Chatbot Development
What is a chatbot?
Chatbots are software programs designed to simulate human conversations (either written or spoken). They can be used to provide an interactive interface for FAQs, administrative tasks, sales, and customer support. Most chatbots use predetermined answers to respond to common questions a customer might ask, but more-advanced chatbots may leverage natural language processing (NLP), a subset of machine learning, to better understand customer queries and improve their responses.
How do you hire a chatbot developer?
You can source chatbot development talent on Upwork by following these three steps:
- Write a project description. You’ll want to determine your scope of work and the skills and requirements you are looking for in a chatbot developer.
- Post it on Upwork. Once you’ve written a project description, post it to Upwork. Simply follow the prompts to help you input the information you collected to scope out your project.
- Shortlist and interview chatbot developers. Once the proposals start coming in, create a shortlist of the professionals you want to interview.
Of these three steps, your project description is where you will determine your scope of work and the specific type of chatbot developer you need to complete your project.
How much does it cost to hire a chatbot developer?
Rates can vary due to many factors, including expertise and experience, location, and market conditions.
- An experienced chatbot developer may command higher fees but also work faster, have more-specialized areas of expertise, and deliver higher-quality work.
- A contractor who is still in the process of building a client base may price their chatbot development services more competitively.
Which one is right for you will depend on the specifics of your project.
How do you write a chatbot developer job post?
Your job post is your chance to describe your project scope, budget, and talent needs. Although you don’t need a full job description as you would when hiring an employee, aim to provide enough detail for a contractor to know if they’re the right fit for the project.
Job post title
Create a simple title that describes exactly what you’re looking for. The idea is to target the keywords that your ideal candidate is likely to type into a job search bar to find your project. Here are some sample chatbot developer job post titles:
- Chatbot developer needed to build chatbots for Slack
- Need help setting up a Messenger chatbot for Facebook page
- Seeking a chatbot developer experienced with Dialogflow
Project description
An effective chatbot developer job post should include:
- Scope of work: From creating preset dialogue to building NLP-powered chatbots, list all the deliverables you’ll need.
- Project length: Your job post should indicate whether this is a smaller or larger project.
- Background: If you prefer experience with certain chatbot technologies or developer tools, mention this here.
- Budget: Set a budget and note your preference for hourly rates vs. fixed-price contracts.
Chatbot developer job responsibilities
Here are some examples of chatbot developer job responsibilities:
- Design and develop chatbots
- Prepare chatbot dialogue flows, user flows, storyboards, and other tools
- Test and deploy chatbots to your website or target platform (e.g., Slack, Telegram, Kik)
Chatbot developer job requirements and qualifications
Be sure to include any requirements and qualifications you’re looking for in a chatbot developer. Here are some examples:
- Chatbot development
- Python (for machine learning)
- Web fundamentals (e.g., HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Node.js)
- Bot engines (e.g., Chatfuel, ManyChat)
- Natural language understanding platforms (e.g., Dialogflow, Watson NLU, Wit.ai)