Almost no one believed in the power chatbots back in 2016. VentureBeat called them “basically nothing more than glorified IVR systems.” Email marketers mocked the idea. But the Bot Academy team has followed the chatbot space since 2015, and the shift from skepticism to mainstream adoption has been remarkable.

Messenger grew 300 million monthly active users in less than 18 months

People speculate that Facebook will decline due to privacy concerns. However, the data tells a different story. Messenger grew from 1 billion monthly active users in July 2016 to over 1.3 billion in September 2017 — a 30% increase in less than 18 months. This growth demonstrates that despite rumors, the platform remains vital for reaching users where they spend time.

Facebook WANTS you to create chatbots

Facebook temporarily restricted new bot creation in April 2018 to review security and privacy. However, they lifted the restriction at F8 Conference on May 1, 2018, where major brands demonstrated chatbot marketing:

• ASUS — unboxing experience allowing customers to explore phone features
• Kia — enables car shoppers to customize the Kia Stinger
• Nike — exclusive sneaker previews through a visual red carpet experience
• Sephora — virtual makeup try-ons users can share

Billion dollar companies are investing in Messenger because that is where their customers are.

Build a chatbot with no coding skills, ever

Current chatbot capabilities include collecting email addresses within Messenger, executing advanced marketing strategies, implementing lead scoring, and connecting to hundreds of third-party applications. Ecommerce platform Recart has generated $87,685,728 in revenue for clients using chatbot technology.

What’s next for you?

Facebook Messenger marketing represents the future. In 2003, email’s popularity was uncertain — early adopters seized the opportunity and built multi-million dollar companies. Chatbots are a similar inflection point. The market remains unsaturated, competitors are largely unaware of chatbot marketing potential, and early adoption provides competitive advantage.