Today’s customers expect businesses to be available and responsive when – and how – they choose, which is why it’s imperative that your customer experience strategy include omni-channel support. While the telephone used to be the winner in this category, live chat has garnered increasingly higher satisfaction rates over the past several years.
In fact, research by the Aberdeen Group found that live chat was the preferred method of communication for online shoppers when compared to other communication methods. A Forrester Research study found that 65 percent of American customers engage in live chats before they make an online purchase, while 44 percent of online consumers say having questions answered by a live person while in the middle of a purchase is one of the most important features a Web site can offer.
According to CH Consulting Group’s Allen Kruse, now is the time for businesses to embrace live chat for three main reasons:
Customer Confidence
Live chat makes it easy and convenient for customers to find answers instantaneously. “Easy,” “convenient” and “instantaneous” all contribute to customer confidence. In other words, by providing instant access to sales people and support staff via your website, you increase confidence in your company, not only as a vendor, but also as a source of knowledge and expertise.
Customer Convenience
Live chat makes it easy for customers to do business with you, and customers reward things like convenient support with repeat sales and loyalty. In fact, customer experience is beginning to eclipse both product quality and price as the differentiating factor when it comes to consumer purchases. According to a Harris Interactive study conducted on behalf of Verint Systems, 88 percent of customers prefer doing business with a company that offers quality customer service over a company that has the latest and most innovative products. Furthermore, 69 percent of customers switch brands due to real or perceived poor service, according to a Michaelson & Associates study. “These reports, coupled with the high satisfaction rating of live support make it an integral component in any customer experience strategy,” Kruse says.
Increased Efficiencies
Today, companies are not only expected to provide amazing customer experience as part of day-to-day operations, they have to do so while keeping an eye on the bottom line. Live chat can help solve both challenges. “Technology available today makes live chat a less expensive option than phone support,” Kruse says. What’s more, agents can multi-task to provide support on three or more chats simultaneously. “Chat concurrency can save on personnel costs while providing the easy, convenient support customers expect,” Kruse says.
In the coming years, customer support will continue to emphasize convenience and self-service. “In this global economy, the one thing people know above all else is that they have options,” Kruse says. “The opportunity for a company to have a monopoly on a consumer base is quickly dwindling.”
