In the ever-changing retail world, one of the most significant and notable changes has been in the way that we contact and communicate with businesses. Before we had smartphones and the Internet, the only way to get in touch with a company would have been to visit them in person or give them a phone call. However, now, there is a wide range of ways to get in touch. Two of the most common and notable ways include emailing the companies and talking to them in person, over the Internet, by using live chat.
Now, you might be wondering, what is live chatting? Well, to put it simply, live chat is a system whereby business representatives can discuss customers’ concerns directly through a chat platform. This means that the representatives can talk to people in real-time, in a similar manner to text-based systems. It is extremely useful for individuals who want an immediate response to their queries, but, who do not necessarily want to make a phone call or talk in person.
If you are interested in learning more about these systems, you might find this article quite helpful. The text below will feature whether or not businesses should implement these platforms, as well as what benefits they can gain from having one. Let’s take a closer look:
Should Businesses Implement And Offer These Communication Platforms?
Source: LiveAdmins
When a person launches their online business for the very first time, one potential thing that they will need to consider is the type of contact assistance they want to offer to their regular, new, and potential customers. One such contact method that might interest business owners is live chat platforms. However, are these communication platforms the right sort of thing for your business to be offering?
Well, recently, experts carried out a study that showed some quite interesting results regarding implementing these chat options. The study, which included over thirty companies and 346 participants notices the results mentioned below:
- Younger people between the ages of 18 and 34 years are most likely to have used live chat platform at some point in their lives, whether it is just once or every time they have questions for a company.
- People over the age of 55 years are the least likely to have used live chat platforms.
The study also went on to highlight the fact that the vast majority of people all over the world still prefer to contact a business by phone, especially if they have questions about some financial matters. However, among the younger group (18 to 24-year olds) in particular, this gap is getting smaller. Nearly 45 percent of this age group prefer to use the live chat option when compared with the 55 percent of 18 to 24-year old who still prefer talking over the phone to the business representatives.
Source: Wegweiser Digitale Schule
A similar number can be seen amongst the 25 to 34-year old age group as well, where nearly 40 percent of people prefer the option where they can talk in real-time compared to the 60 percent who are more fond of talking over the telephone. But, people over the age of 35 showed quite a considerable difference in regards to their preferences and needs. Hence, this shows how important it is for a business – who want to provide good customer experience – to provide both the live chat services, as well as the telephone contact option.
In general, the survey results showed that the vast majority of American participants have used live chat services at some point in their lives. These services are particularly useful for young people shopping online, especially in cases where queries might be minor or not related to the financial aspect of things.
According to Christine Brown, co-founder of Gomontana, it is important for some businesses to implement it, especially the businesses that relate to the fields of agriculture, engineering, general contracting, management, and so on. People in the middle-aged group started using live chat services more often than usual and that is why you should carefully consider your targeted audience.
The Benefits of Implementing Live Chat Services
Source: Accordant Partners
There are various benefits that you can reap from implementing these services, however, the best ones include:
- It Can Increase Sales – by offering these services, you will speed up your customer service, which can, in return, impact your sales positively.
- It Can Solve Problems Right Away – your customers won’t have to wait for an email response from your company since the live chatting option can give them instant answers right away.
- It Can Decrease Your Expenses – one company representative can communicate with several clients at the same time while still providing high customer service. This means that you can make the service more efficient and less expensive.
- It is Convenient – having a live chat option on your website will allow your clients to quickly contact a salesperson or the support team. When people get the answers they are looking for, they will become more confident in your company, as well as more loyal.
- You Can Reach More People – just because you have a good website, it does not mean that people will want to open it and order something right away. But, by offering these services, people can ask questions and feel more comfortable with ordering.
- You Can Gather Data – no business would be successful without knowing the demographics of the audience. And, by offering these services, you can easily learn more about the age, location, needs, and desires of your targeted audience.
Conclusion
Source: HelpSquad
As you can see from the statistic and data mentioned above, as well as the listed benefits, it is obvious that live chat services are becoming more and more important in the modern retail world. This means that all companies should carefully consider the importance of having and offering these services to their clients.
This is especially true if the businesses are trying to target an audience in the younger age groups – since these are the people who are most likely to use live chat services. So, now that you know more information about these services, do not waste any more time and start thinking about whether or not your company needs it!
