wasting everybody’s time with unnecessary follow-ups. —Ken Lebovic, president of North Shore Holdings; built a real estate empire acquiring thousands of properties in 20 years

Want to share your insights like those above in a future column? If you’re an experienced entrepreneur, please get in touch here.

Want to suggest a future topic for these entrepreneurs to answer? Email suggestion@theoracles.com and it’s very possible we’ll make your suggestion the focus of a future article!

Follow The Oracles on Facebook.

April 29, 2018

2 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Confidence is an integral part of success. Of course, there’s a difference between confidence and ego, and it’s important you don’t develop the latter.

Related: Confidence, Humility and the Effective CEO.

So how can you look and sound more confident? To start, focus on body language. Keep your hands visible and don’t put them in your pockets when speaking. Hiding your hands can suggest uncertainty and nerves. Also, be sure to make eye contact with the person you’re speaking to and don’t divert your eyes.

Related: 10 Things Confident People Don’t Do

Another area to focus on is your voice. Make sure you don’t mumble or shout, and instead keep your voice at a normal speaking level. The more clear you sound, the more confident you come off. That’s why it’s also important not to talk fast and rush your words. In fact, it’s recommended to speak so slowly that it feels like a “snail’s pace.” When you speak slowly, you’ll be more cautious of what you’re saying and can make sure to avoid any “ums” or “likes.”

Related: To Massively Increase Your Confidence, Plan to Spend Your Time Constructively

From offering a strong handshake to standing up straight, check out Pound Place’s infographic below for more ways on how to look and sounds more confident.

April 28, 2018

2 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Networking isn’t about shaking hands and exchanging business cards. It also isn’t just about trying to find a dream job or new opportunity. A solid network is helpful for a variety of reasons, whether you’re looking to launch a business, showcase a project or meet new people. If you really want to grow your network, you’ve got to focus on building valuable relationships.

Related: 10 Powerful Business Networking Skills to Build Rapport 

The best part about networking is that there are no downsides to it. Of course, it might sound daunting at first, but people with strong social networks also are typically more confident, happier and healthier. According to research by Network Wise, strong and healthy networks can lead to a decrease in dementia, breast cancer and other health issues.

Related: 7 Tips to Networking as an Introvert

The three most important types of networks that you should develop are operational, personal and strategic. Operational means gaining contacts and connections with people important to business, while personal refers to those people you socialize with and who are more likely to become your friends. Strategic are the people you strategically connect with to share ideas and whom you look up to.

Related: How to Encourage Networking That Boosts Company Culture

While that might sound like a lot of work, with the help of technology, networking is easier and more achievable than ever. Sites including LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram are all great places to connect with people and begin building your own networks.

To learn more, check out Network Wise’s infographic below.

April 27, 2018

16 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Over the past two years, chatbots — or technology-fueled virtual assistants — have taken the world by storm.

At first, chatbots were merely a computer-based service that could undertake various customer service tasks. And in that regard, they were a welcome leap forward.

But, in recent years, chatbots, or “bots” for short, have morphed into exceptionally intelligent computer programs able to assist companies with essential tasks ranging from marketing and human resources functions to sales efforts.

However, while these technology assistants have already made their mark in the business world, many people still don’t fully understand their capabilities, limitations and many functionalities. That’s the reason behind this basic guide: to highlight the different types of chatbots, how they work and how you can create your own artificial intelligence (AI)-powered virtual assistant.

So, without further ado, let’s learn about … chatbots.

Related: How to Create a Facebook Messenger Chatbot For Free Without Coding

The basics

What are chatbots? Chatbots are computer programs capable of conducting conversations by text and auditory communication. Programs simulate how a human conversation would proceed. Chatbots can include text — the response you received to your customer service inquiry — as well as audio and video.

Though chatbots are also robots, there’s no three-dimensional physical presence equivalent to the sci-fi variety or to factory or police robots. Instead, chatbots’ power stems from either set scripts (a technology known as “rules”), or artificial intelligence.

Regardless of their power source, bots can perform a wide variety of tasks without human help. Siri and Alexa are well-known examples of virtual bots; but you’ve also likely encountered customer-service chatbots in a pop-up chat window on your favorite ecommerce site. (See those three dots and the appearance of someone typing? That’s probably a bot.)

So, whether you’re making a restaurant reservation for this weekend, scheduling next week’s calendar event or sending out personalized promotions to your customers, chatbots can free you from these mundane tasks. They offer practically unlimited opportunities for better and faster customer service, and for the quick, easy accomplishment of tasks.

Related: There’s a Lot More to AI Than Just Chatbots

Where do you obtain a chatbot? A chatbot can be easily created through various means, whether you build the bot yourself using your coding knowledge or hire someone to build it for you. Today, it’s easier than ever to add a bot to your website, and many companies out there are ready to build you an excellent bot for less cost than you might  think.

The most important factor here is that chatbots can simulate human-like conversations (text or audio) with your customers. Thanks to the technology that powers them, virtual assistants can communicate in natural language and even speak multiple languages, sometimes without the recipient even realizing it. Because of their versatility, chatbots have been integrated into a variety of business models, allowing them to address many business pain points.

A brief history of chatbots

Chatbots aren’t new. In fact, they first appeared as far back as 1966, at the debut of Joseph Weizenbaum’s ELIZA — a robot able to mimic human conversation by matching user prompts to scripted responses. In 1972, PARRY was created by Stanford’s Kenneth Colby, followed by Jabberwacky in 1988, by Britain’s Rollo Carpenter. Finally, there was ALICE in 1995.

ALICE, which stands for Artificial Linguistic Internet Computer Entity, was the first natural language-processing (NLP) chatbot. Richard Wallace’s ALICE bot was so strong that it went on to win the Loebner Prize.

Since then, we’ve seen IBM’s Watson, Apple’s Siri, Google Now, Amazon’s Alexa, bots for Facebook Messenger and Tay — all of which have enabled companies to capitalize on the growth of chatbot technology for business purposes. Today, chatbots are available on virtually any social media messaging platform, as well as on websites and in appliances.

Related: Top 10 Best Chatbot Platform Tools to Build Chatbots for Your Business

The two main forms chatbots take

While customer service is the widest use of these intelligent machines, today’s versions come in two forms:

Rule-based chatbots. Rule-based or “scripted” chatbots are still out there, but they’re losing popularity because of their AI-powered counterparts. Rule-based bots can answer questions based on a specific script with which they’ve been programmed to communicate. These scripts can be very complex or extremely simple, but the choice is up to the creator.

Artificial intelligence-powered chatbots. Chatbots powered by AI, natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning, on the other hand, have the ability to learn as they communicate. This means that every interaction they have makes them progressively more intelligent.

Not only are they empowered by conversations with humans, but chatbots that use AI to communicate are integrated with analytical platforms and application programming interfaces (APIs) which talk to the chatbot’s technology; that in turn provides the end user with the answers to his or her questions.

Why chatbots are important

You may be thinking, “What’s the big deal with chatbots?” The answer is that consumers today are using social media messaging applications like Facebook Messenger more than they are social networks. Companies that want to stay ahead of the curve should take note, as those messaging applications are now the preferred communication method instead of phone calls, text messages and emails. 

In short, you need to focus your marketing efforts on those areas of the digital realm where your audiences are most likely to be — inside messaging apps. 

Related: 10 Ways AI and Chatbots Reduce Business Risks

Their “virtually” unlimited functionalities

Chatbots have a virtually limitless number of functionalities. You’ve probably already encountered bots as an intermediary for purchases or a means for answering a company’s FAQs. But bots can offer so much more to the end-user. Specifically, as the technology that powers them continues to grow, these AI-powered machines can:

In addition, chatbots can:

Give companies the gift of extra time. The business world has become so fast-paced that keeping up is challenging for even the largest, most established organizations in the world. Chatbots can help: They can perform customer support and marketing, HR, IT and various other functions more quickly, and often more accurately, than humans.

Aside from decreasing the time it takes a company to communicate with each online customer, chatbots make a company available to its audience 24/7. As a result, this new technology saves you, the business owner, time and money on human resources.

Related: Learning to Work With Robots Is How You Can Save Your Job

Give an added level of personalization. In addition to acting as personal agents across the entirety of a company, chatbots have the ability to offer a level of personalization that until recently only a human could offer. Specifically, organizations now have the ability to tailor chatbots to their specific business needs, in order to:

What else chatbots can do

Another thing chatbots can do is take on various roles within an organization:

Become your virtual assistant. From helping you with shopping to acting as your personal secretary, a chatbot is the perfect virtual assistant. Bots can undertake a variety of tasks by syncing with users’ mobile and computer applications to:

Related: 4 Essentials for Building a Well-Mannered Customer-Service Chatbot

Act as your marketing or sales executive. Not only can chatbots help you cut down on email exchanges, unnecessary meetings and various online searches, they can actually act as your marketing executive.

This means the ability to undertake major marketing tasks like pushing personalized offers to social media users on demand, and taking orders directly from social media platforms and websites. Bots can also help you market your product or service more aggressively, cross-selling and upselling products based on your users’ shopping histories. And they can push customers through the sales funnel.

Chatbots can give you …

A far greater reach for your marketing communications and customer service. In the customer-service realm, chatbots make your company available to a wider range of customers across the globe than humans alone could reach. And, obviously, they’re available to your audience members all day, every day, whatever their time zone.

What’s more, adding a chatbot to your website and social media platforms means customer inquiries can be handled neatly and quickly. They can be answered, by chatbots, in multiple languages.

And, should a customer engage your bot when the company is closed, he or she can still get help with account details or issues, rectify most complaints and check an order’s status. (Yes, we’ve heard all the jokes about how chatbots work for cheap and skip coffee breaks.)

Related: Chatbots Are the Next Big Platform. Here’s How Entrepreneurs Can Stay on Top of It

Assistance with internal communications. A lesser-known feature of chatbots is their ability to help with internal communications between teams. Instead of having to struggle with back-and-forth emails and unnecessary meetings, teams from HR, IT and other departments can hand tasks over to their friendly chatbot.

Gone are the days when employees had to shadow HR personnel for information about their paychecks and holiday leave. Instead, companies can now institute a chatbot — like Slack — to act as an internal communication channel, to enable staffers to find out how many holiday days they have left this year. Employees can use this same service to book days off, find out about their company’s bonuses, obtain information regarding an IT problem and much more.

The ability to act as idea-generation tools. Data is leading the digital economy today. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to fully understand our customers’ needs and pain points. However, in addition to gathering this data, we need to be able to transform it into something of value. And chatbots can make that happen.

Because AI-powered chatbots can learn — and grow — from every interaction they have and the data they gather, they offer companies cognitive solutions to a huge variety of problems. Empowered by this data, bots can adapt when market trends change, as well as improve a company’s performance, as data continues to flood in.

Automation of a company’s processes. Above all, chatbots have the ability to automate a huge variety of your business processes, saving you time and money on various resources. With less focus on mundane and repetitive daily asks, these bots leave more space for innovation, allowing you as leader to stay ahead of your competition every step of the way.

Related: 10 Ways to Use Chatbots for Marketing and Sales

Data analysis capbility. Thanks to the growth of intelligent algorithms and the automation of data collection, chatbots have the ability to perform data analysis, then share the results in the form of comprehensive reports specific to a company’s departments.

Such analysis allows a company to determine the profitability of various business paths and improve upon them over time.

“Messenger is interactive and engaging; that’s why we consider it an ‘adventure,'” Johnson explained in an interview. By marrying Messenger and chatbots, she said, customer service has taken a giant leap beyond the bad old days of email marketing. The reason, she said, is that “Messenger is interactive, whereas email is passive.

“[The customer] can read the email and maybe click on a link,” Johnson said of the email way of doing customer service.”But you [the business] don’t get to react to what the person is saying.” That’s where those interactive adventures — and chatbots — enter the picture.

They’re there to make the customer experience something more akin to talking with a real human being. 

“The reason Messenger is unique,” Johnson continued, “is that there are programs that deliver these [marketing messages], so I don’t have to go in and actually code the chatbot myself; you need a technologist to code it. There are companies that have developed platforms, like a Mailchimp or a Fusionsoft specifically for Facebook Messenger.

“That’s the whole reason this is a crazy-amazing thing right now. I can show you statistic after statistic of my clients’ results. I have over 30 clients, currently, with open rates of 80 to 100 percent.”

Contrast that, Johnson said, with an email list you first have to buy — a list which might produce, according to industry sources, at best a 30 percent open rate and a 5 percent click-through rate.

Johnson said she also appreciates how Messenger users have to opt in to receive messages. “I can’t just send them to you without your permission,” she pointed out. What’s more, bots can do more than just help create sales. A client of Johnson’s, for instance, a plastic surgeon, uses a bot merely to chat with people making initial inquiries.

“We’re not selling anything through the bot,” Johnson explained. “We just want to get the person comfortable enough to share a phone number or email to take this relationship further.” That’s why bots can be viewed as “nurturing” tools as well as selling ones, she said.

A typical transaction with Messenger Funnels? Johnson explained that her Folsom, Calif.-based company uses chatbots tied to her clients’ Facebook Business pages. To communicate with the client, she uses Trello and folders shared via Google Drive.

Another client of Johnson’s, named Alison J. Prince, illustrates how bots can help. Prince markets what she calls her “0-100K” online webinar (educating entrepreneurs on how to get started in ecommerce); she’s also selling a fullscale online course. Each week, Prince reaches out to prospective customers via a new Facebook Live, offering helpful tips on how to start a business, with titles like “The 15 biggest business mistakes I’ve made so far.”

Some viewers will likely want to respond. Prince solicits those responses by offering pdfs — about business mistakes or another topic — in return for their comments. Once a viewer comments, he or she has officially opted in to Messenger. Once the viewer shows continued interest in Prince’s advice … the chatbots take over.

Operating via ManyChat and Chatfuel software, the bots schmooze with those customers, hopefully drawing them in to signing up for a webinar, then maintaining the connection by reminding buyers of the webinar date and time  (“Hey! Your webinar starts in 10 minutes!” “Hey! Can’t wait to see you!”)

“It’s as if we’re communicating with them in Messenger,” Johnson pointed out. But, she rejected the notion that she might be fooling the customer: “We very clearly tell them, ‘This is the Alison bot,'” she said.

In the end, Johnson said, chatbots work far better than email — so much so that Alison Prince has seen her subscriber base in Messenger jump from 500 on January 1 (this year, 2018), to 3,400 subscribers just three months later. Most impressively, Johnson said, Prince has a 97 percent “open” rate for her messages and a 30 percent click-through rate to her webinar. Twenty percent of her Messenger subscribers who have watched that webinar have purchased the online course. 

In contrast, less than 5 percent of email subscribers who have watched the webinar have bought it.

Johnson, meanwhile, who’s been a serial entrepreneur since 2003 when she started out with an online maternity store called MommyLove (still in business), says she’s really found her “passion” with chatbots — and with forging those marketing communication “adventures” for clients.

“This Messenger business, as you can imagine, is all young males,” added this entrepreneur, who is obviously female, and 65. She laughed. “They’ve given me the nickname ‘Chat Mom,'” she said. 

“So I had to go get that domain.”

A “mind map,” which MessengerFunnels creates for each client.

Image credit: Mary Katherine Johnson/MessengerFunnels

Related: The Next Addition to Your Marketing Department Should Be a Chatbot

Chatbots’ limitations

While chatbots have made their mark as indispensable tools for a litany of reasons, they’re still moderately new to the business world, and come with their own set of limitations — most of which are expected to be overcome in the near future.

One of the key reasons these machines are not yet perfect is the technological restraints of AI and machine learning. The technology is still evolving, setting limits on how much these robots can really accomplish. But, the development of chatbot technology is on a continuum, meaning that the need for human supervision of bots has steadily diminished.

Another reason bots fail is that some businesses try to make chatbots with too much personality. Take the (infamous) example of “Tay,” described by The Verge in a March 2016 article titled “Twitter taught Microsoft’s AI chatbot to be a racist a–hole in less than a day” (the “a–hole” being my addition). 

Ninety-six thousand tweets later, Microsoft dove in to delete the worst of Tay’s comments.

Yet, despite the ha-ha moment generated by the notion of a software service reduced to Nazi statements, there was a serious question that Tay raised. As The Verge wrote of the bot’s downfall: “It’s a joke, obviously, but there are serious questions to answer, like, how are we going to teach AI using public data without incorporating the worst traits of humanity?”

No one so far has had an answer.

Related: What Is a Slackbot and How Can You Use It to Make Money?

While technological issues remain to be solved, chatbots overall have changed, for the better, the way consumers and businesses interact. They allow companies to be interconnected with their audiences 24 hours a day, seven days a week, opening up new opportunities for the ecommerce world.

And that bodes well for entrepreneurs, who, being only human, sometimes need (and deserve) a break.

April 26, 2018

5 min read

To some teenagers, a longing for adventure and challenges leads to staying up all night trying to beat the highest level of Super Mario Bros. To Colin Wayne, it meant joining the Army. Following in the footsteps of his older brother, Wayne signed on as a military police officer on his 17th birthday. Wayne excelled, and rose through the ranks, gaining the title of Staff Sergeant within six years.

His years of exemplary service came to a brutal end while on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. On May 3, 2012, a 107mm rocket exploded a few feet away from him, resulting in nerve and brain injuries, shrapnel wounds to both arms, and a large hole in his right leg where a chunk of metal tore straight through. Wayne was transported by medevac and stabilized, eventually heading stateside where he completed six months of physical therapy.

Related: How the Memory of His Fallen Brothers Powers This Entrepreneur’s Passion

Through it all, Wayne says he never lost hope in achieving greatness. That drive to rebuild his body and life resulted in a fitness modeling career that is impressive by any standards. To date, he has appeared on more than 50 magazine covers and garnered 3.8 million followers on social media.

One of Wayne’s many fitness magazine covers.

Wayne is now putting his physical and influencer muscle behind his home decor company, Redline Steel, which was founded in 2016. Wayne told Entrepreneur that just two years after founding it, the company is on track to gross more than $30 million in revenue.

We spoke with the powerhouse about his business, his work ethic and what it takes to contain your fear and take the leap when your big moment arises.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

You’ve had what by most definitions could be called an interesting life. How did you find yourself in the home decor space?

A friend showed me this awesome steel sign he had a local company make for him. It was this realistic baseball player swinging a bat, and it had his son’s name on it. I was in awe of the quality and wanted one for my son Carsyn, so I reached out to the company to order one. The guy said he was backlogged on orders for 10 to 12 weeks. About 10 minutes later, he called back and said, “Holy crap, it’s Colin Wayne!” He knew me from my modeling work and told me he’d love to be at my level one day. So I offered to consult with him. Fast forward about three months and I made him an offer on his company. I said I wanted 51 percent and put very strict guarantees in place to mitigate his risk. I told him that I would do 6X revenue in 12 months from his last year and he said “Hell yeah!”

Related: The 7 Best Franchising Opportunities for U.S. Veterans

How has it gone?

We are projected to do over $30 million this year alone in revenue, which would put us above $40 million in revenue since inception. We recently acquired a new 110,000 square-foot facility that we will be transitioning into in August.

Were you able to leverage your fitness model success for the business?

Yes, I had a fan base of over 3 million people on social media, and it helped in the organic initial growth of Redline Steel. We transitioned to spending millions of dollars on Facebook annually to drive traffic and conversions. 

Related: The Green Beret Hotel Check-In Safety List

What did being in the military teach you about risk?

The military is one of the top contributing factors to my success. “Fear of failure” is something that shouldn’t be in your vocabulary in the military, or entrepreneurship. You need to take calculated risks and not be afraid of setbacks. And in both cases, you need the mindset that I will do whatever it takes to accomplish the mission.

Tell us about your proudest moment while serving.

When I was pinned Staff Sergeant (SSG). I was the youngest SSG in the brigade and I wore that proudly on my chest. I was always looking for that next position and never settled for what I had. 

Related: These 12 Remarkable Veterans Changed Business Forever

Describe your leadership style.

My leadership style is very similar to that of the military, and that is the culture being built at Redline Steel. From the bottom to the top, there’s a respect that is instilled in every employee. We expect everyone to cover each other and nobody is above any role or task in the company, myself included.

Is there a quote and saying that inspires you?

One of my favorite sayings is, “Lead from the front.” I believe that anything that you want to get done, you should be right there with your guys working to accomplish it.