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How to Test Chatbots

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How to Test Chatbots

Chatbots have already become an integral part of the digital world. These AI assistants generate the mutual profit for both companies and their customers/prospects: first ones replace humans with chatbots and save money on salaries, insurance, etc.; second ones get replies to their questions immediately and save their precious time instead of waiting for the answer from a real person. A bot can simultaneously serve a large number of customers, processing orders and simple questions.

Essentially, to be truly effective and profitable, chatbots have to be QA tested well. Such a feature can be a good marketing ploy invented to attract IT-interested people, but it will turn to failure if your bot is not capable of correct clients’ requests processing.

Whereas AI chatbot is getting smarter lately, more businesses use these virtual assistants. At the same time, “smarter” involves difficult coding, errors, bugs and different kinds of hassle. Unless your goal is a mad Tay bot that writes things like “destroy the humanity”, for sure…

How to deal with the task? 

Stop Taking Your Chatbot as a Person

Lots of assumptions that chatbots are dumb appeared in 2016. The reason was that bots couldn’t pass the Turing test. Are you serious, people? Chatbots were created not for entertainment, but for achieving a specific programming purpose. Chatbots aren’t supposed to behave like real human beings, they intended to provide the accurate replies quickly and nothing else.

Apparently, it is good to construct your bot a bit humanized. For instance, it may put the heart sign in an answer if the user says something like “I love you”. Such things leave a positive impression and maximize the individual connection with potential or existing clients. All of that creates a common story for your customers and your company, which prevents them from switching to your competitors. Emotions dominate in business as well as in real life.

Use the Right Tools for Your Chatbot

First of all, we have to choose the right instruments that we are going to work with. Bots differ from typical software, that is why their QA and testing services obviously demand certain tools.

The main goal of a chatbot is to recognize the background of the dialogue and to resolve the user’s issue correctly. In this way, the appropriate tool has to investigate these components in great detail (especially when it comes to some control of routine) and report back with an understandable overview that contains numbers and valuable information.

Keyul, a creator of Bot Stash, suggests using three main automation testing tools. Interested?

The leader is Bot Flair because it is able to manage unexpected inputs (i.e. slang words, colloquial expressions, etc.), but there is no free plan, so you have to pay for it anyway. Bot Testing is another tool, which can be really helpful in case you are willing to check your bot’s performance on different channels. And it‘s totally free. The third one – Dimon – has different subscriptions including a free one, so it would be the golden middle between the previous two tools. Dimon offers standard functions as well as provides options to the premium components.

The entire testing process can be simplified by special tools if they are implemented by someone with skilled hands. But still, robots cannot be completely trusted to test robots. Sounds ironically, huh?

General Chatbot QA: a Bot Has to Do Its Bot Job

Let’s make our first step. You need to ensure what is a particular goal of bot creation. That is a straight logic of the virtual helper. Your chatbot isn’t supposed to reply with correct responses but to the incorrect requests, is it?

Let your bot process the expected inputs, and check the output. When your bot’s developers or you have encoded the responses to those inputs, it is easy to make corrections if there are any issues.

It is almost the same as when you proofread and edit the Facebook post when you are going to publish it. You should be confident that the chatbot is functioning properly on the prime interactions before you allow access to it for a bigger number of people. Remember that testing your bot on all the channels where it’s implemented is crucial in order to prevent any troubles with the compatibility of integration.

It will be quite an appropriate decision to engage a professional QA team in this phase. Involving QA testers to your project from the start point will make the whole analyzing much more efficient.

Pre-Launch: Beta Testing of Chatbot

The perfect way to check if your bot is up and running is to complete a beta test before the general launch. When you have finished with the fundamental QA and bot works properly, you need to give access to your chatbot to the wider audience. It’s good if there is a tight group of people, who will try to crack the botty and after that give you feedback about their experience.

In other words, a beta tester is supposed to scrutinize the bot with unexpected inputs. Basically, it consists of lingo, slang, vernacular, colloquial language, different English dialects. Furthermore, the tester should treat the bot like an amusement thing and try some totally irrelevant inputs, for example, joking or flirting.

Please note, that it is important to pay attention to every beta testing report because each person interacts with the chatbot in a special and original way. Sometimes results can be surprising and seem like non-fitting any patterns, but you should carefully analyze all of them and search for the right solutions on improving your botty taking into account the real users’ behavior.

Quick tip

In the beginning QA testing steps, it is beneficial to identify the common issues (for example, “No response”, “An invalid response”, “A response on the wrong topic” etc.). When defined them, you should inquire your beta testers as well as users to notify you using the proper tags. Thus, you obtain an ordered list of the common problems that you have to eliminate. Having such a classification, you will get the ability to set up priorities, fix errors and bugs quickly.

General ways to engage beta testers

It is possible that you don’t have anyone in mind who could be a beta tester of your upcoming chatbot. But it’s not a big deal! I am going to share a few ideas on how to find people for testing your bot. There are free options, by the way!

You might begin with crowdtesting websites, where you invite people to try out your product/app/bot/etc. TestMyApp subreddit (a free one, but there are fewer testers) and Beta Family community are the most well-known ones. Many innovation fans are willing to test your chatbot and provide you with a detailed review. The biggest disadvantage of crowdtesting is that you cannot be confident in the professional skills of people who make tests. You never know if their analytical abilities are abundant to dip into testing in the right way.

If we switch to a skill-oriented approach, then freelance platforms could be a decision here. Such platforms as Upwork or Freelancer are full of testers, where you are required to sign up and search for employees with appropriate skills. It is safe because these resources provide protection from frauds and ensure that experts do their work in time and with appropriate quality. Otherwise, you’ll be provided with compensation. Still, in general, freelancers tend to be less reliable and disciplined as full-time employees. Whether you have ever dealt with them, you must know it. Besides, they cannot perform such work regularly.

After all, if the quality means everything to you, pay attention to hiring an outsourcing QA team. Sure, it much expensive than hiring a freelancer. Nonetheless, you’ll get proper management, a team of professionals, and a stable workflow. And your costs will pay out for 100%: the QA specialists, taking into account all existing reviews, as soon as they appear, will consider the entire program, code, and algorithms. After that, you’ll be provided with certain mistakes log and recommendations for fixing all the issues. Also in some of the QA enterprises, there are developers in the state, so they will be ready to help you and eliminate all the issues for the extra cost.

Post-Launch: Real Users Reports on Your Chatbot

After improving your chatbot in line with beta testing results, launching time has come!

Forget about the fear of failure and provide your clients with the possibility to leave feedback about the AI assistant if they are not satisfied with their experience. No matter what exactly bothers the user – inappropriate answer or some problems with usability – they should have the ability to report it without leaving a chat. Gathering customers’ complaints/suggestions and sending them to QA professionals could be a nice option. Also thank your clients for their reports, because they take part in making your botty smarter.

When there is access to your chatbot for everybody, you should be prepared to receive a high number of unexpected inputs. It’s better for you to stay sharp and keep your bot upgraded all the time. It should become cleverer, more interactive, humanized and amusing with every update.

Conclusion

Take into account all the above and keep your clients happy with your virtual AI assistant. Feel free to contact me in the comments or on our social media, if you got any questions or suggestions. And don’t forget to share this content, if you find it helpful. Together we will make AI better and anticipate the desirable future!

Sandra Parker is Head Of Business Development at QArea. She helps enterprises to accelerate their businesses through custom software development and testing.

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How to Grow a Successful Small Business

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How to Grow a Successful Small Business

A business doesn’t turn into a success overnight. It is up to you to ensure that it adapts to the dynamic and constantly evolving global landscape and establishes itself in the relevant market. But this is easier said than done. Most people believe that setting up a business means turning on computers, opening doors, and making money. However, succeeding in establishing and growing a business requires ample effort, as well as excellent organizational and planning skills.

Below are some tips that can help you to successfully grow your business.

1.    Focus on Core Demographics

Many business owners believe that the most secure and quickest way to grow a business is to expand into new markets or pursue different audiences for existing products. An approach like this can do more damage than good, watering down your appeal to core demographics as well. Keep in mind that your target market is already predisposed to the products or services you offer. In order to encourage higher sales from them, you will only need to make minimal marketing efforts.

If you are unclear about who your falls into your core audience, evaluating data could be a good place to start. Go through the information about your existing customers and come up with a profile that explains core demographics.

2.    Audit Your Business

One of the ways to effectively grow your business includes conducting a business audit to understand its strengths and weaknesses. In such cases, customer feedback can be a valuable asset to help you assess the areas where you can lack and improve upon. Auditing your team’s performance can also help evaluate the efficiency of your business operations.

According to the CST Group, one of the renowned business audit firms in Northern Virginia, it is also vital to get your finances audited before making critical business decisions. This is especially important since growing a business will require funds, and hiring professionals can make your life easier.

3.    Leverage Social Media

Every marketer worth their salt is aware that social media is one of the best available resources when it comes to growing a business. It accounts for more than 50% of new brand discovery, with social media users projected to grow to 4.4 billion in 2025. Paid social media advertising is one of the primary channels used by businesses across the globe to promote their products and services to key demographics.

4.    Attend Networking Events

Increasing brand visibility ensures that it is at the top of the customer’s mind when they make purchase decisions. It is also a helpful way to attract new customers and can easily be achieved by attending networking events. Keep an eye on local professional bodies that organize networking events, and make sure you are in attendance to get the word out about your products and services. Here is how you can be a part of such events:

  • Meeting other business owners and forging connections
  • Becoming a speaker due to industry expertise
  • Setting up a booth to promote your business

5.    Keep Detailed Records

Keeping detailed records is a tedious and dull task, but that does not minimize its importance. Record management allows you to assess your financial standing, retain customer feedback and information, and be aware of any potential challenges you could face in the future.

Using this information and having it in one place allows you to create relevant strategies for your business and make key decisions. It also gives you the chance to evaluate potential challenges and come up with ways to overcome them.

6.    Set Up a Sales Funnel

Your sales funnel can be helpful if you want to take your business to the next level, as it gives you firsthand insight into the mind of a potential or existing customer. A sales funnel aids in mapping the journey of the customer from start to finish.

When a customer sets foot in your store or visits your website, they are at the top of the funnel. When they successfully convert, they have made their way through the funnel and are now at the end. As a business, it is up to you to focus on getting the customer to the finish line. This means coming up with innovative ways to make a sale. You could offer a discount or a gift card or obtain their details to regularly update them about key changes in your business.

7.    Be Organized

Being organized is directly linked to the progress of your business. In order to be successful in growing your business, you will need to keep track of tasks to accomplish and the work that has already been done. This helps you avoid needless stress and stay on top of things. While it may sound simple, staying organized helps ensure that you do not forget any item on your to-do list, no matter how big or small it is.

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How to Build a Successful Construction Business?

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how to build a construction startup

For the most part, growing a construction business requires similar practices as when running other types of enterprises. You need to secure low-interest funds, make intelligent, proactive decisions, and hire the best experts. However, there are also certain construction-specific practices, such as understanding the local market and trends.

In this article, we’ll take a look at all the things that can grow your company and prepare it for the future.

Hire based on character  

As with any other business, your construction company will only go as far as your employees take it. Not only should you focus on professionals with excellent education and background, but you should also find people with the right mindset. This is especially true if you’re a young company and are building the team from the ground up (no pun intended).

Having veterans with the right attitude will set the tone for your juniors. While this might not seem important at first, it will have a significant impact when scaling the business. As you’ll likely encounter numerous obstacles along the way, you’ll need people who can keep the spirits up when going gets tough.

Focus on safety

Safety is the main keyword in the construction business. Your managers need to track compliance and introduce safety protocols, ensuring all your most valuable assets are protected. As you well know, safety is crucial at the construction site, and lack thereof is usually the main reason behind major delays.

To stay on the safe side, you’ll also need to assign roles on the site. Ideally, you should always have a few seniors on-site overseeing projects and ensuring that everyone behaves according to predetermined policies. Emphasis on safety will not only protect your workers but will also protect your brand from disastrous lawsuits.

Enhance client experience

Many people don’t understand the importance of a positive user experience for building companies. The best way to grow a small brand is through word-of-mouth by continuously providing excellent service to the customers.

One of your main tasks is to create effective channels of communication. Your partners should always be in the loop with the projects’ progress and whether there are any changes to the deadliness.

Improving reputation isn’t only crucial for onboarding and retention; it can also have a major impact on future efficiency. In other words, if you build a good reputation within the industry, prospective customers will feel at ease working with you. As a result, they will give you much more leeway during the projects and won’t bother you as much.

Monitor cash flow

Without a positive cash flow, you will have a hard time maintaining operational efficiency. The reason is that healthy cash flow can help you patch direct overhead and any other unpredictable, indirect expenses. Most importantly, you need healthy finances so that you’re almost never affected by delayed customer payments

While the cash flow topic is a complex one, it mainly comes down to frugal behavior. Construction companies that buy materials at a reasonable price and pay lower salaries for top talent are usually the ones that perform the best. To stay on top of things, we also recommend that you invest in quality financial software.

Outsource labor

Outsourcing has become a common practice in almost any business, including construction. Although you should have a team of construction experts in the office, you can outsource all other departments. For example, you can spend money on construction accounting services, HR, and a marketing team.

There are several things that make outsourcing such a fantastic solution. Besides the fact you can save a lot of money, it also allows you to delegate activities. Just imagine how much you’d have to spend to form an internal accounting or marketing team. By opting for external providers, you can focus on the things that you do best, which will eventually have a positive impact on your profitability.

Invest in marketing

Building relationships and relying on word-of-mouth can only get you so far. Getting the initial traction is especially hard if you had limited contacts before getting into business. The success of a new construction company usually hinges on marketing, whether we’re talking about digital or traditional solutions.

Processes like search engine optimization, social media marketing, and paid advertising can make a major difference in how quickly you develop. Even traditional solutions, like billboards and cold calling, might work for your brand. Then again, it all depends on your marketing goals and overall business strategy.

Besides attracting the initial prospects, marketing also plays an important role in scaling a business. Promotional activities like search engine optimization can boost clients’ brand awareness and build you up as one of the most authoritative companies in the wider area.

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How To Build Lasting Partnerships As A Construction Startup

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construction partnership

Building construction partnerships isn’t just a strategic move; it’s a crucial ingredient to your success. Partnerships provide a firm foundation for growth, bringing in a wealth of expertise, resources, and industry connections that can help you and your constructions grow quickly. The importance of these partnerships extends beyond tangible resources. In an industry as project-driven and multidisciplinary as construction, the value of having reliable partners who understand your vision cannot be overstated.

Construction projects will involve many stakeholders like architects and engineers, as well as suppliers and the local population. Navigating these waters and the complex labyrinth of regulations will require strong alliances, underpinned by mutual trust and respect.

Strong Partnerships Build Mutal Success

Building strong relationships with commercial construction partners begins with careful partner selection. Start by researching potential partners to determine their reliability, reputation, and alignment with your startup’s goals.

Begin the relationship with open, honest communication set the tone for a successful partnership. Share your business plan, discuss potential projects, and listen attentively to their needs and expectations. Be honest about being a startup, sell your vision and enthusiasm, and be truthful about your work experience and qualifications.

Don’t forget to formalize your partnerships through legal contracts. These should clearly define the terms of the relationship, including roles, responsibilities, and conflict resolution procedures. Having this formal agreement safeguards the interests of both parties and reduces the potential for misunderstandings.

Always aim for mutually beneficial relationships, and know how the project will benefit your partners. Make sure that each partnership brings value to both your startup and to your partner, this balance will be the cornerstone of a strong, enduring relationship.

Finding The Right Match

The most important partnerships in the construction industry are with systems designers and installers. HVAC, electrical, and IT installations are crucial components of all types of construction, and their quality will leave a lasting impression.

To establish these partnerships, begin by researching potential service providers and evaluate their reputation, expertise, and pricing. HTS New York is an independent, build-to-order HVAC company that is committed to sharing in the success of its partners. They understand that working with their clients and construction partners to design and install high-quality HVAC systems in commercial projects benefits all parties. Better business means bigger business, for you and your partners.

When you negotiate a partnership agreement with any company it should define roles, responsibilities, and expectations, and ensure that both of you share a common understanding of quality standards and timelines. Building a strong partnership with another company requires ongoing communication and mutual respect. Stay engaged, respond promptly to inquiries, and provide feedback. Cultivating this relationship will add value to your projects, enhancing both client satisfaction and your business’s reputation; two key factors for a successful construction startup.

Living In A Material World

Selecting the right construction material suppliers is a critical step when starting your construction business. The quality of materials used in your projects will directly impact the final product, client satisfaction, and your company’s reputation.

Start the selection process by conducting thorough research on potential suppliers. Look at their pricing, delivery times, product quality, and consistency of supply. Check their customer reviews and industry reputation. Ideally, your chosen supplier should have a robust supply chain that can withstand unexpected disruptions.

Once you’ve chosen a supplier, make your expectations clear from the beginning. Communicate your needs, timelines, and quality standards. Discuss contingency plans for potential disruptions in the supply chain too.

Maintaining a healthy relationship with your supplier is equally important. Regular communication, prompt payments, and respect for their expertise can foster a strong, long-lasting partnership. Remember to show appreciation for their role in your projects and seek their input on ways to improve efficiency or reduce costs.

Stay informed about their product range and any new innovations they introduce. This information can help you provide better solutions for your clients, further enhancing your construction startup’s reputation and competitiveness.

Building Lasting Relationships

Ensuring the longevity of your partnerships in the construction industry isn’t merely about maintaining a status quo. It involves constant nurturing, evolution, and shared growth. As your startup matures, so should your relationships with your partners.

One of the essential techniques for sustaining long-term partnerships is clear and consistent communication. Regularly update your partners on project progress, changes, and potential challenges. Make sure to listen to their feedback and concerns as well. This two-way communication creates trust and helps to nip potential issues in the bud.

Mutually beneficial relationships last longer. Continually seek ways to add value to your partners. Whether it’s by offering timely payments, recommending their services to other businesses, or supporting their growth initiatives, showing appreciation and support strengthens the partnership.

Before you start a project, build some relationships. You will be able to accomplish more in a shorter amount of time with the right help, without compromising on quality. Nothing builds a reputation in the construction industry faster than delivering a high-quality product in a timely fashion. Start networking before you get working, and your construction startup is destined to be a success.

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