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Guest Blog: Things to Consider Before Buying a Live Chat Software

This week we feature an article by Jason Grills who discusses the importance of integrating an effective customer support system and how to decide upon live chat software for your organization. – Shep Hyken “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning” – Bill Gates, Microsoft Founder. Every business aims to delight their customers. […]

This week we feature an article by Jason Grills who discusses the importance of integrating an effective customer support system and how to decide upon live chat software for your organization. – Shep Hyken

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning”Bill Gates, Microsoft Founder.

Every business aims to delight their customers. But do they always succeed in making their customers happy? Probably not.

There are times when customers come looking for an answer. Reason? Can be many. Some aren’t comfortable with the interface, some don’t understand the product well and need help, while others aren’t satisfied with the support services. This may sound harsh. But this is what you need to improve your existing products or services further.

So, what’s your next move? You’d probably try to reach out to them. Try inspecting all features or services that are responsible for hampering their user experience. This is where you need to ask yourself again, how do I go about this process?

The answer is simple. You need to integrate an effective customer support system, like a live chat software, to know your customers better. It can help your organization gain better benefits.

Benefits of Live Chat Integration

A live chat can help an organization learn what all areas it needs to improve and build a product/service that matches the needs of their customers. Other than that, there are many other benefits that are convincing enough for a business to invest in a live chat software.

Let’s take a look at some of the many benefits in detail.

1. Boosts Your Sales and Conversions

One of the major benefits your organization can reap from the use a live chat software is an increase in sales and conversions.

According to the American Market Association, 20% increase in conversions, on an average, was noted by B2B companies that use a live chat tool at their website.

That’s quite an outcome that shouldn’t be missed.

Website visitors are bound to raise questions about a particular product or service. Most won’t pick their phones to call your support agents and know the product in detail. This is when organizations need to provide instant help to stay market relevant. And, live chat tool gives you an opportunity to help visitors overcome their suspicions about your services and reach a purchasing decision.

2. Strengthens A Buyer’s Trust

Unlike a retail store, it is hard to build a rapport with visitors through an online platform. But with a live chat software, that too is made possible.

You can put a customer’s skeptical outlook at bay by having a direct conversation through the tool. It helps you build trust, and shorten the gap between offline and online purchases. This is well supported by a study from Oracle. According to the Global Consumer Trends, 90% of consumers expressed how a live chat button gives them the boost, confidence to approach an online platform and know the product better.

3. Increases Customer Satisfaction Ratings

Satisfying customer experience is what your target audience looks for when planning to approach you. You can go for email or call support. But what’ll help you maintain your customer satisfaction ratings is the use of live chat software.

As per eDigital’s study, live chat is known to provide maximum customer satisfaction, with 73%, as compared to any customer service channel. This is because customers receive instant and personalized answers that’ll keep them glued to an organization’s services.

Besides this, you can also stay in constant touch with your website visitors and retain them as customers. In short, these benefits are convincing enough to buy live chat software.

But hold on. You can’t just buy any live chat software and integrate it into your website. It’s not just money but also your customers’ satisfaction level at stake. Don’t make a hasty decision while exploring various options available in the market.

In case you aren’t familiar with the factors that need to be considered before buying a live chat software, then the guide below can help you know them better.

Guide to Buying the Best Live Chat Software

Before finalizing an option, it is essential for you to understand your organization’s needs. There are various things you’d like to monitor and keep a track of regularly. Let’s take a look at them.

  • Monitor website visitors in real-time
  • Track your support agent’s performance
  • Increase lead generation
  • Boost overall sales
  • Monitor cart abandonment
  • Monitor support costs
  • Track real-time conversation and interrupt at any point that needs you to be present

While keeping these pointers in mind, you’ll have to search for a live chat software that helps you handle them all in one go. There are various options available in the market. So, choosing the right one can become a hassle. This is where live chat comparison technique will come in handy.

Short-listing is a tiresome task but not an impossible one to achieve. So, ensure that all the options at hand are compared on some of the following basis stated below.

Don’t Burn a Hole in Your Pocket!

Even though we live in a market that offers us many options in one go, still you’d be confused on “where to start?” point. This is where you first need to consider your budget.

No doubt you’re in need of live chat platform that helps you tackle all customer queries with efficiency. But never overlook your budget constraints. Look for live chat plans that fit within your budget. Once the growth is on roll, you can always think of shifting on to a better plan that gives you access to all premium features too.

So, never forget to compare live chat pricing before reaching a conclusion.

One That Meets Your Business’s Expectations

As discussed above, there are certain aspects that you’d like to monitor. For this, it is important that you invest in a live chat tool that has all those features and covers all your concerns easily. So, ensure to compare them all on the basis of their features.

Some common features that you’d find in a customer support software include:

  • Canned responses
  • Monitors client feedbacks and ratings
  • Comes with multilingual chat, therefore breaking language barriers
  • Track’s individual operator’s performance
  • Great to record offline messages
  • Chat window can easily be customized
  • Readymade templates for creating a custom chat box
  • Anytime, anywhere access to a mobile application
  • Boosts real-time communication

These in return help a business boost its sales and conversions. Therefore, proving to be a beneficial addition to the customer support system.

Client Reviews Do Matter

No doubt that signing up for a 15-days, no obligation trial may prove beneficial for you to know the product better. This will help you explore the product and understand whether it fits your needs or not.

In case you aren’t able to spare that time, try reading client reviews. They would help you get a better insight into what to expect from the product. Some even discuss all issues they’ve faced before getting the set-up done, while they were using the software, and how well does the customer support agents have helped them resolve their questions.

Such an insight is essential before you decide on purchasing its plan for the month.

Let’s Sum It Up…

Choosing a live chat software is sure a mind-boggling task for many, and especially for newbies in the market. That’s why, before buying the tool, it is important that you consider all the necessary factors in detail.

From price comparison to client reviews on the product, make sure you leave no room for doubt. Even compare the features of all the available options in the market. This will definitely make your task of buying a live support chat software simple.

In case, you still have queries related to a specific product after working through the guide then always sign-up for the product. There are many tools that allow you to sign-up for a specific period and explore all the features in detail. Not only does this give you a better insight into the live chat tool but also helps you make an affirmative decision on which tool is better.

Jason Grills is a Sr. Technical Writer currently associated with ProProfs Chat. He enjoys writing about emerging customer support products, trends in the customer support industry and the financial impacts of using such tools. In his spare time, Jason likes traveling extensively to learn about new cultures and traditions.

For more articles from Shep Hyken and his guest contributors go to customerserviceblog.com.

Read Shep’s latest Forbes Articles: What Does The Merger Of Sprint And T-Mobile Mean For Customers?

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