The consumer electronics market is projected to generate $1.5 trillion in annual revenue by 2022. In such a lucrative and competitive market, brands have to fight tooth and nail to gain customer loyalty. Your brand can stand out by offering exceptional web chat customer service.
Web chat is the third most popular channel among consumers in this particular sector. It has proven effective in a sector where consumers have countless questions regarding product features, delivery, and troubleshooting.
Here’s how you can make web chat work for you:
- Be proactive – Proactive chat is a feature wherein an agent manually sends customers chat invitations for one-on-one conversations, or via automation. In other words, the brand initiates the conversation, and not the other way around. This feature is particularly helpful for hesitant shoppers and those who need more information on the products they’re looking for.
A Forrester research study found that while reactive chat produced a return on investment (ROI) of 15 percent, proactive chat produced an incremental 105 percent. Make it work for you by sending friendly and timely chat invitations when guests enter your site.
- Be quick to accept chat requests – If you’re not offering proactive chat, then the least you can do is accept chat requests as soon as you get them. If you really have to put customers on hold, keep in mind that the average wait time for web chat should be less than 20 seconds.
- Always introduce yourself – Remember that a chat session is a one-on-one conversation. Introducing yourself makes the interaction feel more personal, as opposed to an exchange between a business and a customer.
- Promise results – If you can’t resolve the issue immediately during your initial chat with the customer, let them know when exactly they can expect to hear back from you. Promise to give them an update, and make sure you deliver. This helps build trust even if you’re unable to provide solutions right away.
- Make things easy for your customers – Build customer loyalty and satisfaction by reducing customer effort. Keep web chat messages clear and concise. If it includes more than three images or steps, include links to knowledge base articles that will point them to the information they’re looking for. This keeps them from having to scroll down overtly long messages.
- Use canned replies when appropriate – Knowledge base articles aren’t neccesary when it comes to common questions and typical troubleshooting issues. In this case, you can save time and effort by using canned replies. This way, you can respond faster and avoid having to type the same answer over and over.
- Consider outsourcing – Outsourcing customer support helps you deliver outstanding web chat customer service, especially if you work with omnichannel call centers that have a proven track record. Offshore outsourcing hubs like the Philippines have a vast pool of reliable call centers and experienced web chat agents.
If you’re going to offer web chat, make sure to implement it well. Short waiting times, well-time chat invitations, and expert handling of web chat sessions will boost customer satisfaction and help you secure customers’ loyalty in a highly saturated market.
Need a web chat service for your company? Talk to us today.