Live chat is still a relatively new and under utilised tool, but more and more websites are now capitalising on live chat support systems. Time is money, and timing is everything when it comes to sales. With this said, it is extremely important to reach the customer at the right time, with the right message. Live chat ultimately comes down to customer service and quality customer service is crucial for the long-term success of your business. By constantly providing a memorable and worthwhile experience, your existing customers will help grow your customer base on your behalf and become your most vocal advocates. MLK Marketing explores some of the rewarding benefits live chat can create for your business.
We have all come across a live chat window at some point of our online browsing. How many times have you jumped onto a website, needed help, wanted a quick answer and could not find what you were after? Live chat is a web service which allows businesses to communicate with visitors in real time and adds a human element to a website. It is one of the most dynamic methods your business can use to connect with your customers. Your customers’ questions and concerns can be answered before, during, and after they have made a purchase.
Live chat is so important and can effectively improve your business. It is a powerful marketing and sales tool where you can engage with your visitors and start a relationship with them when they are most interested in learning more about your business. With live chat, you can cater to the needs of your existing and potential customers. While some of the benefits of live chat may seem obvious, others may not be.
Real Time Convenience
One of the most prominent benefits of live chat is the convenience it offers for customers. Your website visitors have instant access to sales and support staff. In this fast paced world, customers want information now and they demand superior service and support in exchange for their ongoing loyalty. With live chat, your visitors do not need to leave the page in order to look around for help on the phone or email. This added convenience helps build strong relationships with your customers leaving them satisfied with your level of customer service. Furthermore, your customers become more confident in your company as a valuable source of knowledge and support.
Wait times are often much less with live chat and your customers can even multi-task while waiting, making the experience more satisfying. Give your website visitors all the information they need about your products or services in an efficient and fast manner. You can also switch off your live chat if you are away and turn it into a contact form, which is much more convenient than listening to unavailable phone lines after operating hours.
Cut Down Expenses
Simply implementing a live chat support service on your website is not an expensive endeavour to begin with, and over time you will see the difference it can make to your overall expenses. The cost to add live chat to your website varies from business to business, but they are more affordable than you think. Live chat is cost-efficient as it significantly reduces your operating expenses and offers savings to your business. It can save on both employee task time and phone expenses. With your employees spending less time on the phone, they can also multi-task and conduct multiple chat sessions at once during chat conversations, cutting down waiting time. Live chat keeps cost per contact low as the time that each chat takes is significantly lower when in comparison to phone support.
Phone support is the traditional method of contact but it can be very costly, especially if your staff are spending a lot of time on the phone to one customer (lengthening the waiting queue). Phone support consists of both toll charges and person per hour costs and by reducing the number of phone calls, it will decrease your phone expenses. It can reduce or even completely replace your need for phone support. Waiting on hold on the phone for a support staff can easily put off and annoy customers which can decrease your conversion rates. If you appropriately manage your staff with live chat, there should be very little or no waiting time. Furthermore, live chat ultimately boosts your company’s productivity.
Increase Sales and Conversion Rates
This is probably what you have been waiting to hear. Live chat increases sales. When you engage with your visitors in their time of need, you can immediately provide assistance and eliminate waiting times by walking them through a sale if they are confused. Giving your visitors the help they need can make or break a sale. Each visitor will feel valued and will create a good impression on your business when they use your live chat. Live chat helps reduce visitors from clicking away from your website and ensures that full shopping carts make it through check out.
You can turn visitors to customers by building their trust and confidence in your business. This has been proven to increase sales and conversion rates. Just like in a real, physical store, you are more likely to convert a visitor into a customer if you talk to them and offer help. Online is no different. Since questions are answered much more quickly with live chat, customers will feel more confident and tend to spend more than customers who do not use your live chat. When you provide a personal and direct communication channel, your employees can offer more opportunities to customers and potential customers. Do not let your website visitors bounce off your pages and offer them instant help to ensure you secure the sale the first time around.
Stand Out From The Crowd
The amount of competitors you may have can be overwhelming, however with live chat; it gives you an edge on your competition. Even though more businesses are using live chat, there are still a countless number of businesses that do not offer this service. You can differentiate your company from others and focus on addressing the needs of your website visitors in an efficient manner. When you immediately cater to their needs, you can enhance visitors’ website experience at almost every touch point in the buying process. Live chat allows you to captivate your customer by delivering as much value to their experience with your business and products or services.
Customers are more likely to buy off your website if you have live chat because it provides a direct and personal interaction with customers. As a platform, the effectiveness of live chat is enough incentive to start winning over your competition’s customers through continuously improving upon their experience with your business. Using this tool can get you a leg up on your online competition.
Develop Stronger Customer Relationships
Customer retention and loyalty is critical to the long-term growth and success of your business. Returning customers often spend more and remain a paying customer for a long period of time depending on your industry and the competition. They can refer family and friends and generate positive word of mouth. By utilising a live chat support system, you can foster these long-term relationships because it shows that your business cares about your customers and their input.
Customer service is becoming more and more important to keep up with the ever changing demands of customers. If your business does not put the needs of your customers as a priority, then you are not likely to succeed in the future. Engaging your website visitors can be difficult, but having live chat can easily engage them when they see an automated greeting or a proactive chat invitation. Customers are now more influential than ever, especially in the online world. With tools like live chat, you can involve your customers in the process and hear their input in real time. In the end, your customers are more likely to have a stronger and deeper connection to your business when they feel that their voice is heard and when they can chat with a person behind the company.
Discover Customer Pain Points
With live chat, your business can tap into customer pain points. Customer pain points are a customer’s frustration and problem that has not been solved or a need that has not been addressed and fulfilled. With traditional support systems such as phone calls or emails, it can be difficult to know the pain points of your customers. Live chat offers immediate access to your customer’s pain point and your representatives can receive instant feedback to improve your company’s products or services. In addition, customer pain points can turn into sales opportunities if resolved appropriately by your support staff.
Discovering pain points will allow your support staff to resolve your customer’s problems faster leaving them more satisfied with your customer service. Live chat also allows your support agents to easily send your customers with useful links or documents to help solve problems. This is something you cannot do with phone support and will save your staff a lot of time resolving problems on the spot.
