Economics of Live Chat - Telephone Support vs. Live Support and Online Help

Web customers seek personalized attention. For this purpose some companies provide customer services through call centers, usually post sales. This is a costly undertaking since it requires a substantial amount of personnel and coaching, staff accommodation and maintenance, and is also limited in its service provision capabilities.

Live Chat Support, as opposed to call centers, is economical and much more extensive in approach. A phone operator can only handle one customer at a time, which can drive away those customers who make several, unsuccessful attempts to call. A Live Operator, on the other hand, can handle three to four customers simultaneously, which lowers the number of neglected customers to a large extent. Furthermore, with Live Operators on websites, visitors do not have to get disconnected from the internet to get a query answered. Live Support services are largely preferred to services supplied through other traditional platforms like the telephone, since live operators are fully qualified, thus relieving businesses of the burden of training and employee related expenses associated with telephone operators.

Though online help through emails is an improvement on the telephone support system, it lacks the human element and focused concentration provided through Live Chat. Emails might go unattended or are answered after irritating delays, and as a result the customers either give up or are left dissatisfied. Information given on websites or provided through emails is not what the customer is looking for. Unless the information delivered to them is fast, significant and personal, they might browse to another site. Plus, platforms like telephone support and online help usually serve in post sales.

Website navigation can be complex, cumbersome and more often than not, fruitless. Through Live Chat, on the other hand, visitors can get instantaneous results. Visitors do not even have to click any button. Live Operators initiate the conversation and also act as guides to the visitors, helping them navigate the site. The presence of Live Operators on the website helps prolong visitors’ stay on the website.

These Live Operators qualify web visitors and produce leads by engaging visitors in a conversation. They also reply to their emails regarding products and services and schedule appointments with them. Not only does this provide a much needed human touch to the website, it also develops personal relationships with the customer, hence establishing a loyal customer base in the process.

Live Support is preferred to other channels of communication since visitors get the exact information they are looking for without any effort on their part and also in the least time possible. Assisting visitors in website navigation, generating leads and striving to qualify visitors through interactive communication does not only usually lead to a sale, but also serves as a memorable and pleasant experience for the customer and is an effective visitor retention strategy.

2011-01-03T16:06:19