Chatbot Script Examples: 12 Templates for Small Business

A chatbot script is the set of messages your chat assistant sends at each step of a conversation. A good one greets the visitor, answers the question they came with, and moves them to a next step: a booking, a sale or a person. Below are twelve templates you can copy, sorted by the moment they cover.

The short answer

Keep every message short, answer first, and always offer a way to reach a person. Write one template per common question, not one long flow. Replace the parts in {curly brackets} with your own details.

How a chatbot script is structured

Most good scripts follow the same five steps:

1. 1Greet and say what the bot can help with.
2. 2Find out what they need with one question, not a form.
3. 3Answer from your own information: prices, hours, policies.
4. 4Offer the next step, such as a booking link or a checkout.
5. 5Hand off to a person when the bot can't help, and say how long that takes.

Greeting templates

1. Website greeting

“Hi! I can answer questions about {business}'s services, prices and opening hours, or book you in. What can I help with?”

2. Returning visitor

“Welcome back! Want to pick up where you left off, or ask something new?”

3. After-hours greeting

“We're closed right now. We open again at {time} on {day}. I can still answer most questions and take a message for the team. What do you need?”

Answer templates

4. Pricing question

“{Service} starts at {price}. The exact price depends on {factor}. Would you like a quote, or to book a time?”

5. Opening hours and location

“We're open {days} from {open} to {close}, at {address}. Parking is {parking note}. Anything else I can help with?”

6. Order status

“I can check that for you. What's your order number or the email you ordered with?”

For a full walk-through of order-status questions, see how to cut ‘where is my order?’ tickets.

7. Returns and refunds

“You can return items within {days} days of delivery if they're {condition}. Start a return here: {link}. Want me to explain the steps?”

Next-step templates

8. Booking

“Great. Here are the next free times: {slot 1}, {slot 2} or {slot 3}. Which suits you, or should I show more?”

9. Lead capture

“I can get someone to send you a tailored quote. What's the best email or phone number to reach you on?”

10. Upsell or add-on

“Most customers who book {service} also add {add-on} for {price}. Would you like to add it?”

Handoff and closing templates

11. Handing off to a person

“That's one for our team. I've passed them this conversation so you won't need to repeat yourself. They usually reply within {time}.”

12. Closing

“Glad I could help! If anything else comes up, just message here. Have a good {day/evening}.”

How to write your own script

Start from what customers actually ask, not from what you want to say.

1. 1List your top ten questions. Read your last month of emails, DMs and calls. The same few questions will cover most of them.
2. 2Write the answer first. One or two sentences that a customer could act on. Add the link or price they need.
3. 3Add one next step. A booking link, a product page or an offer to pass them to a person.
4. 4Read it aloud. If it sounds like a form letter, shorten it. Use the words your customers use, not internal names for services.
5. 5Decide when a person takes over. Complaints, refunds over a set amount and anything urgent should reach your team quickly.
6. 6Test it on a friend. Ask them to break it. Every place they get stuck is a template you still need.

Keep the scripts in one shared document so the whole team uses the same wording, and date each change so you know which version is live.

Mistakes that make chatbot scripts fail

• Long messages. People skim chat. Keep each message to two or three sentences.
• No way out. A visitor stuck in a loop leaves. Every path should reach a person.
• Guessing. A wrong price or policy costs more than no answer. If the bot isn't sure, it should say so.
• Forms in disguise. Asking five questions before answering one feels like paperwork.
• Scripts that go stale. Prices and hours change. Review your templates whenever they do.

Do you need a script at all?

A scripted bot only knows the paths you wrote. Every new question needs a new branch. An AI agent works differently: it answers from your own website, documents and FAQs, so it can handle questions nobody scripted.

Evoriqa's agent works that way. You still write the parts that matter, like its greeting, tone and when to hand off, but it answers the rest from your content. When your content doesn't cover something, it says so and passes the conversation to your team with the history attached.

The templates above still help either way. Use them as canned replies for your team, or as examples of the tone you want the agent to use.

Where to go next

• Canned responses generator: ready-to-send replies for email, chat and SMS
• FAQ generator: turn your common questions into an FAQ page
• Deflect repetitive tickets: how an AI agent takes the routine questions
• Evoriqa for businesses: one AI agent for chat, messaging and phone