A common chatbot mistake
Your chatbot answers a question the customer didn’t ask
Asked about one product, it answers about another. Asked about delivery, it shows a product carousel. The customer has to start again, or gives up.
The answer is correct, just not to the question. The bot recognised the topic and took the wrong article, the wrong product or the wrong plan.
Customers rarely rephrase twice. After a second off-topic answer they stop asking.
How long is the warranty on a refurbished laptop?
New laptops come with a 2-year manufacturer warranty.
Your page says
Refurbished laptops: 12-month warranty.
Refurbished page. The bot answered about new laptops
Can I freeze my membership while I’m travelling?
(an answer about how to book a class)
Your page says
Memberships can be frozen for up to two months a year
FAQ page
Why it happens
It isn’t random
Similar products, similar words
Two cards, two policies, two plans described in the same terms. The bot matches the words, not the product.
Search before thinking
Most bots retrieve a few articles first and answer from those. If the wrong article ranks first, the answer is about that.
What it costs you
- Off-topic answers make the bot look broken, and customers trust everything else it says less.
- Wrong-product answers lead to wrong purchases, then returns and refunds.
How we check
- 01We ask about products that have a close sibling on your site, and check the answer is about the one asked.
- 02We follow up as customers do: “no, I meant the other one” — and see if the bot recovers.
What the fix looks like
- Give similar products distinct, explicit names in the knowledge base.
- Add one line of instructions: confirm which product the customer means when two match.
Where we see it
Other mistakes we find
Wrong prices
The bot finds the right table and reads the wrong row: the pricier room, the member rate, the other plan. Customers act on it.
Read moreInvented fees and policies
A delivery charge, a refund window, a fee: confident, specific and nowhere on your site. This is the answer that ends up in a dispute.
Read more“We don’t have that”
The answer is on your pricing page, your FAQ, even your home page. The bot says it can’t share it, it isn’t announced, or it doesn’t exist.
Read moreLoops and silence
A typing indicator that never ends. The same reply to every question. A consent screen that comes back after every click. The customer can’t get past it.
Read moreBroken after an update
An expired key, a changed model, a moved page. The bot shows an error to every visitor, and it can go on for days.
Read moreName and email first
Asked a question your FAQ answers in public, the bot asks for a name, email or phone number first. Most visitors close the chat.
Read moreSee your assistant answer your customers first
Email us your store’s address. Within a working day you get five questions your customers ask and the answers your assistant would give, each with the page it comes from. Free, no call needed.