It was a successful chat session, but now it’s over. You’ve solved all the problems, answered all the questions, and said goodbye. The customer clicks the [X], ends the session, and that’s that, right?
Well, while your job might be done, there are a few (often forgotten) processes that happen once your customer clicks that [X] and ends the chat.
From the post-chat survey to sentiment analysis, there’s a lot more to the post-chat process than meets the eye. It might be the end of the chat, but it’s not the end of the chat process.
So, here’s a look behind the scenes of the post-chat process, and all the little things that happen beyond the [X].
The post-chat survey
The first part of the post-chat process involves the customer. After clicking the [X], they may complete a post-chat survey.
The post-chat survey is an opportunity for you to collect useful feedback about your live chat service. It gives you an insight into both customer satisfaction and agent performance, so it’s a key chat exit element.
With post-chat surveys, you can collect feedback in many different formats. For example, you can ask open questions with text-based answers. These are perfect for gaining insight into key focus areas, as they give customers the freedom to reflect on the details of their experience.
Meanwhile, for a more general overview of performance or quality, post-chat surveys can ask for yes/no answers or a star or number rating.
The post-chat survey is the most common and recognisable of the processes that happen upon a chat session exit. You’ve no doubt seen and completed them yourself, and they’re a pretty standard step with most live chat solutions.
So, this first post-chat process is probably the most visible.
Sentiment analysis
Sentiment analysis is another useful component of the post-chat process. However, this one is only available with more feature-rich live chat solutions. (Like WhosOn.)
Sentiment analysis identifies positive, negative and neutral sentiment signifiers within the chat, on a line-by-line basis. Once a chat has concluded, sentiment analysis uses these signifiers – coupled with any post-chat survey data – to generate a satisfaction score.
For example, key terms such as ‘that’s great’ and ‘brilliant’ denote a positive sentiment. This leads to a higher satisfaction score for the chat.
Meanwhile, terms like ‘waiting’, ‘not happy’, or ‘frustrated’ would mean a more negative sentiment. So, these would lower the chat satisfaction score.
Sentiment analysis is a lesser-known and more subtle part of the post-chat process. The customer will not be aware that this step has even happened.
But for your business, sentiment analysis provides invaluable metrics for identifying issues, opportunities and trends.
Storing chat transcripts
Another often overlooked part of the post-chat process is the storage of the chat transcript.
Chat transcripts combine the convenience of recorded, retrievable correspondence (like email) with the speed and efficiency of real-time support.
This post-chat process allows agents to keep a record of their conversation history on file. This, in turn, leads to multiple benefits for your customers and your agents later down the line.
For agents, stored chat transcripts provide useful reference data for future chats with the same customer. It allows them to retrieve historical data during new chat sessions, and refer to previous problems, solutions and purchases.
This makes future contact friendly and informed, rather than repetitive and stilted.
The storage of chat transcripts also enables the creation of a full overview of customer complaints and issues. Agents can search through concluded chats, and assign details of problems to support tickets.
For customers, stored chat transcripts mean a handy record of their conversation. Typically, the customer is asked if they would like a copy of the session upon closing the session. This is then sent to them via email. So, any instructions or useful information that the agent supplied isn’t lost once they click [X].
Plus, because stored chat sessions can mean more personal, knowledgeable and friendly service in the future, this post-chat process can boost overall customer satisfaction.
Data exports
Customer retention and data retention go hand in hand. But it’s no use having the data if it’s inaccessible or difficult to use.
So, as another part of the post-chat process, all your chat transcripts and analysis information will be exported into your integrated databases, your CRM, and your reporting suites.
(Provided you have a solution with this feature, of course.) This makes for easier data access and management, as well as enriched records.
For example, new customers are automatically added to your CRM. Chat transcripts are saved against the relevant customer record. Sentiment scores are synced to customer profiles, and any other useful information from your chat transcripts is made easy to retrieve.
This means that agents can quickly access key information from previous chats through your CRM or database. The ease of access to this data enables team members to offer a more personalised experience next time the customer connects via chat.
Live chat sessions also produce a wealth of data about agent performance, and this data can also be streamed to your databases or to third-party systems.
So, this post-chat process can also help you monitor your team, and reward consistently great service.
Advanced chat services like WhosOn even have an OData API, to leverage raw chat data in any BI tool or third-party desired.
The helpful post-chat process
The processes that make up the post-chat process are easy to forget about. With so much attention on the conversation, the behind the scenes admin that happens after its completion is somewhat less focal.
But that doesn’t mean these post-chat processes aren’t important. After all, great customer service doesn’t come from stopping at the click of the [X].