Live chat is slowly revolutionizing the online customer care space. Through them, the amount of call and email communications between businesses and customers have dropped significantly, and this has not just increased the quality of care to the customers, but businesses have also recorded an increase in sales from when they implemented a live chat website. It has created an element of instant gratification amongst overly impatient customers. With live chat, there are so many benefits that have come the customer’s way, and as more and more business keep on jumping ship, the features of the chats will keep on being improved, and they will continue working to the advantage of both the customers and the business. With that said, here are some of the reasons why customers tend to prefer live chats:
Saves customers a lot of time
Before the advent of live chat, the only way for customers to get in touch with the businesses was through a phone call or an email. The scope of application of these two made them limiting and inconvenient in a number of ways. For example, not all businesses have a dedicated support staff that works around the clock to guarantee that irrespective of the time you call, you will always get a response. This means that both your calls and emails will not be answered until people get back to the office. However, this is never the case with live chat. With companies that have implemented the technology on their websites, there will always be an agent to get back to customers, and if there are no agents, then there will be chatbots to guide the customer depending on their inquiry. As such, live chat has helped save customers from having to wait for responses, and when the agents are online, they can get to know what they want nearly immediately.
Immediate feedback
In addition to saving customers time by not sending emails or making phone calls at odd hours, one of the most important reasons why customers prefer live chat is because they are guaranteed immediate feedback. It is a fact that the average online user is greatly impatient, and they will not wait around if they don’t find what they are looking for in a website. Some will not even bother to make a phone call or send an email. They will simply move on and check the next website that may be offering what they want. With live chat, however, they may have the patience to stay around for a while because there is an agent on chat willing to help them. The beauty of this is that they will get the answers they want and not necessarily have to navigate to another website.
Quick help in making purchase decisions
With certain types of industries, it is common for customers to get in touch with the business before they go ahead and make the purchase. In most cases, such inquiries are normally channeled through emails or phone calls. As statistics show, a good number who normally end up sending purchase inquiries through emails and phone calls usually don’t end up making their purchases. As noted earlier, the bulk of online users are extremely impatient, and will not hesitate to go to another site if you don’t have what they need. To such customers, it is easier for them to use the live chat to ask whatever questions they may have so that they are well informed when making the purchase. All they have to do is get in touch with the agents online, ask their questions and then make the purchases. As such, both the business and the customer leave happy parties.
Easy access to businesses
Websites with WordPress live chats are mostly mobile-friendly. This implies that customers can access them using their mobile devices such as smartphone and tablets. Though it is possible to send emails from mobile devices, the experience is completely different when done through a live computer or a desktop. With live chat on mobile phones, customers don’t have to send emails, and it blends so well with the current mobile technologies we have. For example, there are so many instant messaging apps which operate nearly in a similar manner as live chat. This makes it a very familiar territory for customers, and they feel it is easier to just chat with the businesses, in the same manner, they usually chat with their friends online. Additionally, since it is on a mobile device, they can reach the businesses irrespective of their locations, provided they have access to the internet. This ease of access to businesses improves the customer experience.
Make customers feel important
It is a fact that lots of customers have huge egos that need to be massaged nearly every time. This is due to the fact that they feel that if they are spending their money, then they need to get real value for what they are spending money on. If a customer can find help every time they need it, this will greatly motivate them, and they can easily turn into very loyal customers. This is exactly what comes with live chat. When a customer sees an agent live on the chats, they get assurance that their questions will be answered promptly and without them having to wait. Again, the fact that there is always someone ready and willing to attend to them in real-time is a great motivation to most customers. It makes them feel special and cared for by the business.
The above are a few reasons why customers like live chat and just as they are important to the customers, live chat is also very important to the business. If you don’t have one, consider a live chat website as soon as possible.