Offering Live Chat Support to Your Ecommerce Customers

You can’t beat talking to a “real” person during an online transaction; this is a fact which is well supported by research and it’s been noted that almost half of people questioned in a recent survey said that the option of live chat made them not only feel more comfortable during a purchase but was also a reason for them to come back again at a later date.Your Q&A page can only answer so many questions….what about the more complex ones? Customers like to speak to someone who acts as the “voice” of the company and this is especially true for older generations who are still becoming used to shopping online. Sending questions via email or via your contact us page is all very well but sometimes people have an issue which needs to be resolved when they are right in the middle of a transaction. Rather than risk losing that sale, it is far more effective to offer a live chat service so that customers can call you to their side as they navigate through their purchases.

Tips to make your live chat feature work for everyone
Live chat is obviously an important feature but how can you make the most of it?

Ensure your team is well trained! This may seem obvious but some companies still don’t thoroughly train their teams and it shows! Staff should be up to date on all company policies including shipping charges and special offers or codes…customers ask complex questions at times and most especially about discounts! You can create cheat sheets for your staff to utilise so that the most commonly asked questions are easy for them to answer.
Don’t forget about time! Ecommerce is an international thing….depending on what you sell, you may have visitors from the other side of the world so work out what your busiest times are and provide enough staff to ensure that there’s someone to help as and when they are needed.
Add a personal touch; encourage your team to have some personality and to interact in a friendly and warm fashion. It’s fine to change your greetings from time to time…don’t keep repeating the same script or it will become stale and automatic. People like to speak to someone who sounds interested and bright…not to someone who sounds like they’re in a call centre.

Don’t be afraid to ask customers to like your Facebook page…let them know that it’s there and that they can keep up with the latest offers and codes by liking it.

Live chat is a great innovation not only for the customer but also for the businesses which use it; as it enables customers to ask questions and gain clarification, this in turn gives them more confidence in making their purchases and you, the business owner benefit from increased revenue as well as the chance to interact one to one with your all important client base.

Choose a good package and ensure that it is the best one for your store; talk to the company providing the software and find out all you can via them…you will be better prepared if you ask questions.

We hope this guide has been of some value. If you would like a free trial of our SO Chat tool please call us on 01538 750 538