In a world where more and more people prefer not to speak on the phone for personal calls ("Just text me") and complain when they can't get someone live on the phone without pressing eight different buttons and being put on hold for 25 minutes ("Representative!") when calling a business, it's clear that the customer service experience matters more now than ever.
When your business goes the extra mile in taking care of customer needs effectively and efficiently, you instantly create a loyal customer willing to bring you return business. In our disconnected (emotionally), overconnected (technology) lives, upping the customer level experience for your clients is must-do to stay ahead of the game.
According to Chatrify Live Chat Software, "More than 76% of visitors need some form of online support while browsing, more than 50% of viewers prefer to get support via live chat and more than 70% of users are satisfied with live chat compared to phone or email." Live chat ensures your customers are more likely to click on the widget on your website to reach out with questions or concerns instead of simply clicking away or closing out in frustration. In a eMarketer article discussing the results of a live chat survey conducted by Bold Software, it was determined that, "Fully 63% of respondents who chatted said they were more likely to return to the site, and 62% reported being more likely to purchase from the site again." It's that word - live - that offers a customer the reassurance his issue will be resolved in real time on his time, right there and then, without having to wait hours or even days for a response. If time is money, live chat pays in gold bricks.
With instantaneous response, live chat allows you to provide more customer satisfaction in the services your business provides with the additional benefit of allowing you to track visitor information. When you know the demographics of exactly who is reaching out to you about what, and can follow the experience, you can use the data you collect to target customer needs with products/services they are likely to use while also uniting and furthering the performance of your own team members acting as agents in live chat situations. Your employees can also multi-task during chat conversations in a way they wouldn't be able to in a call center.
Starting something new can be scary; if ain't broke, don't fix it. But for small businesses looking to increase their customer base, live chat is an investment in which you can build loyalty and grow fans without breaking the bank. Businesses like Chatrify are leading the way by offering a free 14-day trial without even having to put down a credit card, so you can test drive staying ahead of the curve with live chat before making an official commitment.