3 Gaps In The Live Chat Experience. And 1 Simple Solution
Anita Raghav
Oct 30, 2023 | 5 mins read
Live chat fills the need for instant human support on your website.It increases conversions, average order values (AOV) and customer satisfaction. It allows concurrent activities, letting both agents and customers multitask while using chat.
However, like all channels, it has its shortcomings.
The Problems
People still want to speak to a human being
People can type a maximum of 30-40 words per minute, but speak at an average rate of 120-150 words per minute. No wonder problems resolve faster when you speak to someone. And it shows.
Kayako’s survey across 1,000 US consumers, showed a 41% preference for live chat  support — but a whopping 32% preference for phone support. That’s a number you can’t ignore.  How can you give these consumers instant support on a channel they prefer?
The other issue is local language support. When it comes to complex problems, many English keyboard users, prefer to explain in their local languages. Live chat has limited support as compared to voice in this regard.
Staffing issues lead to bad customer experiences
As the load on Live Chat increases, cracks have appeared in the customer experience. Kayako’s survey reported frustration in nearly half the live chat users.  83% had given up their chats due to slow responses.
Long wait times to reach agents is a big issue.  But imprudently increasing Live Chat staff will strain resources. Today’s businesses face a staffing conundrum: Which channel should they dedicate their human resources to?  Phone? Chat? Email? Social Media?
All live chat software don’t make the cut
All live chat software aren’t created equal. Some don’t integrate well with CRM and other customer support software. This  creates siloed conversations. The result is that when customers switch to other r channels like voice, they have to repeat their live chat conversations.
On the agent end too, the  Live chat agents don’t get previous call/customer context , so they cannot to personalize their responses.
Yet Kayako’s most recent research found that 47% users hadn’t had a good live chat experience in the past month. The irony is that while the need for live chat is increasing, the quality of customer experience is decreasing.
There is a huge need to find a solution that replicates live chat’s advantages, BUT delivers BETTER customer experience. Is it going to be easy? Yes it is.
In spite of these 3 shortcomings,  providing instant, live support during the customers digital purchase journey— has become vital for sales:
- According to Forrester reports, 50% consumers require this instant , personal support.
- Live chat case studies across industries demonstrate a minimum 10-15% increase in conversions.
- Forrester reports state a 19% increase in AOV (Average order value) using live chat.
The One Simple Solution
The simple solution is to deliver both live chat & voice on the same platform. Directly connect web visitors to a full featured contact center solution. And get all the  features needed to prioritise customer experience and agent efficiency.
Watch the video to see how it works. Or Learn more about it here.
Kookoo Interactive Assistant does exactly this.
- It lets users connect to sales and support teams using voice and chat in parallel.
- A complete cloud contact center at the backend ensures best possible routing, minimum wait times and seamless call transfers during escalations. Â
- Having a single support solution for voice & chat helps you efficiently manage scalability and staff.
- Complete CRM integration ensures customers never have to repeat information. All lead information is automatically captured and shared across internal systems.
