Drag and drop chatbot platforms are user-friendly and easy to use. There's usually no coding involved, so even those who have no technical expertise can build a bot. However, if you've used one, you know that they have their limitations.

So, what are those limitations? Here are the 7 tell-tale signs that you've outgrown your drag and drop chatbot. 

1. Your drag and drop chatbot doesn't understand variations in wording 

Drag and drop chatbots usually come with NLP (Natural Language Processing) built-in. NLP chatbots are trained to recognize particular keywords, but those keywords are limited. 

More than that, you may find it difficult to (or even impossible) to edit your drag and drop chatbot. Simple questions worded slightly differently can result in the bot consistently failing.

2. You have a multilingual customer base 

If you have a multilingual customer base, a drag and drop chatbot will have a hard time keeping up. If you're having issues with localization, it's probably time to use a more flexible chatbot framework. 

3. Your chatbot doesn't integrate with your CRM

When your chatbot doesn't sync with your CRM, you lose out on powerful insights. Creating a seamless customer experience is a key reason that companies adopt chatbots in the first place. 

If you have a CRM or backend system that doesn't work with your drag and drop bot, it's time to upgrade.

4. You have a trained AI instance and the company isn't using it

Have you invested in AI? If so, you might be disappointed if your drag and drop chatbot isn't using it. 

AI is costly, and it takes time to get it right. In fact, chatbots don't need AI to function well. However, if you've already invested in AI, you'll want your chatbot to take advantage of it.

5. You’re relying too much on text, not graphics

Chatbots have evolved into something called conversational apps. Conversational apps use buttons, carousels, gifts, photos, and other engaging elements. The result is a more engaging and enjoyable user experience.

If your customer experience is falling flat with a text-only chatbot, you've definitely outgrown your DIY chatbot. Read more about conversational apps here.  

6. You need to bulk up on security

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is now a mandatory precaution for many businesses. If you need to authenticate your user before continuing the conversation, your drag and drop chatbot probably won't be up for the task. 

Upgrading your chatbot can help protect your company and your customers.

7. You need to manage multiple channels individually

A drag and drop chatbot doesn't work well across multiple channels. You may find yourself duplicating your efforts on WhatsApp, Messenger, and other channels. If that's the case, you could be saving a lot of time with a more flexible chatbot framework. 

A chatbot framework aggregates your channels. That means you only have to make the chatbot once and it can be deployed across multiple channels. This detail is critical for customer success teams.