Most Popular Articles
Advertiser Disclosure
How We Rank Software
The rankings and reviews shown on this website are the opinion of the webmaster. Affiliate links are used on this website to receive compensation from mentioned brands which can influence our rankings and reviews. We do not review every software available in the marketplace. We don't guarantee the accuracy of information shown on this website.
We rank marketing software according to 6 major categories; relevance to category, vendor reputation, ease of use, functionality, pricing & partner program strength. We seek to bring to our audience the most reliable and user friendly software that anybody can use.
Is live chat software worth it
Thinking of investing in a livechat tool? Read this article to find out why it's a great investment.
How to increase sales using live chat software
Learn how to increase conversions through talking to your site users.
15 best practices when using live chat software
There are some things you should and shouldn't do when chatting with website visitors.
What is live chat software
New to this strategy? Read our primer here.
25 Popular Websites That Use Live Chat Software
Look at screenshots of how some of the biggest sites on the web using live chat services.
Related Categories
Market Leader
$16 - $50
Sleek Interface
Feedback and chat stats
Automation & Rules Based
$15 - $60
Multilingual Support
Highly Customization Interface
Real Time Monitoring
Stand Alone Application
$15 - $219
Client Profiling
Custom Interface
Automation & Rules Based
CRM Integration
100% Free Plan
Extensive Integrations
In-depth Analytics
Comprehensive Interface
$0 - $99
Free Plan Available
Integrations & White Label
Robust .NET Software
Javascript API Available
$49 - $139
Rules Based Messaging
Comprehensive Messaging
High Security & Scalability
Enterprise Solution
$0 - $19
Behavioral Triggers
Best Looking Software
Simple, Easy Platform
Multiple Tools For Cheap
$7.20 - $11.40
Good Analytics & Reporting
Advanced Invitation Rules
Device Neutrality
Integrate ChatBot
$0 - $17
Group Chat Capability
Multi-Language
Online & Offline Capability
Fresh Modern Interface
$0 - $14.99
Text & Voice Chat
Deep Customer Insights
CRM Integration
Powerful App Interface
$0 - $99
What is live chat service?
A live chart service is an inventive customer service software that enables real time interaction with visitors. It has several capabilities such as help desk software, live support and web analytics. Live chat has completely revolutionized customer service by taking it to a digital platform as it allows people to use instant messaging to promptly contact customer service when there are issues that need to be resolved.
Apart from customer service, Live Chat is also a powerful marketing and advertising tool that has a widespread outreach. Live Chat can come in handy in the following situations;
· For e-commerce firms that sell most of their products online and need to give their clients an easy way to have issues addressed immediately.
· Live Chat can come in handy for startups that are trying to create online visibility and want to reach out to potential customers. Through live chat such start-ups can advertise products to interested customers and have a chance to market their brand.
· Live Chat is arguably the most efficient way to give customers unsurpassed customer service online. Most businesses have decided to use Live Chat as a customer service tool because of its convenience and numerous advantages.
Why use a live chat service?
Live chat has totally revolutionized customer care by providing an online platform that enables potential customers to easily communicate with a business. Here is brief but detailed rundown of the benefits that Live Chat can have if utilized effectively by a business.
1.) Live Chat is convenient for customers as it ensures all their concerns are addressed promptly
According to an exhaustive and reliable study carried out by Forrester Research many customers prefer having their question answered by an actual person and prefer websites that are equipped with this feature. Every business aimed at longevity and consistent growth needs to make customers feel both valued and appreciated. An efficient online chat system achieves this flawlessly by ensuring that all consumer issues are dealt with promptly. A satisfied consumer is the easiest way to establish brand loyalty and retain it. An extensive ATG Global Consumer Trend study ascertained that customers who encountered helpful and friendly chat representatives became repeat buyers 63% of the time.
2.) Live Chat significantly reduces daily operation costs of a business
Maintaining a purely manual customer care system makes a business incur expensive phone charges and requires more employees compared to e-marketing. Some significant savings that a business can make by using Live Chat include:
· Live Chat significantly cuts down contact centre costs
· Live Chat creates efficiency by allowing customer care personnel to handle several customer issues simultaneously. Consequently, this will reduce the number of personnel employed therefore reducing labor costs.
3.) When effectively used Live Chat significantly boosts sales
Live Chat has the potential to significantly increase sales by ensuring that every customer complaint is addressed promptly and every issue is handled with utmost precision. A study by Forbes Magazine has unequivocally ascertained that high customer satisfaction is the most reliable way of boosting sales. For Live Chat to boost sales, the customer Care personnel team should be trained on how to handle customers’ issues in a professional but friendly way. The customer should feel like they are talking to an experienced and knowledgeable person who is respectful and helpful.
4.) If effectively used live chat has the potential of giving a business an edge over its competitors
In the current business world where online visibility is key, a business has to go the extra mile to ensure it has a competitive edge. This extra mile can be investing in a reliable Live Chat system that ensures customers’ issues are resolved promptly. With so many feasible options, the only chance a business has to counter competition is having an excellent online chat system that is specifically tailored to create and retain consumer loyalty.
5.) Live Chat is indispensable in building a solid reputation online
Digital marketing and advertising is can be extremely unproductive if a business has no way of communicating directly to its customers through Live Chat. By effectively using Live Chart a business can turn a customer’s frustration into an opportunity to get a new customer. Through Live Chat a customer’s issues are addressed immediately and furthermore a chat representative can use this chance to find out what customers want.
What to look for in a live chat service?
1.) Ability to allow simultaneous chatting with multiple visitors
For a Live Chat service to be effective it has to enable one chat representative to chat with several visitors concurrently. This makes it easy to address the same complaints simultaneously and reduces long queues that are annoying to many consumers.
2.) A great Live Chat service should maintain adequate visitor information
To enable personalized connection and give the chat representative a general overview of a visitor, it is necessary to have a Live Chart software that maintains records such as the IP Address.
3.) A good Live Chat service should have the ability to view statistics
It is essential to go for a Live Chat service that maintains an accurate account of all visitor statistics such as number of chats and number of chats done by each chat representative. This information will come in handy when the business is trying to ascertain the effectiveness of a Live Chat service and to help determine ROI.
4.) Analyze the analytical reports
Ensure you choose a Live Chat service that has the ability to show who is interacting with the company and also monitor the complaints that are common or products that are most talked about. This helps a business to identify areas that require improvements and the most popular services.
5.) Choose a Live Chat service that is compatible with a variety of operating systems
To ensure that your Live Chat service is available to all customers, it has to have the ability to be accessed by many operating softwares. This makes it easily accessible and convenient for all persons who may wish to use it.
6.) Ensure that you go for a Live Chat service that has easy mobile access
Most people use their Smartphones for all digital tasks; therefore it is imperative to settle for a Live Chart service that can easily be used on mobile phones.
7.) Settle on a Live Chat service that features pre-type messages
A good Live Chat service should feature pre-typed messages to give chat representatives an easy time when dealing with more than one visitor simultaneously.
8.) Settle on Live Chat service that features an auto-chat Invitation
An auto chat invitation informs customers that there is an easy way to ensure that their issues are resolved through easily reaching out to a chat representative.
9.) An ideal Live Chat service should feature conversion metrics
The reason for using a web chat service is to give customers excellent service in the hopes of increasing sales. It is therefore advisable to settle on a Live Chat service that tracks the happenings after a chat. This will help ascertain whether a live Chat having boosting productivity.
10.) Provide real-time visitor information
This will enable a chat representative to know the number of visitors waiting in the queue and plan on how to effectively serve all of them.
11.) Go for a service that is equipped with screen capture & sharing
It is essential to choose a Live Chat server that is equipped with screen capture and sharing. This will enable easy communication between the chat representative and the visitor as screen shots containing vital information can easily be shared.
12.) Choose a webchat service that is equipped with social media integration
In order to reach a wide variety of customers and be available to a larger base of potential consumers, a business should settle for a service that has powerful social media integrations.
Livechat services strategies, tips and tricks
As outlined above Live Chat is a viable business solution that has numerous benefits. However, these benefits can only be actualized if Live Chat is executed appropriately. Here are indispensable strategies that will undoubtedly ensure a business gains optimally from using a live support service.
· Train personnel
For Live Chat to be well executed the chat representatives have to be extremely knowledgeable on both website navigation and inventory. It is recommended by experts that chat representatives should go through a rigorous and thorough training program that enables them master all the intricacies of using the software in question. It is also advisable for a business to come up with cheat sheets to help chat representatives answer customer questions quickly and appropriately. Well trained personnel will ensure that a business optimally benefits from using Live Chat.
· Desist from using communication methods that are too robotic
The entire idea of using the Live Chat software is to give customers an actual human who is friendly, warm and knowledgeable. Implementing the use of greetings and responses that are too robotic undermines the whole purpose of a Live Chat. Instead responses should be tailored in such a way that they are humane, warm and friendly. Every visitor is different and has a unique problem therefore robotic communication will be unproductive.
· A business should ensure that all the connections are personalized
Nothing makes a customer feel more valued and appreciated than being recognized. This is why many people have a favorite coffee shop. Consumers feel comfortable purchasing from buyers who recognize because of a sense of trust and belonging. Live Chat can run with this concept by using a variety of tactics to personalize connections such as analyzing past purchases, giving customers options that are specifically suited to their needs based on their IP addresses. Add a humane touch to the Live Chat session by attaching the photograph of the chat representative. If it is possible to address the visitor by name then this would be an added advantage.
· Employ an expert to develop the right set of metrics to efficiently measure ROI
It is imperative to ascertain whether a Live Chat software put in place achieves the desired results. Hire an expert to measure the following aspects of a Live Chat software. Some necessary measurements include determining the customer satisfaction rate to determine the success of chat sessions. Essentially, measuring how productive a Live Chat system is ensures that the business does not invest wastefully and ensures that changes are made to increase effectiveness.
· Provide your Customers with features that ensure they optimally benefit from chat sessions
To ensure that the Live Chat sessions maximally benefit customers, offer them user friendly features such as the ability to enlarge font size and access to a transcript of the entire chat. Additionally, follow up with customers through email to ensure that all the problems they were encountering are fully resolved. Customers will seek for other options if you don’t make provisions to make a Live Chat service use friendly.
Top 10 Best Live Chat Services Compared
If you want to increase your website conversion rates, then installing a good live chat service is one of the quickest ways to do this. Within minutes and with no coding experience you can have a livechat popup box appear on your site. Sign up with one of the web chat services below then paste some code on your site to begin. Sometimes all your visitors need is to know somebody is there and a quick question or two answered before purchasing your product.
