10 Reasons to Use Live Chat Software
Live chat is the key tool to stimulate customer relationships, but why else should businesses utilise this crucial, yet simple, chat tool?
If you are looking for a way to improve your business website and bridge that gap between customer and commodity, live chat is, no doubt, the missing link. If you are struggling to convert browsers into customers, live chat is something little that can mean a lot. According to Forrester, “live chat leads to a 48% increase in revenue per chat hour and a 40% increase in conversion rate.” But how can a live chat button do so much for your business website? Here are ten reasons live chat software can completely reinvigorate your business.
1. It Saves Money
If you are looking to streamline your expenditure, live chat might be the missing link. How does it do this? It increases the efficiency of the business, as live chat agents can take charge of multiple chats and at the same time. This means that one person can deal with numerous queries compared to a traditional customer service agent that has to focus on one customer at a time. Live chat software is a perfect way to reduce the costs of the help desk centre, regardless of the type of business you are running.
2. It Is Convenient
From the perspective of any customer, real-time conversations are invaluable. Research conducted by Forrester found that 44% of online consumers stated that questions answered by a live agent during an online purchase is one of the most important features of a website. When a customer is looking to get real-time advice, live chat is an incredibly convenient button in the corner of the screen that means they can continue with their purchase while also having a conversation. This is invaluable to a customer who does not want to engage directly with customer service agents, but from the perspective of a business, a live chat is an excellent way to instigate the next stage of the purchasing process as we can provide instant information.
3. It Is a Way to Stand Out
Everybody is in constant competition these days. Many websites have been using live chat to incorporate real-time answers, which ensures the customers don't need to leave the website. A live chat function is invaluable to any size business.
4. Live Chat Increases Conversions and Sales
This is a perfect way to guide a customer through the purchasing process. Therefore, this incorporates confidence in your ability. This means the customers are more likely to spend time on your website, resulting in a positive experience, resulting in a higher than average order value. Many studies have shown that live chat can cause a more than 20% increase in conversion rates.
5. It Is a Way to Provide 24/7 Support
Customer service these days appears to be all about the 24/7 ethic. However, if the business cannot hire agents to cover every aspect of the shift, 24/7 is unrealistic. But now, with chatbots and AI, 24/7 support can be a natural part of your business through the medium of live chat. A company can operate within business hours, and a chatbot can be activated to provide service to customers outside of working hours. As 80% of customer queries are all very similar, you can program a chatbot to answer these questions, providing answers to customers in real-time while also reducing the customer queues during working hours.
6. It Fosters Long Term Customer Relationships
Long-term customers satisfied with your services are less likely to switch to a competitor. Customers who feel they are being taken care of will stay with you. 63% of customers who use live chat come back to your service. Even if you do not provide a competitive cost of services, it has been shown that regular customers who feel their voice is heard are more likely to have a stronger connection to your company and share their experiences, resulting in positive word of mouth.
7. It Is a Great Productivity Tool
Having agents use and live chat rather than telephone services means they can solve multiple customer inquiries simultaneously, significantly reducing the queues and queries. A well-trained customer service advisor who types well and knows how to solve the problem can have a tremendous impact on a company's productivity. Additionally, customer service chat features like canned messages can save a significant amount of time in your customer support.
8. It Provides Real Insight Into Your Customers and Agents’ Activity
Good quality live chat software comes with reports so you can monitor everyone's activities. This real-time data can be invaluable to improve your business. If you can identify the areas where customer enquiries were ignored, you can look to solve this problem, and therefore improve the customer experience.
9. It Improves the Customer Experience With the Brand
Live chat is a perfect way to turn browsers into customers. Someone casually surfing your website may see the chat box pop up and feel inclined to answer the query. This is a very simple but crucial detail that can represent how you engage with your customers and nurture a long-standing relationship.
10. Live Chat Solves Customer Problems Quicker Than Ever
Live chat is a very quick way for customer service agents to send important information to customers through links and attachments. When a customer is looking for a swift resolution to a problem, live chat is a way to provide a variety of rich information. When you compare live chat to a customer service agent explaining a process to someone, where the customer service agent needs to word everything properly, sometimes it is easier to share an article or video to help the customer or client understand the concept, further reducing any confusion.
Live chat software is the perfect way to help customers and customer service agents to get the answers they need quickly. It is a way for businesses to provide 24/7 support when they are not able to, but it can also give you an edge over your competition. Live chat is the little button in the corner of the screen that can boost your business needs far beyond your expectations.