Online chat: what it is and how to use it

Online chat is a form of communicative interaction between the client and the company’s technical support. The user can ask a question in a pop-up form that opens after launching the site.

The purpose of online chat

Statistics show that more than 79% of customers choose this form of interaction with the company. Responses from technical support specialists come instantly. Online chat allows you to get information about the company without interrupting the study of the site. With the help of chat the consumer can quickly make an order or receive information of interest. And the company’s management sees the conversion rate of site visitors.

Employees of the information agency Emarketer found out that 40% of consumers decide to buy a product or service during a conversation in an online chat room. 65% of respondents say they plan to return to the company website later.

Reasons to create an online chat:

• The user spends more time on the site. This factor positively affects page ranking in search engines.
• Increased online sales.
• Instant communication between visitors and company representatives.
• Possibility to get the client’s contact phone number or e-mail address for further interaction.
• Simplification of information transfer regarding a product or service.
• Online chat won’t let customers who don’t want to waste time calling the company and waiting for an operator to answer.

The benefits of online chats

Here are a few reasons why this feature should be implemented on a company’s website.

Convenience

1. Instant communication with the firm’s employees. The client doesn’t need to call contact numbers and wait for a specialist to respond. Chat communication allows you to get an answer to a question within one minute.
2. Over half of the respondents surveyed speak positively about online chats as a method of saving time. A person can ask a question to the technical support and continue further journey through the site.
3. Absence of negative emotions, because while waiting for an answer the client can mind his/her own business.
4. Possibility to save the conversation and exchange references.
5. Discussing an important issue will take a minimum of time as compared to using email.
6. Doubting customers after chat will finally decide on the necessity to make a purchase. Additional consultations of a manager give the right amount of information concerning a particular product or service.

Saving the budget

1. The head of the company does not need to hire a large number of agents, because one employee is in a dialogue with several customers. A smart online chat system distributes questions to several departments of the company.
2. The employees help the customer in choosing a particular product by providing comprehensive consultations. In the course of correspondence, the customer can add to the order already made, which leads to an increase in the value of the check.
3. Implementing online chat into the system takes only a few minutes and is uncomplicated.
4. Conversion and store sales increase significantly.

The potential client of the company feels much more confident, feeling the support of the firm’s specialists. Please note that competent support workers are the key to the effective work of the online chat. Employees should thoroughly know the assortment and be able to provide the buyer with professional advice.

Features of online chats

Online chats can be divided into two categories based on the following criteria: type and degree of anonymity. To understand the features of each category, let’s look at them in more detail:

• Online programs. Became available in the nineties of the last century. These are small applications that look like forums and allow users to communicate with each other in real time. The delay is only a few seconds. Two decades ago, such a solution seemed acceptable. Communications are conducted with the help of text, which must be entered in a special field. In the viewing window, the user has all the messages, and the sidebar displays the participants.
• Voice-based. These are categories of chat rooms that offer a multi-channel exchange of voice messages between interlocutors. To communicate, you need a microphone, a speaker, and headphones. This format is popular in online games, as well as in webinars and conferences.
• Video chats. They became popular after the appearance of the technology of streaming data arrays. In order to make this type of communication it is necessary to have a webcam.
• Private, shared or anonymous. These are all options that allow you to control access. Private chats imply that there is a limited list of users. Privacy and the number of chat members can be set in the settings. Public chat has free access for everyone after the registration procedure.

How to choose the best online chat?

Use the following tips to choose the right chat room:

• Analyze the cost. This parameter depends on the number of working managers and functionality. There are services that set the cost depending on the payment period.
• Read the information about the trial period. Using the trial version, you can explore all the features of the application.
• Learn all about the functionality so that you understand what you will get and what features will be available while using it.
• Make sure of the quality of the mobile version.
• Explore the possibility of integration.
• Find out if there is an option to create a chatbot. That way you can provide advice to customers after hours.

Users are offered a variety of options on the market that you can use to create and add the necessary online chatbots to your site. There are free and paid programs.

To begin with, you will need to understand what your goals are. Think about what tasks you want to solve when using the service. Analyze the customer requests, read the frequently asked questions. Trace the path of the customer: at what stage he turns to the company. You can create a suitable chatbot based on this information.

Using chatbots in messenger, build a lasting relationship with customers and their retention.

Tip: To keep in touch with customers, ask them to leave an email address or other contacts.

Review of the top 2 online chat rooms

Let’s take a look at the 2 best services for creating online chats. From them you can choose the right option for your business.

Jivosite

Advantages of the service:

• simple interface,
• more than 20 languages,
• it is possible to make a chat for the team,
• integrates with social networks, including services like Yandex.Metrika and Google Analytics,
• the ability to use the free basic version,
• test version gives access to create any number of online chats,
• the ability to add quick responses,
• special application for operators and tracking their work in the format of statistics.

Due to these advantages, this service is found quite often. In addition to a user-friendly interface and configuration of online chats, the service allows you to quickly assess the performance of operators, providing data on customers and statistics on the work. In addition, it is possible to integrate with social networks and messengers (Telegram, Viber, WhatsApp).

Envybox

Advantages of the service:

• The ability to attach media files to the message,
• user identification through social networks,
• integration with social networks and messengers (WhatsApp, Viber, Yandex.Metrika, Google Analytics, Mail.ru ratings, CRM-systems),
• the ability to rate operators at the end of a dialogue,
• various widget system,
• Choice of design variants.

The service is convenient both for visitors and operators. User identification with the help of social networks saves time and does not require entering standard data (name, phone number, e-mail). If the user doesn’t want to be authorized, he is given a name which allows to distinguish it (for example, a green badger or a yellow mole).

Conclusion

The use of online chats simplifies the process of communication with the audience. Not only the operators’ time is saved, but also the money for the organization of such interaction. Choose the right service and set up a chat today.

Ilya Lavrov

I’m a product and graphic designer with 10-years background. Writing about branding, logo creation and business.