Live chat software has received mixed responses from various sources in the past few years. Experts have found it to have both great advantages, and in certain scenarios, some drawbacks as well. While the debate regarding the good versus bad of online chat support shall never end, one can objectively evaluate if such software is suitable for their online retail enterprise or not.
There is not doubt that live chat software is an innovative technology. It helps create an instantaneous textual contact between potential customers browsing on a website and company sales representatives. By simply using a ‘click-to-chat’ button, a browser can start a chat conversation with the customer care personnel. Similarly, the customer care personnel can also approach browses with an offer of assistance. The key advantage of such a set up is that is provides for immediate resolution of customer query. This is known to help increase sales and reduce the incidence of abandonment of shopping carts. Moreover, the costs of maintaining a large consumer service apparatus are reduced in the long run.
The flipside to this argument is that the costs incurred in installation of such software are much higher in comparison to the extra output produced. Also, some companies prefer to facilitate customer service through telephonic media for they believe it is more interactive and helpful to a consumer in that sense. It has also been suggested that anyone who is really interested in purchasing something shall not refrain from sending their queries through phone or via email; in that sense, online chat support is assumed to bring in an onslaught of useless queries from many who are not serious about buying.
As for these supposed disadvantages of live chat software, the arguments offered are rather easily refutable. Statistics support that live chat software is definitely capable of increasing turnover. There is however, no empirical data to suggest that users prefer customer service via phone over that through chat. It can thus be concluded that live chat software may be very effective if used appropriately though it may not be conducive to the needs of all enterprises.
