Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework) vs. Smith.ai Live Website Chat

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)
Score 7.2 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft offers the Azure Bot Service (replacing the former Microsoft Bot Framework), a managed bot building platform, which provides an integrated environment that is purpose-built for bot development, enabling you to build, connect, test, deploy, and manage intelligent bots, all from one place.N/A
Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Smith.ai Live Website Chat is presented by the vendor as a fast & friendly way to capture, screen & convert website leads. The Smith.ai live chat agents answer questions, screen leads & schedule appointments 24/7. Custom AI chatbots can assist with screening basic questions to maximize meaningful interactions. Users pay for relevant chats only, and the vendor promises easy setup on all website platforms. Instant chat transcripts are available sent to an email, and CRM.
$1,407
per chat after 20
Pricing
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Starter
$140 + $7
per chat after 20
Basic
$300 + $6
per chat after 50
Pro
$600 + $5
per chat after 120
Custom
Let us know what you need
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details—All Live Chat packages include: - Emailed chat transcripts - Custom branding - Mobile-optimized chat widget - Unlimited Smart Q&A - Unlimited Playbook: Program questions determined by previous answers to improve lead intake - Real-time Spanish-to-English translation - SMS/Text Answering - One-time chat custom programming (hours vary by package) - Web installation and set-up - Phone and e-mail support Additional features available: - Integration with CRM software (including Salesforce and Clio), Zapier, Slack and others - Appointment booking - Additional custom programming support
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Small Businesses
Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Score 8.9 out of 10
Gist
Gist
Score 9.6 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Score 10.0 out of 10
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Score 10.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Score 10.0 out of 10
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Genesys DX (discontinued)
Score 10.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Likelihood to Recommend
8.7
(5 ratings)
9.1
(15 ratings)
Usability
8.7
(2 ratings)
8.6
(9 ratings)
Support Rating
8.7
(4 ratings)
9.0
(14 ratings)
User Testimonials
Azure Bot Service (Microsoft Bot Framework)Smith.ai Live Website Chat
Likelihood to Recommend
Microsoft
It is suited for applications like computerizing messages, or any business thought that would require the entrepreneur to robotize their reactions, particularly assuming they are managing a ton of clients and they can't answer to every single one of them. It'd be the most ideal to computerize messages of enormous associations where the reactions measure up to the clients' assumptions. It would be less appropriate in associations where clients' viewpoints matter and every client is interesting and requires the association's consideration, where the specialist organization doesn't need to sum up the clients' interests.
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Smith.ai
Smith.ai Website Chat is an excellent solution for law firm owners that want a cost-effective strategy to capture lead information from website visitors. Our website generates hundreds of visitors each day and over 7,000 visitors per month. I strategically have placed the online chat feature on the contact page on our website to engage with only those potential clients that are serious about retaining our services and making a purchasing decision. I have priced this type of online chat service with several other providers (Ngage, Apex Chat). Some of these providers charge as much as $35 or hire per qualified lead. Smith.ai comes in at approximately $8-$15 per chat session with a potential lead and even offers some flat rate options. There can be further cost savings if only the chatbot feature is used without live agent support. In this option, a website visitor can engage with a chatbot using Automated questions and answers without the need for live agent support. My firm beta tested this product in of it itself and it generated several thousands of dollars in revenue. The customer support has also been exceptional. All the representatives at Smith.ai have been responsive to customer service questions and implementation of the product. Capturing leads with the chatbot feature and the live agent support has even been more profitable. Based on our CRM data, website chat leads generated over $127,500 of revenue for our firm and engaged with 230 potential clients in just the past 12 months.
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Pros
Microsoft
  • Real-time communication.
  • Lightweight software protocols.
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Smith.ai
  • They set up and monitor your chat on your site, giving your prospects instant service.
  • I have spent so much time with their support team. I never felt more welcome to an SaaS.
  • Their phone monitoring system saves you time and will increase your profits by converting more leads into paying clients.
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Cons
Microsoft
  • They have simplified the coding for the bot in Azure, but it would help if the coding was further simplified so that non-IT can operate [and] create it easily.
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Smith.ai
  • Although you can close the chat message, the chat bubble can not be closed and it can cause issues being able to read website content.
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Usability
Microsoft
Azure Bot Service provides an integrated environment for bot development. Microsoft Azure Cloud is fully compatible and its security features. It's more important to pay attention to the logic of business than the specifics of each messenger. We don't have any issues using the bot framework because the implementation is excellent.
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Smith.ai
Smith.ai Live Website Chat allows you to provide a script for when they answer prospective clients. The script is customizable as your needs change. However, the script only goes so far, as they do not know your business personally. Once they do go through that script, they send you an email with the caller's contact information so you can reach out personally if they seem interested. They do so with efficiency.
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Support Rating
Microsoft
Support is helpful when we have a problem, but online documentation is lacking
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Smith.ai
Smith.ai pays for itself if we can help one site visitor move down our lead funnel to being a client. We have averaged over 50+ new leads each month since implementing the chat and with a close rate for becoming new clients that is double what our advertising PPC new client closing rate has been.
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Alternatives Considered
Microsoft
Microsoft Bot Framework is much better and well more established without a lot of proprietary software/coding language. Lex is very limited with integration with standard hardware and network configurations. Lex has performance issues and was too slow to meet near real-time collaboration requirements. Bot Framework complements many other Microsoft communication products and this was key to implementing without a lot of new training required.
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Smith.ai
Came down to pricing. Smith.ai Live Website Chat did not have the same level of customization and support as other alternatives but there are enough customization and tools that it was clear it would solve the problems and at a good price.
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Return on Investment
Microsoft
  • Interfaces with the SQL data set, tracks down plans/replies, and tests them with the SDK.
  • Utilizing the system is made conceivable by the Bot Dev gateway. We can interface our bot in excess of ten channels, including Twilio Facebook, Twilio, Twilio, and Slack, and that's only the tip of the iceberg.
  • It is expensive.
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Smith.ai
  • Positive - Smith.ai has easily saved me $25k+ in receptionist costs. They probably helped me land another $50k in new business I would otherwise not have brought in the door because they immediately grabbed the client on our website so they didn't get away or have to wait 2 days for a call back. Great ROI (100 to 1 ROI is probably not an exaggeration for my law firm).
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ScreenShots

Smith.ai Live Website Chat Screenshots

Screenshot of Screen & schedule leads!Screenshot of Multilingual chat support (English and Spanish)Screenshot of Humans, AI Bots or both!Screenshot of Priced for every budgetScreenshot of Webchat and text answering