Live chat software has become a must-have for all businesses trying to improve their brand reputation online. Live chat also provides the highest level of customer satisfaction (73%) compared to other support systems.  

customer satisfaction level
Source: Forrester.com

Not only is it a highly cost-effective support solution, but it can also be an awesome way to boost website engagement. And this is mostly owed to the fact that a well-chosen live chat lets you provide website visitors with a more personalized experience.

Besides, live chat software is not only convenient for visitors. It also provides your support staff with a diversity of features. Canned responses, real-time visitor monitoring, and integration with other platforms are only some of the great aspects that you can enjoy.

How To Boost Website Engagement With Live Chat Software

The engagement improvement based on the use of live chat has some critical aspects that you should be aware of. 

In the first place, you should know that no software can help you boost website engagement if you don’t have great agents. And a reliable agent is:

  • trained to provide highly professional live chat support;
  • familiar with your business culture, brand, and products;
  • effective and efficient when using software features.  

Secondly, it’s vitally important to realize that not every live chat software will provide you with optimal results. The market is crowded with such products, thus making it difficult for you to choose one. That’s why you should research for the one that offers the features you need. So, to choose the software solution wisely, you should be aware of its specifications and things it can do for you. 

And that’s why we’re now moving on to presenting some great live chat practices and features that your software should possess to help you boost website engagement. Read on and find out more. 

Live Chat Practices You Should Have In Mind

To get the right live chat software onboard is not your only priority. There are certain practices that you need to implement with its use to boost website engagement. We’ve listed a few of them for you below. 

#1: Say Hi When Visitors Arrive At Your Website

say hi to website visitor

There’s no better way of showing website visitors that you’re at their service than activating chat greeting. If you’re using well-developed live chat software, you’re probably aware that you don’t have to greet all of the visitors manually. 

Instead, all you have to do is turn on the automated chat bubble on your website and create a friendly, polite introduction message. This way, you’ll motivate your visitors to get in touch with you if they need help and, therefore, increase the chances of boosting engagement.

Also, personalize your chat bubble to increase the chances of interacting with customers. People like to read the names and see the faces of people behind the software: they’ll feel more relaxed and trustful.

#2: Be There For Visitors, All The Time

There’s not much use of live chat support that takes hours to react to customers’ issues and requests. Not only is it frustrating, but it also gives them time to change the website and find what they need somewhere else. 

So, if you are introducing live chat support and want it to boost website engagement for real, prepare your team to be ready all the time. Continuous availability has become more than just a business advantage. It’s become a powerful means of keeping your customers satisfied and well-informed at any time.

Practically, in a majority of cases, you can’t expect to increase customers’ engagement and satisfaction if you only have one agent working eight hours a day. Instead, depending on the size of your business, you should have at least a couple of agents that will be ready to work in rotational shift. They can work on the go, using mobile software, combining office with remote work, or any other way, as long as it provides 24/7 availability. 

#3: Speed Up The Resolution Process

Speed Up

How fast you deal with customers’ issues is as important as how available you are. Your agents may be online 24/7, but if they are inefficient in solving requests, the availability doesn’t mean anything.

cart abandonment rate
Source: Forrester.com

According to Forrester, 53% of website visitors are likely to give up on online shopping if you can’t provide quick help. To be able to meet their expectations, you shouldn’t just rely on your agents’ knowledge. Instead, you should back them up with data basis that can help them manage the information more efficiently and provide faster responses. 

One of the most efficient ways of efficient data management is the use of knowledge bases whose relevant segments you can share with customers. This way, not only will you save the time your agent would otherwise use to manually address the specific issue, but you’ll also dramatically reduce the waiting time by simply sharing relevant content. 

#4: Start Interactions Based On Real-Time Visitor Monitoring

Real-time visitor monitoring is an amazing feature that comes with well-developed live chat software. So, if you want to boost website engagement, you should take into account the information provided by this feature and make use of it. 

Once you realize that you can track visitors’ activities on your website, you can also impact or predict their future steps, and act in accordance with them. 

Website Visitors

For instance, if a customer starts the purchase process and doesn’t move from a specific step, it’s likely that they are not sure of what to do next. That’s when you should try to address them and see if they need help. Not only will they appreciate your interest in the potential issues, but they’ll also be pretty likely to engage with you. 

In addition, you can use data provided from real-time visitor monitoring feature to check if visitors who have made a purchase before are making repeat visits. If there are cases like this, they may be interested in some other products, as well, so you can reach out to them and help them out. Whether they’re having second thoughts regarding the product choice or they lack information, nobody can provide better help than a well-trained agent.

Summing Up: Boost Website Engagement Using Live Chat Software

To conclude, there is a diversity of ways in which the use of live chat software can positively impact website engagement. However, it is important to take care of two crucial aspects. 

In the first place, you should hire reliable agents that are:

  • trained to use software and communicate with visitors properly,
  • organized in rotational shifts to provide 24/7 availability.

On the other hand, you should also be careful when choosing the software, since not all live chat tools come with the features you need. 

Your live chat software should include some essential features to help you boost website engagement. Some of them are automated messages, customizable interface with attractive chat bubbles, canned responses, integration with knowledge basis, and real-time visitor monitoring. Once implemented, these features can bring your communication with visitors, and therefore, their engagement, to a completely new level. 

About the Author: Jared Cornell is a customer-support specialist, a marketing evangelist and a book lover, associated with ProProfs Chat. Jared is passionate about customer support and loves to solve customers’ queries. He is always keen to develop new strategies to help customers seeking live chat assistance for a delightful experience. Connect with Jared on Linkedin.