5 Reasons Live Chat Is the Lifeline of Customer Service

Top-quality customer service is integral to business success. If consumers are satisfied with the support you give them, they will keep coming back. This kind of loyalty means recurring conversions without the need to invest in new lead generation.

Additionally, these happy and loyal customers are more likely to share positive testimonials and be powerful advocates for your business. You save even more money on lead generation because your existing clients generate new leads for you. This type of word-of-mouth marketing is notoriously valuable.

On the flip side, dissatisfied customers are more likely to share their negative experiences, hurting the overall business reputation. Poor customer service is one of the top reasons that small businesses lose money. Given these consequences, there’s no excuse not to invest in your company’s customer service.

One way to ensure a positive consumer experience is to implement live chat for customer service.

The Evolution of Live Chat Technology

Chatbot technology has improved immensely. In the past, bots did little more than greet the user and provide a link to alternative support resources, like an email address or phone number. Thanks to advances in artificial intelligence technology, today’s chatbots are faster, smarter, and more responsive.

Chatbot tech has become so advanced that healthcare professionals and IT experts can develop a useful chatbot to perform a COVID-19 risk assessment. Although the tool can’t replace a physician or nurse’s role, it helps take some of the burden off overloaded healthcare professionals by serving as a first point-of-contact for worried patients.

5 Benefits of Live Chat for Customer Service

Those who may have doubted the effectiveness of modern chatbots can rest easy. If AI-driven tech can prove useful in the healthcare field, it can surely handle B2B customer service tasks.

Here’s why live chat is so useful for customer service.

1. Speed Up Customer Response Time

Modern consumers crave immediacy and don’t want to wait on a telephone line. A live chat ensures a fast response time. A useful bot can offer immediate answers to customer queries, streamlining customer service and enhancing user efficiency.

Fast customer service is also a matter of convenience. Consumers can have issues resolved quickly and then get on with their busy days. There’s no need to go to the trouble of picking up the phone or sending an email and waiting for a reply.

2. Increase Conversions and Boost Sales

When you speed up customer response time, you are going to increase conversion rates. For example, a customer is on the verge of buying a product or service but has a question they want to ask before committing. If a chatbot can answer that query promptly, the customer is likely to make a buying decision.

However, if the customer has to call a phone number or send an email (and wait for a reply), they may look for the product or service elsewhere because they don’t want to put off their purchase. You’ve lost a lead – and that customer will likely never return.

3. Alleviate the Burden on Customer Service Teams

Live chat for customer service is an ideal first defense line if a consumer has complaints or queries. Modern AI allows for chatbots to automatically respond in a targeted manner to various complex requests – you don’t need any human input.

If the situation proves to be more than the bot can handle, a human customer service agent can take over and offer support. Your customer service team is spared the tedium of dealing with basic requests and can focus their energy and efforts on more complex issues. As a company, there is an opportunity to save money on customer service, cutting down on your human resource needs.

4. Make Customer Service Mobile-Friendly

Modern consumers prefer to use smartphones over traditional computers. Recognizing the significant value of mobile, Google prioritizes mobile pages when ranking websites in its search engine results. Listen to what customers want and give them mobile-friendly experiences at every point in the sales funnel, including customer service.

A chatbot can easily be used via mobile devices, creating a mobile-friendly experience your customers will appreciate. A mobile chat app can include extensive features like real-time monitoring, canned responses, and chat histories.

5. Foster Positive Customer Relationships

From decreasing response time to allowing for mobile-friendly service, live chat technology enhances the consumer experience in multiple ways. You foster a strong bond with clients and increase the likelihood that they will become repeat buyers. Both you and your customers win.

A well-designed chatbot that is capable of conversational messaging can make a real impact. These days, people actually feel connected to bots. They turn to chatbots for comfort when they’re searching for answers or information. There is even an annual prize awarded to the most human-like bot. Do it right, and personalized live chat technology can become part of your brand identity.

Improve Customer Experience with Live Chat Technology

Televerde is a global sales and marketing services company dedicated to creating more positive customer experiences. We can help you harness tools like live chat to nurture customer loyalty. Our wealth of resources and events are designed to boost your overall business success.