Guest Blog: 7 Ways to Enhance Your Customer Experience with Live Chat

This week we feature an article by Hamzah Tariq who shares seven ways to improve the overall live chat experience for your customers.

Businesses constantly try to improve the customer experience they deliver through new approaches, tools and strategies. 

One of the most successful ways to enhance the customer experience is through live chat. However, there’s always room for improvement in how customers are engaged via chat. 

Here are 7 areas we feel are extremely important when it comes to improving the overall live chat experience delivered to customers. 

• Be quick to accept live chat requests

Don’t make customers wait when they initiate live chat requests. Both customers and prospects value personal and instant means of interaction and the longer they wait the higher the chances of them going to a competitor

Live chat response times in seconds – Statistica

Consumers compare your live chat response times with the best service they’ve experienced – regardless of industry. Keeping in mind industry averages, aim to respond to incoming chat requests in around 30 seconds as that would put you in the top 5% in terms of response times. 

• Be Confident and knowledgeable

Always be sure of the advice you’re giving. You could be answering a prospect who has questions about a product, or a customer requiring technical support. In any case, your response should be quick, confident and thorough. Do not take any shortcuts and make sure you know what you’re talking about.

• Be sure of your answers

You’re not going to have answers to every question all the time. In the event you’re lacking the knowledge required to respond to a query, take the time to research the topic and find the best possible answer. 

In a survey conducted of 400 consumers and 100 businesses, 95% of respondents said they would prefer slower support if it meant the quality of help was higher.

There’s nothing worse than a half-baked reply. So be sure to reference your knowledge base or engage an expert at your organization. Be sure to let the customer know that you’ll be stepping away for a few minutes so they know what to expect. If you need more time, let them know you’ll be getting back to them and be sure to gather as much information as possible so you and your team have everything needed to provide a knowledgeable response that answers the customer’s question.

• Communicate clearly

Be as clear as you can when communicating with customers and prospects. Never use slang, abbreviations or acronyms that someone outside of your organization may not understand. Your customer is still figuring out how to get the best value from your product or service so always remember to take the time to simplify and break down responses, to ensure everything is crystal clear.

• Be friendly and approachable

No one can see you smile when you respond to a chat unless you use an emoji. Not using emojis can make you come off as clinical and unwelcoming. Customers and prospects both appreciate it when you’re genuinely happy to be speaking with them. Having a conversation sprinkled with emojis comes off as friendly and welcoming. Customers also tend to be more patient and willing to wait for a response when you make them feel comfortable and welcome.

• Test the recommended solution

When delivering technical support, be sure to have tested the solution you’re recommending. If the solution has not been tested in your own environment do not choose speed over accuracy, and instead, request more time. One rushed response that ends up being wrong can frustrate a customer which in turn can negatively impact your business. 

• Share documentation 

According to Forrester research, customers prefer knowledge bases over all other self-service channels. When responding to a query, wherever possible, provide customers with a response and couple it with a well-written knowledge base article. Pointing customers to an article equips them with the information they need to address the issue themselves. For any new issue faced, be sure to first test it in your own environment and then remember to author a knowledge base article so in future others are able to find answers to the problem without having to get in touch with someone. 

Implementing these 7 live chat best practices can contribute to customer success and positive word-of-mouth, and help your business grow through improved retention and new customer acquisition.

Hamzah Tariq is a Marketing Manager at Kayako. He writes on new and improved ways to deliver customer service that lead to improved customer experiences.

Read Shep’s latest Forbes article: Ten Content Marketing Hacks To Drive A Better Customer Experience