How do we deliver the best live website chat service?

Introduction

Research suggests that 79% of companies report positive changes in sales, ROI and customer retention after adding live chat, but some services are much better than others (source). As a business owner, it’s understandable to want to deliver the best possible service for your customers. In this guide, we’ll provide some top tips to help you optimise the performance of live chat solutions on your website.

Tips to deliver the best live website chat service

Most consumers now prefer live chat to other communication channels, but this doesn’t mean that there aren’t issues and complaints. As a company owner, it’s crucial to ensure that your website delivers an excellent website chat service. To improve performance, here are some simple steps to follow:

• Choose an experienced, reliable live chat software provider

The first step to take when looking to improve the chat service you offer your customers is to make sure you choose an experienced, reliable live chat provider. Search for a company that offers outstanding solutions and knowledge of how to utilise live chat to enhance results and outcomes across multiple industries. Software providers should be willing to impart knowledge and offer customised, industry-specific solutions to help every client to deliver the best service.

• Greet visitors quickly

Web users opt for live chat to save time and effort. Almost 80% of consumers favour live chat because it provides instant answers to questions. Greet customers within 20 seconds, offer to help or provide information and let people know that you’re there if they need you or they have a query. Over 80% of customers have shut a chat window because it has taken too long or they have not been satisfied with the response (source). Be prepared to offer a rapid, responsive service for every customer.

• Keep messages short

Live chat is an effective communication channel because it provides an easy, fast way to access information, solve problems or ask questions. If you have live chat on your website, it’s crucial to make sure that you use it effectively. Customers are looking to save time and effort and take advantage of convenience. Be ready to chat, greet users instantly, respond to queries promptly and keep responses and messages short. If there are large chunks of text, this can contribute to a lack of clarity and visitors may lose patience and get bored of waiting. Try to make sure that messages are punchy, brief, useful, informative and succinct. If you write long messages, the customer may do the same and this will result in pauses between interactions, which makes the conversation unnatural and stilted. More than 40% of consumers doubt that they will receive the response they are looking for in time when they launch a chat (source).

• Match the tone of the site user

Matching the tone of the customer or site user is an excellent way to build stronger relationships and encourage fluid, natural conversation. Be prepared to adapt and adjust to cater to different clients and types of inquiry. Some people may converse formally while others may be more informal and chatty.

• Keep the customer informed

When you are chatting to a customer or a prospective client, it is hugely beneficial to keep them informed. There may be instances where you can’t provide an instant answer or response. If you need to look up information, for example, let the customer know what you are doing and ensure that they know that they are still connected and you are still there to help and advise them. This will prevent the visitor from shutting the chat down, reducing the risk of losing sales or attracting negative reviews.

• Provide a personalised service

More than 80% of businesses believe that offering a personalised customer experience is important. Personalising your live chat service is a means of enhancing customer relations, improving customer service and setting your business apart from others.

Summary

Businesses can use live chat to provide a better service and experience for their customers, but success is not always guaranteed. To optimise performance and deliver results, it’s wise to choose a software provider with experience and expertise within the relevant industry, provide rapid responses and encourage natural, fluid conversation. Keep responses and messages short, match the tone of the customer if possible and try to provide a personalised, customer-focused live website chat service. For more information and advice, contact Click4Assistance.