Add Chat on Your Website to Get More Leads

Live chat on your website is a must-have if you want to offer your visitors the best online experience. Why? Because users prefer it these days over any other mode of communication. It has become so integral to how consumers interact with businesses that they expect it and become frustrated without it. Implementing live chat on your website, in addition to email and phone support, shows your visitors that you value their time and personal preference enough to provide a range of communication options. It will translate into a higher conversion rate on your website and more leads and sales.

Let’s take a look at the numbers. According to a report published by Kayako in 2017, 41% of users prefer live chat, 32% telephone, 23% email, and a measly 3% social media. That was over three years ago, so it's likely the statistics have shifted even more in favor of a live chat option.

It’s important to keep in mind, though, that merely offering a chat feature on your website doesn’t mean you’ve successfully fulfilled the needs of your chat fans. You must also provide quality responses to their inquiries. In fact, 95% of consumers value high quality responses over quick response times. So, you can’t just offload chat support to your office assistant or college intern. Ideally, you would want someone who is knowledgeable on all your products and services and who has sales or customer service experience.

What is the best chat platform?

At the beginning of 2020, we performed an in-depth analysis of the major chat platforms for websites. Our favorite was Tidio. Tidio offers a free version that includes enough features to get any company up and running with simple chat. For a small monthly fee, additional features can be added to configure a more robust solution.

How does chat work?

We’ll use Tideo as an example to explain how chat works, although most rival platforms offer similar functionality. After an account is set up, as many as three operators may be added to the account. These are the personnel that will respond to incoming chats. Your operators can then install a mobile app, desktop app, or use the Tidio website to receive and respond to incoming chats. The first operator that responds to the chat will own the chat discussion, but can delegate to another available operator if need be.

On the front end, when a website visitor lands on your website during your predetermined chat hours, a chat icon will appear in a fixed position overtop your web page. An accompanying customizable message will also appear to indicate someone is available to chat. The standard message is “Welcome to our website. Ask us anything. We reply immediately.” In order to send a message, the visitor will enter their email address. Once submitted, notifications will be sent to the operators via push notification.

What happens if no one is available to answer a chat?

Tideo offers the ability to collect the visitor’s email address and any other information you may want prior to submitting a message. So, if no one is able to reply to the message, you will at least be able to attempt to reach them through email at a later time.

Does Tideo integrate with CRM's?

Yes, Tideo integrates with many popular CRM's, including HubSpot, Zapier, Zendesk, and AgileCRM.

To discuss a chat solution that is right for your business please call, submit a form or chat with us.