If you're in B2B marketing or sales and tired of watching qualified leads slip through your website unnoticed, you’re not alone. Chatbots can help, but only if they’re actually useful (not annoying pop-ups asking for your email right away). This guide is for anyone who wants to design and launch a chatbot in Qualified that actually talks to the right people—and doesn’t just waste everyone’s time.
Let’s skip the generic chatbot sales pitch and get into how to set up something that works.
1. Get Clear on What You Want the Chatbot to Do
Before you touch any settings, nail down your goals. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a generic bot that does nothing for your pipeline. Most B2B teams use Qualified bots to:
- Greet visitors and identify high-value accounts (think: companies you’re targeting)
- Qualify leads based on firmographics (company size, industry, etc.)
- Book meetings for your sales team
- Route hot leads to live reps
Pro Tip: Don’t try to do it all at once. Pick the goal that matters most for your team right now. If it’s meeting booking, optimize for that. If it’s account identification, keep the bot focused there.
2. Map Out the Chatbot Conversation (Before You Build)
A chatbot is only as good as its script. If you start building without a plan, you’ll end up with a mess.
Sketch the Flow
- Start with “who.” Who’s coming to your site? Segment by target accounts, existing customers, or everyone else.
- Decide on branches. What happens if someone’s a target account? What if they’re not?
- Keep it short. No one wants to answer 10 questions before speaking to a human. Two to three qualifying questions is plenty.
Example:
- Greet the visitor (“Hey there! Looking for ways to improve your sales pipeline?”)
- Identify them (“Can I ask what brought you here today?”)
- Qualify (“Are you with [target company name]?” or “How big is your sales team?”)
- Offer value (book a meeting, connect to a live rep, share a relevant resource)
What to avoid: - Don’t make users repeat info you already have (like company name if you’re using reverse IP or enrichment tools) - Skip fake chit-chat; people see through it
3. Set Up Targeting and Personalization Rules in Qualified
Qualified’s whole pitch is about targeting the right people at the right time. Use it.
Create Segments
- Target Accounts: Use your ABM list to trigger special bot experiences for high-value prospects
- Returning Visitors: Recognize repeat visitors and pick up where you left off
- General Visitors: Have a fallback bot for everyone else (don’t spend too much time here)
Personalize the Experience
- Pull in company names, titles, or other info using data enrichment (Qualified can integrate with tools like Salesforce, Clearbit, etc.)
- Change the greeting or questions based on who’s visiting. For example: “Welcome back, Jane from Acme Corp!”
Don’t Overdo It: Personalization is great, but it gets creepy fast. “How’s the weather in Seattle?” is unnecessary and weird.
4. Build the Chatbot in Qualified
Now you’re ready to actually create the bot. Qualified calls these “Experiences.” Here’s how to keep it sane:
Use the Visual Builder
- Drag and drop steps instead of coding
- Branch logic lets you send high-value visitors one way and everyone else another
- Add routing to live chat if you’ve got reps online
Add Your Qualifying Questions
- Stick to 2-3 key questions that matter to your sales team
- Use drop-downs or buttons, not open text fields (faster and less error-prone)
Set Up Bookings
- Integrate your team’s calendars (Google, Outlook, whatever)
- Let the bot offer time slots automatically for meetings—this is a big conversion driver
Don’t Forget the Lead Routing
- Decide who gets notified and how—Slack, email, direct to Salesforce, etc.
- Make sure hot leads aren’t just sitting in a queue while your team’s asleep
What doesn’t work: Overcomplicated bots with too many branches. You’ll spend more time fixing bugs than getting leads.
5. Launch a Test Bot (Don’t Skip This)
Never launch straight to your homepage without testing. Here’s a process that works:
- Preview in Qualified: Use the built-in preview to see the flow as a visitor would.
- Test with Real People: Have sales reps or a coworker run through the experience. Catch awkward questions or dead-ends.
- Check Integrations: Make sure lead data actually shows up in Salesforce/HubSpot/your CRM and meetings get booked correctly.
- Try Edge Cases: What happens if someone skips a question? Or says “Other”? Smooth out any weirdness.
Pro Tip: Use a temporary landing page or a low-traffic segment first. You can always expand later.
6. Go Live—But Watch the Data Like a Hawk
Set your bot live for your chosen audience, then pay attention.
What to Monitor
- Conversion rates: How many visitors engage with the bot vs. ignore it?
- Lead quality: Do the leads match your ICP, or are you getting junk?
- Drop-off points: Where do people bail out of the conversation?
- Meeting bookings: Are meetings getting scheduled, or is something broken?
Fix What’s Not Working
- If no one’s engaging, your opening line probably needs work
- If everyone bails during qualification, you’re asking too much up front
- If reps complain about lead quality, revisit your qualifying questions
Don’t chase vanity metrics. It’s better to get 5 real meetings with target accounts than 50 random conversations.
7. Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Ignore the Hype
There’s a lot of noise around AI chatbots, “conversational marketing,” and bots that do everything but make your coffee. Here’s the reality:
- Simple bots convert better. Cut anything that doesn’t serve your core goal.
- Iteration beats perfection. Launch, watch, tweak. Don’t wait for the “perfect” script.
- Ignore features you don’t need. Just because Qualified can do a million things doesn’t mean you should.
What to Skip
- “AI” bots that try to have deep conversations—most B2B buyers just want answers and to talk to a real person
- Over-personalization—using data just because you can isn’t the same as being helpful
- Endless branching—stick to clear, simple paths
Wrap-Up: Launch, Learn, and Get Out of Your Own Way
Launching a good B2B chatbot in Qualified isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to overthink. Start with a clear goal, keep your conversation short, and watch what your real prospects actually do. Use the data, tweak what’s broken, and don’t get sucked into chatbot hype.
Most of all, remember: simple is effective. You can always add more, but you can’t un-complicate a messy bot. Get something live, learn from it, and improve as you go. Your pipeline will thank you.