The development of AI in Indonesia began in the 1980s when initial research on AI began at several leading universities in Indonesia. At that time, this research focused on areas such as natural language processing, machine learning, and image processing. However, in the following decade, the development of AI in Indonesia experienced a setback due to a lack of support and attention from the government, as well as a lack of skilled human resources in this field. Only in the early 2000s, AI development began to increase with support from several government institutions and academics. As time went by in 2019, the Covid-19 pandemic occurred, where all businesses experienced setbacks and it was not uncommon for them to go bankrupt. At that time, the business world was competing to find solutions to save their businesses, one of which was through online selling applications and the use of AI.
The use of AI in Indonesia can currently be found in various sectors, such as health, agriculture and manufacturing. In the healthcare industry, AI is used to detect diseases and assist doctors in making more accurate diagnoses. In the agricultural sector, AI is used to predict weather, analyze crop data and optimize agricultural production. In the manufacturing sector, AI is used to regulate production and increase production efficiency. In the business sector, AI is used to answer messages quickly and briefly. In this article the author wants to provide more detail regarding the use of AI, namely Chatbots, in the business world.
Chatbot, which is short for chat robot, is an artificial intelligence program designed to communicate directly with humans (Adamopoulou & Moussiades, 2020a). And chatbots are a very useful tool in today's marketing world. They are used for various purposes, such as Customer service. Chatbots can provide 24-hour customer support in answering frequently asked questions, assisting customers in solving problems, and directing them to the right resources. Not only that, in marketing and promotions, Chatbots can be used to disseminate information about products or services, provide product recommendations to customers, and even send special offers or coupons.
For an entrepreneur, customer data is of course important. Chatbots can be used to collect customer data more easily, such as preferences and contact information, which can be used to design more effective marketing campaigns, as well as filling out forms, order delivery processes, or scheduling appointments.
There are several platforms that can be used to create chatbots, such as Chatfuel, ManyChat, and Dialogflow. Today's chatbots are getting smarter thanks to advances in artificial intelligence and natural language processing, so they can better respond to questions and understand user context.
One example of the use of chatbots in developing a business brand is Sephora Virtual Artist. Sephora, a global cosmetics company, uses a "Virtual Artist" chatbot to help customers choose products that suit their skin tone and preferences. These chatbots allow customers to try cosmetic products virtually before purchasing them, improving customer experience and increasing sales.
Overall, chatbots in marketing can improve efficiency, increase customer engagement, and help companies interact with customers more effectively. In this era, entrepreneurs must continue to develop in the fast digitalization. In order to compete with other competitors, chatbots can be a complementary tool of solution that can make things easier for entrepreneurs.
Publisher: Zhang Hua