Facebook Messenger is one of the most popular chat apps in the world. There are more than 600 million people on Facebook Messenger every month, and it’s become a major player in how we communicate with businesses, brands, and each other. It’s also been an important part of our lives for years now – so much so that many have forgotten what life was like before it existed. That’s why you should build a messenger bot using ManyChat!

ManyChat offers a simple way to create your own Facebook Messenger Bots that can interact with customers on your behalf while you focus on bringing them value through content marketing or sales messages. Whether you’re just getting started or looking to expand your reach or build a better email list, here’s everything you need to know about building a Facebook messenger bot using ManyChat. PLUS a bonus-free training to help you get started.

What is a Messenger Bot?

Before we break down the how of building a Facebook messenger bot with the help of MayChat, let me first explain what a messenger bot actually is. This way, you will have a better understanding of what it is that we’re going to discuss.

A messenger bot is a chatbot that works through popular social messaging platforms such as Facebook Messenger, Instagram Direct Messages, Telegram, WhatsApp and more. Facebook Messenger is the third most-used app in the world, used by 68 percent of app users so it is a great place to start when learning how to build Messenger bots (blog.hootsuite.com).

Facebook Messenger bots can help automate certain tasks and can perform specific actions for customers on your behalf without you being around. This way, you will be able to focus on providing content for your followers while your chatbot takes care of the customer service.

This article is going to show you how you can utilize ManyChat to build a messenger bot that will be able to communicate with customers on behalf of your business 24/7. You’ll learn exactly how this works, and everything else you need to know if you want to delve deeper and get started with this.

Some of ManyChat’s features:

ManyChat is a messaging service that helps you automate the process of building a messenger bot for your business and create automated messages that help businesses communicate with customers at scale. It offers a unique set of features that will help you get started and develop your chatbot in no time.

ManyChat Basic Plan:

The Manychat basic plan is free, which means you can get started without investing any money. This plan is best suited for smaller businesses that are just starting out and don’t want to pay anything in the beginning. It is not intended for long-term use as once you reach 1000 contacts you will no longer be able to use the features. Think of the free plan as an extended trial to allow you to figure everything out. (Pssst…If you join Baby Got Bot Insiders I will hook you up with a free 30 day trial of ManyChat Pro so you can try out all the pro features as well).

ManyChat basic comes with a set of great features that can help you improve your marketing game, including:

• Automate conversations. Unlimited custom flows to engage up to 1,000 contacts  
• Acquire new customers. Access basic Growth Tools to drive leads to your automation
• Segment your contacts. 10 customer Tags
• Email support, anytime

Free plans also currently have access to the following channels:

• Instagram Direct Messages
• Facebook Messenger
• WhatsApp (beta)

ManyChat Pro Plan:

The ManyChat Pro plan is suitable for small to big businesses, as it allows you to have an unlimited number of contacts that can engage with your chatbot. You will be able to use all the features that are offered in the free plan, but without having any limitations on how many contacts you can talk to. This means you can create custom flows, segment your contacts and use the growth tools to acquire new customers. It’s a great solution for mid-size businesses that wish to increase their customer base and improve how they interact with their followers.

You’ll be able to access all these features when building a messenger bot using ManyChat:

• Engage unlimited contacts. Scaled pricing based on contacts
• Expand customer reach. Unlimited Growth Tools, Keywords, and team member seats
• Build advanced campaigns. Unlimited Tags, Custom Fields, & advanced Segments
• Optimize performance. ManyChat Analytics & Insights tools
• Save time. Integrations to tools you already use
• Make it your own. No ManyChat branding
• Email support, anytime

Pro plan users have access to the following channels:

• Instagram Direct Messages
• Facebook Messenger
• WhatsApp (beta)
• SMS Text Messaging (pay as you go)
• Email (pay as you go)

Recently ManyChat announce they will be opening up Telegram as one of the channels for building bots so keep your eyes on the announcements for more information on when that gets rolled out.

Why build a Messenger Bot?

The reason why you should be building a chatbot for your business is that it’s the easiest way to automate your marketing and provide 24/7 customer service. You can focus on creating content, while your chatbot will make sure all customers get the information they need in real-time. This is much more effective than having your employees reply to messages whenever they have time.

Building a Messenger Bot with ManyChat

ManyChat has created an easy-to-follow process for building a messenger bot that will engage with contacts on your behalf. The following quick start training will help you get started using ManyChat in under 20 minutes:

After you get the basics down you may find that you want to learn even more about building chat automation. You are in luck! ManyChat offers an extensive free course that will teach you all you need to know about using the ManyChat platform. You can access the free course at https://manychat.com/resources/video-course

After you complete the course you will have the foundations down. At that point, you may wonder how you can go further and grow your business even more. That is when Baby Got Bot comes in. Not only do I offer an extensive library of free training and how-to videos on my Baby Got Bot YouTube channel, but I also offer the Insider’s membership. The Baby Got Bot Insides is a one-stop shop for agencies and freelancers looking for more than just a course. It includes 2 office hours per month, one dedicated training per month, access to recorded trainings and course materials, 1:1 help, and a library of marketing and content resources to help you level up. This is more than a coaching program, more than a course, more than a mastermind…It’s all that and a bag of chips.

I hope you enjoy working on the ManyChat platform as much as I do. Although it is not the only chat-building platform I use, it is one of my favorites and I love helping people like you learn how to use it. The cool thing about ManyChat is that you do not have to know any coding to be awesome at building Messenger bots. The visual builder is the gold standard in builders and the team is always looking for new ways to innovate. Check it out and see what you think.

What is your favorite ManyChat feature? Do you prefer another chatbot builder over ManyChat? If so which one? Feel free to leave your feedback in the comments below.

Thank you for reading my post on how to build a messenger bot using ManyChat! I hope you have enjoyed it and will come back to read more in the future.