Crawl, Walk, CHAT: Clorox Builds a New Capability
By Miles Liedtke, Brand Engagement Manager, RenewLife
As human communication evolves yet again (remember grunting cavemen?), our RenewLife® brand is in the “crawl” phase with consumers and their chatbot journey.
Digital has ushered in this new era of communication with consumers.
We have new tools. We have new opportunities. And as we become even more consumer-centric, we’re embracing bold new ways to engage people interested in wellness and digestive health.
What is an AI chatbot?
First, we should clearly define AI. Many traditional business minds hear “AI” and think “Analytical Insights.” While analysis and insights are a big part of optimizing the RenewLife chatbot experience, in this case, “AI” means “Artificial Intelligence.”
AI is automated decision making without the presence of a human. When you combine AI + chatbot, you get an amazing opportunity for both the consumer and the business.
In the case of RenewLife, the brand gets to learn about conversational trends, engagement and category demand based on the questions consumers ask the chatbot. The consumer gets an educational resource to assist them on their digestive health journey, one that strives to answer any product or category questions they may have.
Why did Renew Life decide to launch an AI chatbot?
RenewLife is always looking to improve the consumer experience. A recent website review identified some major gaps in the user experience, especially around customer service. This is significant because when consumers see a strong customer service presence, it builds confidence. And confidence translates into quicker purchase decisions.
What does the chatbot do today?
Today, Sunny, the RenewLife AI chatbot, can provide users with product recommendations based on a digital conversation. It’s also capable of answering educational questions like: “What is the best probiotic?” “Do I need to keep my probiotics refrigerated?” and “What do I eat while cleansing?”
As for how and when Sunny is activated, just imagine a shopper in a store, alone confused by all the choices in the probiotic space. Now, imagine her alone, but using her smartphone. She searches “what probiotic should I buy?” A RenewLife paid search ad appears, activating Sunny. A connection is made and the shopper can make a more informed decision.
What does the future look like?
Phase 1, our current pilot phase, is super exciting. But things will get really interesting in future phases.
We plan to introduce a real-time store locator into the chatbot experience. This will allow consumers to locate the exact product they desire at the store they want from within the bot interface. Future phases will also introduce some e-commerce functionality.
Has the pilot phase of the AI chatbot been a success?
In one word, yes. In addition to providing RenewLife with a technological solution to a major gap in the user experience, the chatbot also illustrates how Clorox brands and Clorox IT can work together cross-functionally to solve consumer-facing business problems. Clorox now has a capability it can deploy to other brands across the company where it makes sense.
The consumer wins. The brand wins. Clorox wins.