A chatbot is a program that replies in writing to your customers, on your website, on WhatsApp or on Instagram, like someone on your team would. There are three types: the button-based one, which only understands the options you give it; the one with AI, which understands what the customer writes; and the virtual assistant, which also does tasks in your software. If you get fewer than 10 messages a day, the free automatic replies from WhatsApp Business are enough, and from a few dozen onward, one with AI pays off. With us, it costs from €990 setup + €249/month + VAT.
The word sounds like expensive technology and a big company. It almost never is. Below is exactly what it is, how each type differs, where it can answer, and which one fits your business based on message volume.
What is a chatbot, in plain terms
“Chatbot” combines chat and bot. The word is not yet in the RAE dictionary, but bot is, and it defines it as a program that imitates human behavior. A chatbot is that same thing applied to a written conversation.
In a small business, in practice, it is the one who answers messages when you cannot. The question about opening hours at ten at night, the “how much does it cost” on a Sunday, the “where are you” that reaches you five times a day.
What changes from one chatbot to another is how much it understands and how much it can do.
The three types of chatbot
| Type | What it understands | What it can do |
|---|---|---|
| Button-based chatbot | Only the options you give it | Guide the customer through a menu |
| AI chatbot | What the customer writes, however they write it | Answer using your information and book appointments |
| Virtual assistant | The same as the AI one | In addition, do tasks in your software |
The button-based one works like a phone menu. “Press opening hours, press prices, press book appointment.” It is the simplest to set up and it does not make mistakes, because it only says what someone wrote down. The problem is that the customer does not always press. They write. And “Are you open on the holiday?” is not on any button.
The AI chatbot reads the question as it comes in and looks for the answer in the information you have given it, such as your website, your price list, or your cancellation policy. If it is set up well, when it cannot find something it says so and passes the conversation to a person. It can make mistakes, just like a new employee, which is why it is tested before launch and what it answers is reviewed during the first few weeks.
The virtual assistant, also called an AI agent, goes a step further. In addition to answering, it checks your data and does things in your software, such as checking whether an order has already shipped, creating a record in your CRM, or logging a return. Always with the permissions you give it. It is similar to ChatGPT in that it understands what you write to it, with one practical difference. ChatGPT answers with what it knows in general, and yours works with your documents and your software.
They also differ in price. Our WhatsApp chatbot costs from €990 setup + €249/month + VAT, and an AI agent starts at €5,000 + VAT, with AI usage and maintenance billed separately each month. If all you want is someone to answer WhatsApp, the virtual assistant is more than you need.
Where it can answer
The same chatbot can live in several places, and each one has its rules.
| Channel | Who messages you | What you should know |
|---|---|---|
| Your website | Who is already looking at your services | It responds while the person reads |
| Your customers, from their phone | Meta charges for messages from the business | |
| Followers and people who see your posts | It only replies if they message you first |
On the website, it appears as a small window in a corner. It is there for the question someone has right before they ask you for a quote, when they still haven't decided to call.
WhatsApp is where almost everyone messages you, which is why it is usually the first one you set up. The chatbot connects to the WhatsApp platform, and there Meta charges for the messages the business sends, not for the ones it receives. In WhatsApp Business pricing you have the rates and a sample account.
On Instagram, the chatbot works from a professional account. It can only reply after the person has messaged you, and in most cases it has 24 hours to do so. It cannot be used to cold-message anyone.
Which type you need based on your daily messages
Before deciding anything, count. For a week, write down how many messages you get each day, at what time and what they ask you. With that list in front of you, the decision almost makes itself.
| Messages per day | What is enough for you | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 10 | WhatsApp Business automatic replies | You reply, and they are free |
| From 10 to 30, almost always the same | A button-based chatbot | It handles the repetitive stuff with a short menu |
| More than 30, or many outside business hours | An AI chatbot | It understands what they write and books appointments |
| They ask you for details about your programs | A virtual assistant | It looks things up and does the task for you |
The numbers are approximate, and every business has its sweet spot. A clinic with 15 messages a day, almost all arriving at night, already needs an AI chatbot, because no one answers them until the next morning. A store with 40 that are answered during business hours can get by with quick replies for a while longer.
There is a sign that matters more than the number. If more than half of what you wrote down is the same five or six questions, a chatbot takes most of the work off your hands. If every message is different and requires thought, it helps you less, and maybe what you need is one more person.
WhatsApp Business app automatic replies are the starting point. You have a greeting for people who message you for the first time, a notice for when you are closed and saved replies for the usual questions. If that is enough, don't spend on anything else.
What a chatbot does not fix
A chatbot answers with the information you give it, so it repeats your order and your mess too. If your prices are in three places and do not match, the chatbot will not know which one is right. Before setting it up, you need a single version of what you sell, what it costs and how it is booked.
It does not replace anyone in sensitive matters either. A complaint, an urgent issue or a customer who wants to talk to a person must reach someone on your team, and fast. A well-built chatbot recognizes those cases and hands over the conversation.
In WhatsApp chatbot you can see what ours does and how we set it up, and in pricing, the rest of our services. We reply Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 19:00, within 2 hours.
You lose appointments because patients message at night to change them and no one answers until the next day.
The chatbot answers questions about rates and hours on WhatsApp with your information. It changes or cancels the appointment using the open slots in your schedule. If someone mentions severe pain or an injury, it alerts the physiotherapist.
from€990 setup + €249/month
Sources
- RAE: chatbot is not in the dictionary (accessed 3 Nov 2026)
- RAE: bot, a program that imitates human behavior (accessed 3 Nov 2026)
- The app's automatic replies are free (3 Nov 2026)
- The app includes a welcome message (3 Nov 2026)
- The app includes an away message (3 Nov 2026)
- Meta only charges for messages from the business to the customer (3 Nov 2026)
- Instagram: messages from a professional account (3 Nov 2026)
- Instagram: you can only reply after the person messages you (3 Nov 2026)
- Instagram: 24-hour window in most cases (3 Nov 2026)
