Key takeaways
- A chatbot converses; what it can do beyond talking depends on what it is connected to.
- Rule-based chatbots are predictable but narrow; AI chatbots handle free text but need grounding.
- An AI assistant works for a person in their tools; an AI agent pursues a goal in steps.
- A sales chatbot answers visitors and books meetings, with a clear path to a person.
How do chatbots work
Chatbots work in one of two ways: by following rules or by generating language. A rule-based chatbot matches buttons or keywords to scripted answers, like a decision tree. It is predictable and easy to audit, but it fails as soon as someone asks something the script did not expect.
An AI chatbot passes the conversation to a large language model, often with a company's own help articles attached, and writes a reply in its own words. It handles varied questions far better, but it can state wrong things confidently unless it is grounded in reliable content and told when to hand over.
What is the difference between a chatbot and an AI assistant
The difference between a chatbot and an AI assistant is who it serves and what it can touch. A chatbot usually talks to outside visitors and answers from a fixed body of content. An AI assistant works for a member of your team, inside their tools, and can take actions such as drafting an email, updating a record or booking a meeting.
Both may use a chat window, so the interface is not the test. Ask what it is connected to and who approves what it does.
How is a chatbot different from an AI agent
A chatbot replies to each message, while an AI agent works towards a goal over several steps, choosing which tools to use along the way. Ask a chatbot about pricing and it answers; ask an agent to prepare for a meeting and it may read a website, check the CRM and write a briefing.
Many products now blur the line. The more an AI can do without a person in the loop, the more its permissions and approval steps matter.
What does a sales chatbot do
A sales chatbot greets website visitors, answers common questions, asks a few qualifying questions and offers a meeting or a hand-off to a person. Done well, it catches interest outside office hours and saves buyers from filling in a form just to ask something basic.
Done badly, it traps people in menus. A good sales chatbot is short, honest that it is software and quick to pass a serious buyer to a human.
Why do chatbots frustrate buyers
Chatbots frustrate buyers most when they hide the route to a person. Someone with a real question leaves when every path loops back to the bot.
- Letting an AI chatbot answer pricing or legal questions it has no source for.
- Asking for an email address before giving any help.
- Never reviewing transcripts to see where conversations fail.
- Pretending the bot is a person.
Where Pebbles Ai fits
- CapabilityAI workspacePebbles Ai is not a website chatbot. Its Marketing and Strategy assistants work in chat with your team and can act in your CRM, inbox and calendar, with approvals set by the execution mode: Auto, Plan or Manual.
- FoundationCompany IntelThe assistants work from Company Intel, your business knowledge and brand voice, so their answers and drafts start from what your company sells.
Common questions
Should a chatbot say it is a bot?
Yes. Telling people they are talking to software builds trust, and transparency rules for AI systems, such as those in the EU AI Act, increasingly require it.
Are chatbots useful on B2B websites?
They can be, for answering common questions and booking meetings outside office hours. They work best when short and quick to hand a serious buyer to a person.
What does an AI chatbot need to give accurate answers?
Reliable source content, such as current help articles and product facts, and clear instructions to say when it does not know and hand over to a person.
About this page. Written by the Pebbles Ai team for people who run sales, marketing and growth. Last updated .
