Live chat for customer support is now a norm and also the quickest way for them to reach your online support. While it may have become a modern customer’s “basic” expectation, it has its fair share of problems!
Perhaps that is why 47% of customers report that they haven’t had a positive live chat experience.
So, here are a few things a customer might hate about your Live Chat… along with their fixes.
1. Bad Canned Responses
It is a no-brainer; canned responses allow you to quickly address common queries. However, overusing or misusing scripted text can instantly turn off customers.
The problem surfaces when canned responses are irrelevant, stiff, and confusing for your customers. It is, however, impossible for you or your team to answer each question personally (that too almost instantly!).
So, instead, draft some cheat sheets ready with answers to the most frequently asked questions. Your team can then make necessary edits to fit the need of the query. Thus, avoiding automated nonsense!
2. Slow Responses
If you put up a chat window that assures you with a pop-up message “24/7 availability”, that’s not enough. You need to live up to it!
Unattended live chats and misleading pop-ups will hardly do any good for your website. In fact, if annoyed, your customers will go to your competitors who are giving solid after-sales service.
To avoid this mess, one of two things can be done –
Either, you can go for live chat support outsourcing so that someone is always there to respond to the chats. Or, you should not put a live chat option on your website; if you can’t consistently and quickly answer customer queries.
3. Intrusive Chat Windows
It can be very annoying and intrusive for chat windows to pop up randomly while using your website. Well, it’s not your fault entirely because it can be tricky to understand exactly when the chat box should pop up.
Pay attention to the interaction of users with your website – where and when they might have a query. Based on your observation, choose strategically when to pop up a live chat box. Give them a little time to look around and absorb the information in front of them before you drop the cue.
4. Hard to Find Chat Windows
Based on Google searches, it is pretty evident that people seek live chat for support on websites, but they are often unable to find it. If your live chat option is difficult to access and full of redirecting links, it is bound to put off your customers.
So, instead of playing around the bush, place the chat support with the other contact information on your website. All in one place for easy access.
5. Inaccurate Data
It is wise to provide your customers with self-service resources. FAQ pages not only help the customer to self-resolve their queries but also reduce the time investment of chat agents.
However, if the data is not updated on a regular basis, it will convince the customer of your inefficiency. Or worse, they may believe it to be a marketing gimmick.
To mitigate this, create a role for online content quality control. He/she will ensure the authenticity and regular revision of the data provided.
6. No Maintenance of Customer History
It can be pretty frustrating for a customer to keep repeating their issues/queries. So, don’t let them do that.
As a business, you must provide the required tracking and analytics resources to your customer support team. Appropriate training can also be given to the front-line employees. This will ensure they know how to input and maintain the data and eventually help them resolve it.
Conclusion
Live chat for support can be a great, customer-friendly option for your company. Despite the issues, 41% of customers still prefer live chat over other forms of customer support. So, if you want to be in it for the long run, ensure you don’t have the above-listed problems in your live chat.
Other than that, train your customer support team to prioritize customers above everything else and provide top-notch service.
