By Ruth Richter • March 27, 2019
Few things can be as frustrating as trying to call a customer service number. First, needing to make the call usually means something is wrong, whether that means your bill is wrong or you paid for expedited shipping only to find out your package wasn’t delivered as promised. When you end up lost in the sea of automated prompts shouting “yes” or “no” or “I just want to talk to a person” at your phone, the frustration only deepens.
Studies show that customers prefer human interactions over a voice response or automated service system. Because of this, the way customers feel about your customer service can affect how they feel about your business—and whether you get to keep theirs.
Believe it or not, it’s not the prices or the deals that truly solidify your customer base. Those promotions might get them in the door or onto the ecommerce site—anyone can make a sale once—but what makes customers come back is the customer service.
The Digital Age’s Answer to Customer Service
When most customers call, their priority is to speak to a person. The issue for businesses is that it may not always be cost-effective to staff their service infrastructure with live agents.
Fortunately, there’s another option aside from losing customers in the maze of automated phone prompts or outsourced call centers. The digital world we live and do business in now easily supports integrating live chat straight into a company or ecommerce website.
Live chat is one of the best customer communication platforms, offering real-time responses to a customer and even improving customer retention: More than 63 percent of consumers said they were more likely to return to a website that offers live chat.
Live Chat on the Rise
So, what makes live chat so popular with customers and businesses alike?
- It’s convenient: Live chat connects users immediately to agents—no phone numbers or voice prompts required.
- It’s cost-effective: Often, live chat is cheaper to integrate into your ecommerce site than a phone system, call operators who can only handle one call at a time, or outsourced call centers.
- You’ll gain a competitive advantage: Since live chat is still gaining popularity, adding live chat to your website could give you a significant leg up over your competition.
- Save time (and money!): According to one study, a live chat agent replies to a customer query in less than 23 seconds, with an average issue resolution time of approximately 42 seconds. Compare that to upwards of 17 hours to reply to a customer service email or more than 24 hours to respond to a customer service call. That’s not only your company’s valuable time that you’re preserving, but your customers’ as well.
- It can increase sales: A customer who has a question about a product is more likely to purchase that product if they can get their questions answered quickly.
- Keep your customers coming back: Happy customers are repeat customers. If your clientele has a positive experience doing business with you, they’re far more likely to return—and they’re often willing to pay more to continue that positive experience.
Improve Live Chat with Data Integration by IN-SYNCH® by ROI Consulting
Keep in mind that, like all electronic communications and interactions, live chat will create data which will need to be tracked in CRMs, ERPs, and across ecommerce platforms. Keep your live chat feeding the right information into your systems by synchronizing data flow with IN-SYNCH by ROI Consulting. This lightning-fast multi-directional Sage 100cloud integration platform means you can keep data flowing freely between your ecommerce site, live chat, warehouse, ERP, and more, all in real-time. This means your live chat reps can always be sure the product, returns, or shipping information they’re giving the customers they’re chatting with is accurate.
There’s no doubt your brand benefits when your customers are happy. Keep them happy with great customer service, offered through live chat and integrated with IN-SYNCH by ROI Consulting. Interested to see how this integration can positively impact your customer service and sales goals in 2019? Contact us online or call us at 402-934-2223 ext. 1. We promise you’ll even get to talk to a real person.
