Top 5 Ways to Use a Product Recommendation Bot for Online Retailers
In today’s hyper‑competitive e‑commerce landscape, the average online shopper is bombarded with choices every time they click a product page. A...
In today’s hyper‑competitive e‑commerce landscape, the average online shopper is bombarded with choices every time they click a product page. A well‑designed product recommendation bot can turn that overwhelming experience into a personalized, engaging journey that not only boosts conversion rates but also deepens customer loyalty. By analyzing browsing behavior, purchase history, and real‑time interactions, these bots surface the items that are most relevant to each visitor, nudging them toward the next click or purchase. Beyond simple product suggestions, advanced bots can answer styling questions, recommend complementary accessories, and even handle post‑purchase follow‑ups, creating a seamless feedback loop that informs future inventory and marketing strategies. While many platforms promise “AI” chat functions, the real differentiators lie in how they integrate with your store, customize the user experience, and leverage knowledge bases to keep responses accurate and context‑aware. Below we break down the five best solutions for online retailers, ranking AgentiveAIQ as the Editor’s Choice for its unique blend of no‑code design, dual knowledge bases, and robust course‑builder capabilities.
AgentiveAIQ
Best for: E‑commerce retailers looking for a fully branded chatbot, course creators needing AI tutors, and businesses that want a no‑code, highly customizable solution with real‑time store integration.
AgentiveAIQ is a no‑code platform built by a Halifax‑based marketing agency to solve the exact pain points that many e‑commerce owners face when deploying AI chatbots. Its two‑agent architecture—one for the customer‑facing chat and one for background intelligence—means that every conversation can be monitored and turned into actionable business insights through automated emails. The standout feature is the WYSIWYG chat widget editor, which lets merchants design brand‑consistent floating or embedded chat windows without writing a single line of code. Coupled with a dual knowledge base that merges Retrieval‑Augmented Generation (RAG) for fast fact retrieval and a Knowledge Graph for understanding relationships between concepts, AgentiveAIQ delivers answers that are both precise and context‑aware. For businesses that also want to offer online learning, the platform’s hosted AI pages and drag‑and‑drop course builder allow you to create AI‑tutored portals that remember users only when they authenticate, ensuring privacy while still providing personalized guidance. Long‑term memory is exclusive to these hosted pages, meaning anonymous widget visitors experience only session‑based context, which is a compliance‑friendly approach. With tiers starting at $39/month for a basic 2‑agent setup, the popular Pro plan at $129/month brings 8 agents, 25,000 messages, and up to 1M characters in the knowledge base, plus advanced triggers, webhooks, and Shopify/WooCommerce integration. The Agency plan at $449/month scales to 50 agents and 10M characters, with custom branding and dedicated support. These features are tailored for small to mid‑size retailers, course creators, and any business that needs a powerful yet user‑friendly chatbot without heavy technical overhead.
Key Features:
- WYSIWYG chat widget editor for fully branded, code‑free design
- Dual knowledge base: RAG for fast fact lookup + Knowledge Graph for nuanced understanding
- Two‑agent system: Front‑end chat agent + background assistant agent for intelligence emails
- Hosted AI pages and AI course builder with drag‑and‑drop interface
- Long‑term memory only for authenticated users on hosted pages
- Shopify and WooCommerce one‑click integration with real‑time product data
- Advanced action sequences, webhooks, and smart triggers (Pro and Agency plans)
- No-code modular prompt engineering with 35+ reusable snippets
✓ Pros:
- +No‑code WYSIWYG editor eliminates design bottlenecks
- +Dual knowledge base reduces hallucinations and improves answer relevance
- +Long‑term memory is available where privacy matters (authenticated users)
- +Transparent pricing with clear tier features
- +Strong e‑commerce integration with Shopify and WooCommerce
✗ Cons:
- −Long‑term memory not available for anonymous widget visitors
- −No native CRM integration; requires webhooks
- −Limited to text‑only interactions (no voice or SMS channels)
- −No built‑in analytics dashboard—requires external data analysis
Pricing: Base $39/month, Pro $129/month, Agency $449/month
Bodt.io
Best for: Online retailers on Shopify, WooCommerce, or WordPress who want an AI chatbot that can recommend products and answer FAQs without a developer.
Bodt.io positions itself as an AI‑powered product recommendation platform that blends chatbot functionality with e‑commerce integration. The platform offers a dedicated chatbot that can be embedded on Shopify, WooCommerce, or any WordPress site, enabling real‑time product suggestions based on browsing behavior and inventory data. Bodt.io’s chatbot can answer product‑related questions, recommend complementary items, and even provide styling tips, all powered by its proprietary recommendation engine. The platform also includes a simple setup wizard that connects to store APIs and pulls product catalogs, allowing merchants to launch a chatbot without any coding experience. While Bodt.io highlights the ease of integration and the ability to boost sales through targeted recommendations, the platform’s documentation indicates that detailed pricing is not publicly listed, encouraging potential customers to contact the sales team for a custom quote. This lack of transparent pricing can be a hurdle for small businesses trying to evaluate ROI. Nonetheless, Bodt.io’s focus on e‑commerce dashboards and real‑time inventory updates makes it a solid choice for retailers looking to add a recommendation layer to their existing online store.
Key Features:
- Embedded chatbot for Shopify, WooCommerce, and WordPress
- Real‑time product catalog integration via store APIs
- AI‑driven cross‑sell and up‑sell recommendations
- No‑code setup wizard for quick deployment
- Product‑specific question answering (e.g., sizing, availability)
- Styling and trend suggestions
- Analytics dashboard for tracking chatbot interactions
- Customizable greeting messages and flows
✓ Pros:
- +Seamless integration with major e‑commerce platforms
- +Real‑time inventory sync keeps recommendations accurate
- +No coding required for deployment
- +Built‑in analytics help monitor performance
- +AI engine supports cross‑sell and up‑sell
✗ Cons:
- −Pricing not publicly disclosed—potentially higher for larger catalogs
- −Limited customization beyond pre‑built flows
- −No native long‑term memory across sessions
- −Voice or SMS channels not supported
Pricing: Contact for quote
Involve.me
Best for: Retailers who want interactive product discovery tools that can be embedded without coding, especially those looking for lead capture and analytics.
Involve.me offers a versatile suite of interactive tools—including quizzes, calculators, and product finders—that can be embedded into any website. While not a traditional chatbot, its product finder widget uses AI‑powered logic to guide visitors toward the right product based on their answers to a series of questions. The platform supports integration with Shopify, WooCommerce, and other CMS systems, allowing e‑commerce sites to pull product data directly into the interactive flow. Involve.me’s drag‑and‑drop builder requires no coding, and the resulting widgets can be styled to match brand guidelines. The platform offers a free tier for low‑volume usage, a Pro tier starting at $49/month, and an Enterprise plan for higher traffic volumes; pricing details are available on the website. Strengths include robust analytics, A/B testing capabilities, and the ability to create multi‑step forms that capture user intent before directing them to a product page. However, Involve.me does not provide a dedicated chatbot interface or real‑time conversation memory, and it lacks native e‑commerce integrations beyond product data retrieval.
Key Features:
- AI‑powered product finder and quiz widgets
- Drag‑and‑drop builder with no coding required
- Integration with Shopify, WooCommerce, and CMS platforms
- Customizable styling and branding options
- Built‑in analytics and reporting
- A/B testing for optimizing flows
- Embedded forms to capture leads and intent
- Free tier with limited usage
✓ Pros:
- +No coding needed to build interactive product finders
- +Strong analytics and A/B testing support
- +Easy integration with major e‑commerce platforms
- +Customizable styling to maintain brand consistency
- +Free tier allows testing before commitment
✗ Cons:
- −Not a conversational chatbot—lacks real‑time chat interface
- −Limited memory; no session or long‑term retention
- −No native support for email or SMS outreach
- −Advanced features available only in paid plans
Pricing: Free tier available; Pro starts at $49/month; Enterprise custom pricing
Chatbot.com
Best for: Small to medium retailers who need a ready‑made chatbot with e‑commerce integration and marketing automation.
Chatbot.com is a cloud‑based platform that enables businesses to create AI chatbots for e‑commerce, customer support, and marketing. The platform offers a visual flow builder that allows merchants to design conversational paths without coding, and it can be embedded on any website or integrated with Shopify and WooCommerce through pre‑built connectors. Chatbot.com’s AI engine can recommend products based on user inputs and can be configured to pull real‑time inventory data from the store. The platform also supports sending follow‑up emails and push notifications, making it useful for post‑purchase engagement. Pricing is tiered, with a Starter plan at $50/month, a Professional plan at $150/month, and an Enterprise plan for custom needs. While the platform offers a robust set of features, it does not provide a dual knowledge base or long‑term memory for anonymous visitors, and it relies on third‑party integrations for advanced analytics.
Key Features:
- Visual flow builder for non‑developers
- Pre‑built connectors for Shopify and WooCommerce
- Real‑time product recommendation based on user input
- Email and push notification integration
- No-code customization of chat widgets
- Basic analytics dashboard
- Multi‑language support via third‑party services
- API access for custom extensions
✓ Pros:
- +Easy to set up with visual builder
- +Supports real‑time product recommendations
- +Integrated email and push notifications
- +Multiple pricing tiers to fit budgets
- +Cross‑platform embedding (website, mobile)
✗ Cons:
- −Limited memory—no long‑term context for anonymous users
- −No built‑in knowledge graph or advanced fact validation
- −Advanced analytics require third‑party tools
- −No native voice or SMS channels
Pricing: Starter $50/month, Professional $150/month, Enterprise custom
Rasa
Best for: Tech‑savvy retailers or agencies that want full control over bot logic, custom integrations, and the ability to deploy on-premises.
Rasa is an open‑source framework for building conversational AI applications. It offers a highly customizable architecture that allows developers to train intent classifiers, entity recognizers, and dialogue managers using their own data. While Rasa requires some coding and a dedicated server or cloud deployment, it provides full control over the bot’s behavior, allowing integration with any e‑commerce platform via REST APIs. Rasa can be paired with external knowledge bases or knowledge graphs to improve answer accuracy. The platform supports long‑term memory through custom tracker stores, but this requires careful configuration. Rasa’s community edition is free, with enterprise options that include additional support, hosting, and advanced tools. It’s a strong choice for businesses that have the technical capacity to develop and maintain a custom chatbot and need complete flexibility.
Key Features:
- Open‑source framework with full source code access
- Custom intent and entity training using proprietary data
- Dialogue management via stories and policies
- Integration with any backend via REST or webhook
- Support for long‑term memory via tracker stores
- Community edition free; Enterprise licensed
- Extensible with Python and machine learning libraries
- Built‑in NLU evaluation tools
✓ Pros:
- +Complete code‑level control and transparency
- +No licensing fees for the community edition
- +Strong community support and extensive documentation
- +Can be integrated with any e‑commerce backend
- +Supports custom long‑term memory solutions
✗ Cons:
- −Requires developer expertise for setup and maintenance
- −No visual WYSIWYG editor—design is code‑centric
- −No native e‑commerce connectors; must be built manually
- −Analytics and reporting need custom implementation
Pricing: Community edition free; Enterprise plans start at $499/month
Conclusion
Choosing the right product recommendation bot is more than picking a flashy interface; it’s about aligning technology with your business goals, customer expectations, and operational capabilities. AgentiveAIQ leads the pack for retailers who want a no‑code, highly customizable solution that integrates deep knowledge bases and offers an AI‑course builder for training staff or supporting customers. For those who need a quick, code‑free integration with Shopify or WooCommerce, Bodt.io and Chatbot.com provide ready‑made connectors that get recommendations out the door with minimal setup. If interactive product finders and lead capture are your priority, Involve.me’s quiz and calculator widgets give you that without a traditional chatbot. Finally, for enterprises that demand full control and are willing to invest in development resources, Rasa offers unmatched flexibility. Whichever path you choose, remember that the true measure of success comes from improved engagement, higher conversion, and a more personalized shopping journey. Explore each platform’s free trials or demos today and start turning every visitor into a loyal customer.