| Things to Remember when Implementing Live Chat |
Thinking of implementing Live Chat on your website? There can be scores of things to remember before you take your first step. Here are a few basics from the experts:
| Find the Right Live Chat Service Provider Company |
There are many companies that provide
Live Chat Software but not many that provide Live Chat support Service (that is, humans behind the Screen). A few new
Live Chat Service Provider Companies come up every year but nearly none stick around. Look for a company that has been around for some time with a stable setup and clientele. Do your research; not only online but via phone as well. This should give you a fair idea of the Live Chat market. Make sure the rates the offer are comparable to the quality and class of service they provide before you sign up.
The Live Chat Service Provider should be very professional; you're risking your brand image here.
Be very particular and insistent about this; ask the Business Development Managers or the Sales team of the company you choose to show you a demonstration of Live Chat on a client's website. If they have privacy/legal issues regarding such demos, take a demo on the company's own website; you should have a very good idea then, of what to expect on your own website after implementing Live Chat. Here are some of the typical things you should expect of your Live Chat Service Provider:
- A professional Deployment Team which conducts Interviews with you.
A written Training Manual approved by you prior to commencing the Training Phase, followed by Training and Demos.
- Live Chat Transcripts delivered directly to you in Real Time, without delays and changes.
- The Live Chat Service Provider should be willing to change personnel attending your website on your request and implement any updates quickly (typically within 24 hours) - depending upon complexity of the changes.
- A quarterly Live Chat Service Review and updated version of the Training Manual.
| Know the live Chat Software |
Research the software options available for Live Chat and learn the names and features of some of the major ones when you talk to a Live Chat Service Provider. Ask which software will be used for your website and the key features of that software. Also, remember to ask the efficiency rate of the software that they offer to use for your business. Ask them questions about Browser compatibility of the Live Chat Software.
Remember: Not all software for Live Chat is equally applicable to every website or business model. Experienced personnel from the service provider will be able to expand on this.
| Know (and Train) the Live Chat Agents |
Get to know the Live Chat Agents who will be attending to your website. Talk to them on the phone or better yet, chat with them online (preferably on your won website) and in your own way, evaluate their performance. It is great if the company that you choose draws a Training Manual for the agents and gets it approved by you. But if not so, then train the agents yourself or train the point person who can further train the company's agents for your website; make sure it is the same team of Live Chat Agents always allocated to your website.
| Important Things to Know about a Live Chat |
If you choose to greet your web visitors proactively, then make sure you negotiate an average greet time with the company, that is, the time your agents must wait before approaching the visitors on your website. And since, by now, you would trust your Live Chat Service Provider ask what their experience tells them about greet times.
Make sure the Live Chat Agents are not using too many canned messages or scripts as these seem robotic, and know that there are ‘chat bots’ out there that can confuse anyone. Web visitors do not click on your Live Chat Support button for generic all-purpose answers, but to chat with a real human being who actively participates in the chat session and understands their issues precisely. A Live Chat session should really be that - Live!
Some other concerns:
- The response time of Live Chat Agents must be very good. Multi-tasking is a great feature of Live Chat Support but the web visitor should feel focused on.
- Also ask how the Live Chat Service Provider would provide coverage during unexpected high traffic volumes, off-hours and during holidays. Understand their Resource Allocation Methodology, keeping in mind that it required at least 5 to 8 trained people to provide 16-14 hours of coverage even if you don't have a single visitor come to your website.
- And last, but not the least, is the website Branding. Make sure you choose a Live Chat Service Provider company who is willing to brand their service for you so that it seems synonymous with your website and do negotiate for customization according to your brand identity.
For more information; chat with one of our Live Operators or call 312- 546-4114 to speak to a Business Development Manager.
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