6 Benefits of Live Chat Software

In today’s digital world, time is everything, and speed reigns as king. We live in a time where processes are expected to happen as quickly as possible. These days we have instant access to new television shows, overnight shipping, and of course information.

Just as consumers can use Google or ask Siri for instant answers, your website visitors also expect that they can instantly communicate with your company. While you may advertise your company’s email or phone number, the fact is that those options are inconvenient, time-consuming, and sometimes frustrating.

The most effective fix to this solution is live chat software. Here’s how offering live chat on your website can benefit visitors, as well as your company.

1. Improved Customer Service

One of the cornerstones of your company’s success is its customer service rating. The more customers appreciate the service you provide them, the more likely they are to become loyal clients to your brand. According to the eDigital Customer Service Benchmark survey, live chat has a 73% customer satisfaction level. This is much higher compared to both email and phone-based support.

Live chat improves customer satisfaction in that it:

• Offers instant answers to questions
• Is easy to use
• Solves problems faster

Offering live chat services on your website also lets customers know that a representative is available if they need help. This improves confidence and trust in your company.

2. Added Convenience Is Good

No matter how great your product or service is, one of the biggest deciders of the success of your company is how easy it is for a customer to do business. By being more accessible to consumers, there’s a lessened risk of frustration and confusion.

With live chat, you offer visitors the ability to instantly communicate with your support staff. When web visitors can conveniently chat with your company, they’re more confident in your brand and see you as a trusted source of support and knowledge.

It all boils down to the fact that live chat makes it much easier to do business with your company.

3. Increased Sales

There are an endless amount of studies that show just how beneficial live chat is in improving company sales. A study conducted by the American Marketing Association found that live chat is able to increase conversions by at least 20%. The same study also found that the average return on investment is around 300% and that customers who use live chat are three times more likely to complete their purchase.

These statistics prove that live chat is not only effective in generating leads, but that it can also be used to make sales and to grow your clientele list. Access to instant support increases your chances of turning a website visitor into a paying customer.

4. Save Money

Businesses of all shapes and sizes are always looking for ways to save money. While phone support is the traditional method for communicating with customers, it can be quite costly. Live chat software costs a little less than a top-notch email provider but is much cheaper than phone support. In fact, a study conducted by Forrester found that live chat customer service can be up to 30% cheaper than phone support.

With live chat support, your customer representatives can multitask. Agents are also able to assist several website visitors at one time, keeping the queue moving and ensuring consumers get timely answers to their questions.

5. Faster Resolutions

We’ve all had that experience when we called a company with a problem, only to be left without a solution after spending hours on the phone or sending dozens of emails back and forth.

A top benefit of live chat is that it allows agents to use existing help documents in order to assist a customer. A customer representative can send a consumer a link to the help center or a document with detailed directions.

This negates the need to provide step by step procedures via email or over the phone, both of which can often become long-winded and confusing. Some live chat software also offers screen sharing capability, which makes troubleshooting complex problems much easier.

6. Competitive Advantage

Doing more and doing better than your competitors is a must. By offering live chat on your website, you have the opportunity to gain a competitive advantage.

Despite the benefits of live chat, not many businesses offer the functionality on their websites. In fact, less than 10% of websites offer live chat. By becoming part of this small percentage, you’re able to differentiate your company from your competitors by offering a highly advantageous line of communication.

Conclusion

With the right live chat software, you can improve your company’s reputation, increase leads, and improve your conversion rates. Keep these benefits in mind if you’re on the fence about adding a live chat feature to your company’s website.

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