Best 7 Ways to Use a Lead Generation Chatbot for IT Support Services (MSPs)

Intercom is a widely adopted customer messaging platform that offers chatbots, live chat, and help center integration. The platform’s bot builder allows you to set up automated conversations that qualify leads, answer FAQs, and route users to the appropriate support agents. Intercom’s strength lies in its deep integration with CRM and marketing automation tools, enabling you to capture contact information and trigger follow‑up emails or marketing workflows. For MSPs, Intercom’s ability to create custom bot flows and assign them to specific product pages makes it easy to engage visitors interested in particular services or support tiers. Intercom’s pricing starts with a free tier for basic live chat, but its chatbot features are available in the Standard and Premium plans. The Standard plan begins at $39/month (per user), offering a single chatbot, whereas the Premium plan ($99/month per user) adds advanced segmentation, custom bots, and multi‑channel messaging. Intercom also provides a “Product Tours” feature that can guide new users through setup steps, which can be valuable for onboarding clients. While Intercom is powerful, it can become expensive as you add more users or bots. Additionally, the platform’s focus on marketing automation means it may require a separate knowledge base tool if you need complex document retrieval.

Drift positions itself as a conversational marketing platform that excels at capturing and qualifying leads in real time. Its chatbot engine can ask pre‑qualification questions, schedule meetings, and route visitors to sales or support teams. For MSPs, Drift’s ability to integrate with calendar services and ticketing systems means you can book on‑site support appointments directly through chat. Drift’s pricing is tailored to enterprise users, with the Starter plan starting at $400/month (includes a single chatbot). The Growth plan ($800/month) adds advanced targeting, multi‑bot support, and integrations with Salesforce and Zendesk. Drift’s focus on outbound lead generation makes it particularly useful for MSPs looking to actively engage prospects. However, Drift’s pricing can be prohibitive for smaller agencies, and its chatbot interface is less visual than some competitors, requiring more configuration time.

HubSpot offers a comprehensive inbound marketing and sales platform that includes a chatbot builder as part of its Marketing Hub. The chatbot can be used to qualify leads, answer product questions, and route visitors to support tickets. HubSpot’s strength is its tight integration with its CRM and marketing automation tools, enabling seamless lead nurturing once a conversation is captured. HubSpot’s free tier includes basic chat widgets and a single chatbot, while the Starter plan ($45/month) adds multiple bots and more advanced targeting. The Professional plan ($400/month) unlocks custom bot flows, conversational forms, and advanced analytics. HubSpot also provides a knowledge base feature that can be used to power FAQ sections. HubSpot is ideal for MSPs that already use its CRM ecosystem, but its chatbot functionality is somewhat limited compared to dedicated bot builders.

Zendesk’s Chat product offers a bot builder that can answer common support questions and route users to human agents. The platform is well known for its ticketing system, so MSPs can easily convert a chat into a support ticket, ensuring that every conversation is tracked. Zendesk’s pricing for Chat starts at $19/month for a single bot, with the Standard plan ($49/month) adding more bots and advanced features. The Enterprise plan ($99/month) includes AI chat for predictive ticket routing. Zendesk also offers a knowledge base via Zendesk Guide, which can be used to feed the bot’s responses. While Zendesk excels at ticket integration, its bot UI is less modern than some competitors and it lacks advanced knowledge retrieval features.

Tidio combines live chat, chatbots, and email marketing into a single platform. The bot builder allows MSPs to create quick qualification flows and integrate with their CRM or help desk via Zapier. Tidio offers a free tier that includes a chatbot and live chat, making it a budget-friendly option for small MSPs. Paid plans start at $18/month for the Pro plan (includes unlimited bots, custom branding, and advanced automation). The Plus plan ($30/month) adds multi‑user access and advanced reporting. Tidio’s strength lies in its simplicity and affordable pricing. However, Tidio’s bot capabilities are relatively basic, and it does not provide advanced knowledge graph or RAG features.

ManyChat is a popular chatbot platform focused on social media and messaging apps, but it also offers a website chat widget. The bot builder supports conditional logic, broadcast messaging, and integration with tools like Zapier and Shopify. ManyChat is useful for MSPs that want to engage prospects on Facebook Messenger or Instagram DM, in addition to their website. ManyChat offers a free plan with basic bot features, while the Pro plan ($10/month) unlocks advanced automation, custom branding, and multi‑user access. The Growth plan ($25/month) adds broadcast and multi‑bot support. ManyChat’s pricing is attractive for small teams. The platform’s focus on social media may not align with all MSPs, and its web chat widget is less feature‑rich compared to dedicated website bot builders.