Great move – you’ve added a live chat channel. But are you getting the most from it?
If you're not driving traffic to live chat, you won't get ROI from your digital spend.
So, to help you encourage as many customers as possible to use live chat, try these 10 simple tips.
1. Add a live chat link to your email footers
Do the customers emailing you know that they could get a live alternative? If you haven't got a chat link in your standard email footers, you’re missing a simple opportunity to alert customers to immediate support.
2. Mention live chat in your hold messages
Callers waiting in a queue will be highly receptive to the offer of an instant connection. Use this prime opportunity to plug your chat channel, and adjust on-hold scripts to offer information about chat availability.
💬 "Thanks for your call. Our lines are currently in use but we’ll connect you to an advisor as soon as possible. Or, to get instant support, feel free to use our live chat service at www.yourbrand.com."
3. Promote live chat on your social media channels
Mix up your social media posts with live chat mentions. With regular posts directing customers to chat, your service is instantly accessible to a broad audience of consumers. Plus, your business seems open and approachable.
4. Create a blog article
Adding a blog article on your new service helps spread the word online. As well as explaining why you’ve adopted live chat, talk about the benefits it offers to the customer and include your chat availability. Be sure to ask customers for their feedback, to encourage usage.
5. Add a chat button to your marketing materials
Include a chat button on any mass marketing comms issued to customers. In doing so, you allow recipients to easily follow up or learn more – without the pressure of a call, and while you're fresh on their mind.
6. Embed in your complaints system
Live chat is direct and discreet. That makes it the ideal channel to deal with complaints. So, if a customer uses social media to complain, reply by directing them to your chat channel. That way, you can resolve their problem promptly and, perhaps most importantly, privately.
💬 We’re sorry to hear about that. Please click the link to chat to a customer service advisor directly: [insert link]
7. Give live chat a prominent place on your website
To support driving traffic to live chat, put it under the customer's nose. Place your chat button up front on your website, where it can be seen clearly and instantly. If you bury a live chat link deep in a footer or a contact page, the odds of people finding and using it are low.
8. Use enticing design
Does your chat button integrate with your site? Are your brand colours, logos and fonts used? If not, they should be. Consistency reassures users of the channel's validity, and helps create a seamless, engaging online experience.
9. Use proactive chat invitations
Send automatic chat invitations to your visitors at relevant points in their journey. For example, if a visitor has spent over a minute on your FAQ, pop up and ask if you can help. Or, if a shopper has paused on their purchase, send a chat offering a discount. Doing so means you'll improve chat usage as well as conversions.
10. Button placement
The chat 'hotspot' is the bottom right hand side of a web page. That's where consumers are most accustomed to using chat, and placing it there boosts accessibility. You can also try making the button sticky, so it always visible to visitors.
Only a click away
Remember, in driving traffic to live chat, you’ll also increase your sales, your agent productivity and your problem resolution times. If you need any assistance in implementing chat, our team is only ever a click away.