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What is Live Chat And How does Live Chat Works?

what is live chat and how does it works

Live chat is a website-based technology that allows you to connect with visitors in real-time. It’s a time-saving communication tool for both your support agents and your clients. Customers can speak directly with staff from a company’s customer service, technical support, and other departments via live chat. On the website, the live chat software will appear as a pop-up chat window. It allows the company representative and website users to communicate effectively. Live chat software is a fantastic substitute for phone conversations and emails. All that is needed is to type and send a message in the chat box.

If a website’s customer messaging software includes a live chat app, it will normally appear as a little widget in the bottom right-hand corner of the page. Visitors will know whether a company provides live chat assistance by the chat widget that appears in the lower corner of your website. When they click on it a chat box will pop up. They will hear a sound or see a greeting to let them know when a customer service representative is accessible on the live chat. If they need to initiate a chat, open the chat window by clicking on the widget and then input a question. Consumers who visit a company website can use the live chat just like any of their favourite chat programs. They can input text, attach files (for example, if they have a question), and send other files (for example, a video file or photograph to illustrate a fault). They can also use emojis and other graphics if they want to.

How Does Live Chat Work?

The first step is to incorporate the live chat tool into the website. When you have a well-developed live chat software like the one from LiveChat Agent, there is usually no trouble installing it because it includes an installation guide and the team is always available to help out if there are any issues. Remember that the live chat service will be an essential component of the website or contact centre solution. The consumers will not need to download and install any software or mobile apps onto their own devices, as they would with most chatting software.

Live chats take place in a chat box included with the live chat software. This tool is visible in two ways once it has been incorporated into your website, depending on the role of the user:

  • At the front end, visitors will see the widget in the form of a chat window.
  • At the back end, chat agents will see the dashboard which will allow chat agents to manage different chat sessions and alter live chat settings as needed.

Now that everything is set up, the live chat plugin allows company chat agents to speak with website visitors in real-time, allowing them to either wait for customers to get in touch or engage with them right away.

Different Types of Live Chat

Effective conversations to communicate with customers can be learned. It is not rocket science, but understanding what they want to achieve by speaking with you has an impact on the customer and the information brought to the table. This is especially true for live conversations on the internet.

  • Informative Live Chat

The first and most basic sort of live chat is as straightforward as delivering information and answering visitors’ questions. This style of live chat is focused on delivering objective, accurate information that your site visitors can use to make a decision (“How long is the warranty?”) or take action (“How do I change the shipping and billing address?”).

The personnel requirements applied to this form of live chat are basic. Typically, chat agents will have the resources and responses to handle the most typical inquiries. Based on the importance, more complex or unusual questions can be sent to a more senior agent. This form of chat is also ideal for administrative assistants and other employees whose principal responsibilities allow them to conduct simple live chats.

  • Sales Live Chat

Live chats can transition from gathering information to soliciting recommendations at some point. That’s when the conversation turns into a sales live chat. If this occurs regularly on your site, it is an indication that you need to hire live chat professionals who specialize in sales conversations. This is required to ensure that your chat generates qualified leads that can be easily converted to sales.

A sales chat agent will have pretty much the same information as an informational chat agent but will have been trained to assess a prospect’s needs and provide them assistance in selecting the best product for their scenario.

Sales chat agents should ideally have quick access to or understanding of product comparative data. This type of information is crucial for assisting clients in selecting the proper product and ensuring that they are satisfied.

  • Customer Service Live Chat 

This live chat is for both past and current clients. Customer service live chats focus on assisting clients to resolve a problem with their purchase. A highly trained and specialized live chat agent is required to handle such chats as they can get escalated if the customer is not satisfied with the resolutions provided and can even get angry at times.

Client service live chat agents have the maximum information available. This includes everything that an informational and sales live chat agent has and additional information such as customer and order data. These customer care live chat employees additionally should be able to issue refunds and allow returns (or at least request them).

A customer care agent’s role is very crucial and involves more than having the appropriate information to help a disgruntled customer through a difficult issue and bring the matter to a satisfactory conclusion. Because each request may take a long time to resolve, it’s better if your customer care chat employees are allowed to focus solely on customer support.

  • Staffing 

While there are three varieties of live chat, it does not mean that you need to hire three different types of agents. Typically, you need to determine which types of live conversations you’re most likely to handle and then assemble the team. For example, you may not need a dedicated sales or customer care agent if those chats will be a rare exception to the typical informational chat. You just have to provide an escalation protocol so that your informational chat operators can escalate more complicated concerns.

Why do Businesses Need 24*7 Chat Tool?

When customers seek help from a company, they expect that help to be fast. And if your brand fails to match client expectations, you risk losing customers to your competition. To avoid such situations, companies should implement an effective solution. Your company needs live chat software to provide customers with a hearing 24/7. The live chat agents should be well trained to enable them to provide immediate resolutions at their leisure. Furthermore, your operators can actively engage with customers and assist them in making an informed purchase decision. This communication solution can also assist your company capture qualified leads, increasing sales, and improving client loyalty.

In addition, your software is more than just a means of communication. It’s also a good method to start creating a contact database for future marketing campaigns. If you collect information from customers who use your business chat service, you may create a database of people who are already interested in your products or services. You can potentially capture excellent leads if you communicate effectively with them.

Benefits of Live Chat

Is it worthwhile to integrate live chat into your website? Is it truly efficient?

The answer to both is an emphatic “YES”. It’s not only efficient, but it can also help you save money and earn money. According to research, using live chat assistance instead of traditional phone calls can save you between 17 and 30 per cent. While a phone chat agent can only handle one call at a time over the phone, a well-trained and experienced live chat agent can handle multiple chats on this tool.

Yes. Live chat apps are used by thousands of small and medium businesses. Their clients love personalized service and quick responses. However, for many organizations, the prospect of greater revenue is the determining factor. Conversion rates for a business with a live chat have been demonstrated to increase by a ratio of three to five.

  • Conversion rates have improved.
  • Improved sales figures.
  • Targeted marketing.
  • Higher return on investment.
  • Better customer relationship building.
  • Improved customer interactions.
  • More satisfied customers.

How do Customers Appreciate Live Chat?

Here is how your customers appreciate communicating with you via this tool.

  • It’s practical. Customers can access live chat software for websites straight from your website.
  • Customers can obtain the help they need faster than they can with other sorts of support. Email and telephone responses take too long.
  • This tool helps your clients form a better link with your company by increasing efficiency and providing a dependable and friendly approach.
  • It saves time for your customer service representatives. this platform allows you to engage directly with your consumers.
  • Support management becomes less expensive. With customer chat software, you may almost eliminate the costs associated with other methods of service, such as call centres.
  • It allows your customer service to play a more active role in your business by detecting if website users are having problems, using the tool that allows you to track their behaviour. You can then offer assistance proactively.
  • It helps you stand out from the crowd and expand your market reach. Despite the fact that live chat software is becoming a need for high-performing firms, the majority of companies aren’t making the most of it.

How to implement in your business?

Live Chat Pricing

As you can see, live chat software has become a vital support solution for every business owner due to its very useful features, cost efficiency, and a variety of possible benefits. You have to ensure that you make the right choice of live chat solutions, selecting a solution that meets both your business objectives and your budget. Call Tracey at 1800 332 428 to learn more about how our tool can work for you.

Author Details
CEO of Live Chat Agent
Tracey Horey is a 20 year veteran of the Automotive industry and has been writing Automotive content and helping Dealerships optimise their digital space for over 15 years. Her experience working with various sized dealerships and her passion for exploring and understanding new tools for the auto industry has given her an in depth understanding of the challenges all dealerships face in a changing landscape.

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