A Complete Guide to Chatbot for Lead Generation

Capturing and qualifying leads have always been at the heart of business growth, but the way companies approach these tasks is changing fast. Traditional methods can’t keep pace with today’s customers, who expect instant, personalized interactions.

Chatbots for lead generation are filling the gap. These AI-powered tools transform the sales funnel by engaging visitors in real time, asking the right questions, and gathering valuable data to hand over to sales teams. Instead of waiting hours or days for a response, prospects get immediate answers, and businesses capture high-quality leads around the clock.

In this guide, you’ll learn what lead-generation chatbots are, why they matter, and how they can transform your sales funnel. We’ll break down the key benefits, walk through how to build one step-by-step, and compare the top chatbot options available today, with a special focus on Jotform AI Agents, no-code solutions designed to make automated lead capture simple and effective. 

But let’s first answer the question, What is a chatbot?

What is a lead-generation chatbot?

A lead-generation chatbot is more than a friendly pop-up on your website. It’s a smart digital assistant built to turn casual visitors into qualified prospects. Instead of waiting for someone to fill out a static form, chatbots initiate real-time conversations, guiding users with tailored questions and providing helpful responses along the way.

There are a few types of chatbots in this area, each with its own strengths:

• Rule-based chatbots follow predefined conversation flows to collect contact details or answer FAQs.
• AI-powered chatbots adapt to user inputs, providing more natural and personalized conversations.
• Hybrid chatbots combine automation with live chat handoff, ensuring prospects can get human assistance when needed.

The real power lies in automation and personalization. Chatbots create a two-way experience that feels human while running entirely in the background. Let’s say a guest visits your site seeking pricing information. Instead of digging through multiple pages, they are greeted by your chatbot, who answers their key questions and asks whether they’d like to schedule a demo. The prospect feels supported, and your sales team receives a qualified lead without lifting a finger.

This type of interaction accomplishes two things: It provides potential customers with the instant, personalized experience they expect and enables businesses to gather the data they need to vet their leads. 

Benefits of using lead-generation chatbots for business

Now that we’ve defined what lead-generation chatbots are and how they work, consider why so many businesses are adopting them:

• Instant engagement, anytime: Chatbots respond the moment a visitor lands on your site, keeping prospects from slipping away and being available 24-7.
• Smarter lead qualification: By asking targeted questions, chatbots quickly identify high-intent prospects, allowing sales teams to focus their efforts where they matter most.
• Less busywork for sales teams: Routine tasks (such as answering FAQs, collecting contact info, and booking meetings) run automatically, freeing your team to focus on closing deals.
• Personalized experiences: Chatbots adapt based on a user’s behavior and responses, creating a tailored journey that fosters trust and increases satisfaction.
• Seamless integrations: Many chatbots connect with CRMs, email marketing platforms, scheduling tools, and analytics systems, making it easy to capture, track, and act on lead data.

These benefits make chatbots a powerful tool; however, your results depend on how you set them up. The good news is that building one is easier than you might think, especially with services like Jotform AI Agents.

How to build a lead-generation chatbot

Ready to take advantage of these benefits? With Jotform AI Agents, creating a customizable lead-generation chatbot is straightforward and requires no coding. Here’s how to get started:

1. Go to your Workspace.

Log in to your Jotform workspace, and click on Create on the top left corner. This is your central hub for creating your assets.

2. Create your AI agent.

Click on AI Agent button to begin.

You can;

• Build it from scratch by mapping out custom conversation flows
• Use an existing lead-capture form to power your chatbot’s data collection
• Choose a ready-to-use, customizable template, such as the Sales Lead Generation AI Agent

3. Select the chatbot channel.

Pick the Chatbot channel to launch your AI agent as a conversational widget on your website. Jotform also supports additional channels like phone, voice, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger for multichannel engagement.

4. Customize your chatbot’s look and flow.

Use Jotform’s Agent Designer to align the chatbot’s appearance with your brand. Adjust colors, fonts, and avatars, and refine the conversation flow with conditional logic that integrates with your lead-qualification process.

5. Train your AI agent.

Engage with your chatbot to refine its responses and improve its performance. Upload FAQs, PDFs, URLs, and sales materials to expand its knowledge base. The AI agent learns from interactions over time, becoming more accurate and personalized.

6. Integrate and launch your chatbot.

Connect your chatbot to tools you already use, such as your CRM, email marketing software, and scheduling platforms. Once integrated, launch it on your site or preferred channel to start capturing leads.

7. Monitor and optimize your new assistant.

Check your chatbot’s performance through the Jotform dashboard. Review conversations, track lead quality, and update your AI agent regularly to improve engagement and conversion rates.

Top 7 AI lead-generation chatbots in 2025

The market for AI-powered chatbots has grown rapidly, giving businesses plenty of options to capture and qualify leads. From no-code platforms to enterprise-grade solutions, today’s tools make it easier to engage prospects and guide them through the sales funnel. Here are seven of the best AI chatbots to consider in 2025:

1. Jotform AI Agents

Jotform AI Agents stand out as flexible and user-friendly solutions for teams that want to automate lead generation but aren’t interested in learning how to code. What sets Jotform apart is its ability to blend conversational AI with powerful form and data management functions.

Key features

• Real-time engagement: Jotform AI Agents greet visitors, answer questions, and collect information through natural conversations. The agent creates a personalized experience that feels less like filling out a form and more like chatting with a helpful assistant.
• Intelligent data collection: Every interaction feeds into Jotform’s ecosystem, where data can be validated, organized, and seamlessly integrated with your CRM or email marketing platform.
• Multichannel support: In addition to chatting on your website, Jotform AI Agents can engage through email, phone calls, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger, giving you more ways to reach prospects.
• Voice-enabled interactions: For businesses that want hands-free engagement, Jotform supports voice chat, making it easier to connect in different contexts.
• Customizable workflows: With Jotform’s Agent Designer, businesses can tailor chatbot behavior, appearance, and conversation flow to match their brand voice and lead-qualification criteria.

Getting started is simple, thanks to Jotform’s ready-to-use chatbot templates. Options like the Sales Lead Generation AI Agent or Lead Generating AI Agent let businesses launch in minutes and customize as needed. This balance across speed, flexibility, and integration makes Jotform AI Agents the most comprehensive solutions for lead capture in 2025.

2. Drift

Drift is a well-known conversational marketing platform designed to help B2B companies generate and qualify leads in real-time. Its chatbots go beyond simple Q&A by asking targeted questions, capturing visitor intent, and booking meetings with sales reps seamlessly.

Key features

• Conversational lead qualification: Drift bots guide prospects with personalized questions that determine interest level, budget, and readiness, ensuring sales teams focus on the right leads.
• Meeting scheduling: High-value prospects can book time with a sales rep through integrated calendar tools, reducing friction in the buyer’s journey.
• Advanced routing: Leads are automatically connected to the right account executive or team, based on predefined rules, so no opportunities are missed.
• Personalization tools: Drift leverages company data and behavioral data to deliver relevant, customized conversations that improve engagement.

Drift’s strength lies in its focus on revenue acceleration for enterprise and mid-market businesses. It’s best suited for companies that have complex sales cycles and need a chatbot not only to capture leads but also to move them closer to a purchase decision.

3. Intercom

Intercom is a customer communication platform that blends live chat, automation, and customer support features with powerful lead-generation capabilities. Its chatbots engage visitors the moment they arrive, capturing contact details, qualifying them, and handing off the inquiry to a human rep when needed.

Key features

• Proactive engagement: Intercom bots can trigger conversations based on visitor behavior, such as time spent on a page or specific actions, making outreach timely and relevant.
• Lead capture and qualification: Chatbots ask tailored questions, collect key details, and automatically tag or segment leads for follow-up in your CRM.
• Seamless handoff: When a prospect requires more in-depth support, the chatbot directs the conversation to the appropriate sales or support representative without disrupting the user experience.
• Personalization tools: Businesses can customize conversations with variables such as location, industry, and past interactions, ensuring that every customer feels like they have your undivided attention.

Because Intercom combines sales, support, and engagement in a single platform, it’s a strong choice for businesses that want an all-in-one solution rather than multiple tools. Its versatility makes it especially valuable for SaaS companies and service providers looking to grow and support their customer base.

4. HubSpot’s AI chatbot

HubSpot’s chatbot builder is part of its all-in-one CRM and marketing ecosystem, which gives HubSpot customers a straightforward way to generate leads without relying on third-party tools. Designed for ease of use, it helps teams automate conversations, qualify prospects, and connect visitors directly to sales reps.

Key features

• Built-in CRM integration: Every interaction is automatically logged in HubSpot’s CRM, ensuring lead data is tracked and accessible across marketing, sales, and service teams.
• Custom conversation flows: Users can create branching dialogues that answer FAQs, gather information, or route prospects to the right person based on responses.
• Meeting scheduling: The chatbot can sync with calendars to book calls or demos on the spot, minimizing obstacles in the buyer’s journey.
• Personalized experiences: Since the bot runs within HubSpot, it can use CRM data, such as contact history or life cycle stage, to tailor interactions.

HubSpot’s chatbot builder is an ideal fit for businesses already invested in the HubSpot ecosystem. Its native integration and easy setup make it especially appealing to small and midsize teams that want to consolidate lead generation, marketing, and CRM tools in one platform.

5. Tidio

Tidio is a popular choice for small and midsize businesses seeking an affordable yet powerful chatbot solution. Known for its simplicity, Tidio helps companies capture leads, provide instant support, and manage conversations across multiple channels.

Key features

• AI-powered lead capture: Tidio chatbots engage visitors, answer common questions, and collect contact details in real time.
• Multichannel communication: Businesses can use Tidio’s dashboard to manage chats on their website, email, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram.
• E-commerce integrations: With native connections to Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce, Tidio is especially valuable for online stores that want to convert visitors into buyers.
• Automation templates: Prebuilt workflows (such as abandoned cart reminders and product recommendations) make setup fast and effective.

Tidio is best suited for smaller teams looking for a budget-friendly chatbot that’s easy to launch and maintain. With its intuitive interface and strong e-commerce focus, it delivers quick wins for businesses seeking to improve conversions without a heavy technical investment.

6. Chatbase

Chatbase positions itself as one of the most accessible chatbot builders for businesses that need a quick and hassle-free way to launch a lead-generation chatbot. Its appeal lies in its simplicity: It strips away the complexity of enterprise-grade platforms while offering core AI attributes.

Key features

• Fast setup: Businesses can launch a chatbot in minutes, without coding or a complex setup.
• Custom knowledge base: You can upload content and link a website to ensure the chatbot provides tailored answers that reflect your brand and product.
• Lead-centric design: Chatbase funnels conversations toward data capture and qualification, ensuring that every interaction contributes to the pipeline.
• Seamless integrations: Chatbase integrates with popular business platforms, helping teams act on leads immediately.

Chatbase is best suited for small to midsize businesses that want an AI chatbot focused on generating leads quickly and effectively and don’t want the steep learning curve or enterprise pricing of bigger platforms.

7. Landbot

Landbot, a no-code chatbot builder, takes a unique approach to lead generation by turning traditional web pages into interactive, conversational experiences. Instead of relying solely on pop-ups or widgets, Landbot allows businesses to design entire landing pages that function like chat flows, creating an engaging and memorable user journey.

Key features

• Conversational landing pages: Landbot allows you to embed chat-style workflows directly into web pages, transforming static forms into interactive conversations that boost completion rates.
• Drag-and-drop builder: Its visual workflow makes it simple to build conditional logic, branching paths, and customized actions without any coding.
• Multichannel support: Beyond being embedded in websites, Landbot can also be launched in chatbots on WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and other messaging apps, offering businesses more ways to reach potential leads.
• User-friendly automation: Features like prequalification questions, FAQ responses, and contact capture ensure that every conversation moves users closer to conversion.

Landbot is best for marketers and growth teams that want to experiment with more creative, campaign-driven lead funnels. By transforming landing pages into conversations, Chatbase goes beyond standard website widgets, helping businesses to stand out among their competitors while keeping the setup simple and visually appealing.

Comparison of top 2025 lead-generation chatbots

Tool	Standout features	Best for	Starting price*
Jotform AI Agents	Real-time engagement, intelligent data collection, multichannel and voice support, customizable workflows, ready-to-use templates	Businesses of all sizes that want a no-code, flexible solution	Free plan available; paid plans start at $39/month
Drift	Conversational qualification, meeting scheduling, advanced routing, company personalization	B2B companies with complex, high-value sales cycles	Custom pricing (enterprise level)
Intercom	Proactive engagement, lead tagging, seamless human handoff, CRM personalization	SaaS and service providers that need sales and support on one platform	Plans start at $39/month
HubSpot’s chatbot builder	Native CRM integration, custom flows, meeting scheduling, CRM-driven personalization	Teams already using HubSpot’s CRM and marketing tools	Free with HubSpot CRM; paid plans start at $9/month
Tidio	AI chatbots, multichannel dashboard, strong e-commerce integrations, automation templates	Small to midsize businesses and e-commerce stores	Free plan available; paid plans start at $29/month
Chatbase	Quick launch, simple training, lead-focused design, affordable pricing	Small to midsize teams that want a lean chatbot solution	Plans start at $40/month
Landbot	Conversational landing pages, visual builder, multichannel launch, flexible integrations	Marketing and growth teams building creative, campaign-driven funnels	Plans start at $30/month

* Pricing reflects publicly available information as of 2025.

Each of these platforms has unique strengths, from Drift’s enterprise-focused routing to Tidio’s e-commerce simplicity. The right choice for you depends on your business size, goals, and existing tech stack. For companies seeking a combination of ease, flexibility, and powerful data management, Jotform AI Agents are the fastest ways to launch an effective lead-generation chatbot.

Ready to automate your lead generation?

Lead-generation chatbots are no longer just a nice-to-have; they’re becoming essential for businesses that want to capture attention and qualify prospects in a fast, personalized way. By engaging visitors instantly, gathering the right information, and automating repetitive tasks, chatbots give sales teams more time to focus on closing deals.

Among the many tools available, Jotform AI Agents stand out for their flexibility, ease of use, and deep integration with Jotform’s form and data ecosystem. With ready-to-use templates and no coding required, businesses of any size can quickly launch a chatbot that works around the clock to grow their pipeline.

If you’re ready to take the next step, explore Jotform’s AI chatbot templates, and start automating your lead generation today.