Does a small business need a chatbot? An honest answer

A chatbot is worth it when…

• The same questions come in again and again: areas you cover, prices, availability, opening hours.
• People contact you when you can't answer: evenings, weekends, mid-job.
• You lose work because someone went with whoever answered first.

Skip it when…

• Almost every question needs you to look at something first, like a photo of the problem or a quote.
• You get a handful of messages a week and enjoy answering them.
• You can't spare an hour to set it up and check it.

What it really costs

Money: from free to a few hundred a month, depending on the tool and how many messages you get. Time: an hour to set up, then a few minutes a week reading what people asked.

The hidden cost is a chatbot that gets things wrong. Choose one that answers only from your own information and passes the rest to you.

How to try it without risk

Set one up from your website, test it with your own questions, and share the link with a few regular customers first. Read every conversation for two weeks. Keep it if it saves you time; delete it if not.