Live chat is a real-time communication tool that enables website visitors to interact directly with a representative through a text-based interface.
Many businesses are considering adding live chat to their websites to automate support and speed up processes, ultimately enhancing the customer experience.
But what exactly makes live chat so beneficial for businesses?
Stick around to find out.
Here are the top 10 live chat benefits we’ll discuss in this article:
- Quicker response times
- Increased agent productivity
- Decrease of costs
- Better data collection
- Improved customer satisfaction
- Better visitor engagement
- Drop in cart abandonment rate
- Increase in lead generation
- Boost in conversion rates
- Boost in sales and revenue
Improve customer experience and boost sales with live chat
If you’re interested in more articles about live chat, check these out:
- 16 Best Live Chat Software for Websites [Reviews]
- 70+ Useful Live Chat Script Templates for Effective Customer Support
- Live Chat Etiquette For Customer Service: Best Practices, Tips & Examples
Let’s jump right in—
What are the benefits of live chat?
Having phone support and only being available during the business hours won’t cut it anymore. Even though customers still want to speak to a real person and receive personalized support, they don’t want to wait for it.
Live chat is the best solution for this problem.
Here are its key benefits—
1. Quicker response times
One key advantage of live chat is the ability to respond immediately to customer inquiries. Unlike email support, which may take hours or days, live chat allows for real-time communication. This is clear when you consider that the average wait time for live chat is 46 seconds, compared to 12 hours for email support.
Quick response times not only satisfy the customer’s need for immediate information but also demonstrate your company’s commitment to responsive customer service. This speed can be crucial in preventing customers from seeking alternatives or abandoning their purchase intentions.
Here’s a real-life example of a company making the most out of this benefit of live chat customer service.
Shockbyte used live chat to decrease response time by 29% and engage more clients. The business boosted incoming chats by 13% and increased satisfaction by 16% after implementing a chat widget on the site.
Read more: Learn more about the company and how Tidio helped Shockbyte improve customer service.
Cut response times using live chat with automation features
2. Increase in agent productivity
Chat software often includes features like canned responses and AI-assisted suggestions, which speed up response times and allow agents to handle customer queries more efficiently. This increased productivity can lead to cost savings and improved customer service without expanding your support team.
For example, Suitor uses live chat to communicate with clients more efficiently. The business also makes the most of the bots and automation integrated into its live chat to streamline repetitive tasks and repetitive tasks as well as workflows.
The number one thing that has grown our business is offering that customer service experience the rest of the market has not been able to do.
Read more: Check out the Suitor case study to find out how the company automated the customer service using a combination of live chat and chatbots.
3. Decrease of costs
Implementing live chat can lead to significant cost savings for your customer service operations. That’s because chat agents can handle multiple chats simultaneously, reducing the need for a large support team.
Additionally, by deflecting simple queries from phone lines, you can reduce the costs associated with maintaining a call center. The efficiency of live chat also means shorter interaction times, further contributing to cost reduction while maintaining or even improving service quality.
A good example of a company that uses the benefits of live chat support is Gecko Hospitality. The business automated 90% of customer service requests and decreased the waiting times from about 72 hours to 90 seconds.
Read more: Check out Gecko Hospitality case study to discover more about the business and how Tidio helped the brand speed up its processes.
4. Better data collection
About 73% of customers who use live chat are satisfied with the amount of data they need to provide. This makes live chat a great tool for collecting your visitors’ contact information, customer behavior, preferences, and pain points.
Each chat session generates data that can be analyzed to improve products, services, and overall customer experience. This information can inform your marketing strategies, help refine your FAQ sections, and identify areas for website improvement. The direct nature of chat also allows for gathering immediate feedback on new products or features.
An example of a company leveraging this benefit of live chat software is Integratec. The brand uses the live chat solution to segment customers properly and gather valuable customer insights. This improved the company’s ticket tracking and boosted qualified lead collection.
Read more: Discover how Integratec used Tidio to organize and manage the brand’s customer communication.
5. Improved customer satisfaction
This is one of the benefits of live chat for customer service, which focuses on providing clients with a quick and convenient way to get help. This immediacy and ease of use often lead to a better shopping experience and higher customer satisfaction. In fact, the live chat feature has the highest satisfaction rate (92%) of all customer service channels.
Buyers appreciate the ability to multitask while chatting, avoid phone queues, and get their issues resolved promptly. The personalized attention and real-time problem-solving that live chat apps offer can turn potentially frustrated customers into loyal advocates for your brand.
An example of a company profiting from this benefit of webchat is ADT Security Service. The business achieved a 30% increase in customer satisfaction since using live chat. That’s because the support agents gained more insights about the visitors and were able to manage tickets more efficiently.
Read more: Check out the full case study to find out more about the results ADT Security achieved when using Tidio.
6. Better visitor engagement
Another one of the benefits of live chat for ecommerce is that it provides an opportunity to engage with website visitors proactively. By initiating conversations based on behavior triggers, you can address potential concerns before they lead to site abandonment.
This proactive approach helps to create a more interactive and personalized browsing experience, making visitors feel valued and more likely to engage with your brand. Interestingly, about 79% of businesses say offering live chat has had a positive effect on sales, revenue, and customer loyalty.
Wulff Beltton uses live chat to engage with visitors and provide good experiences. And thanks to the user-friendly interface and reliable notifications, the company achieved a 4.6/5 ⭐️ client rating.
Read more: Check out the full Wulff Beltton case study to learn how they’re using Tidio to boost their results.
7. Drop in cart abandonment rates
Shopping cart abandonment is a significant issue for ecommerce businesses. But a live chat window can help reduce abandonment rates by addressing customer concerns, questions, and issues in real time. By providing immediate assistance, you can overcome objections and guide customers through the purchase process, recover potentially lost sales, and improve your conversion rates.
One business benefiting from the advantages of live chat on websites is Bella Sante. Instead of relying on phone calls and a website knowledge base, the company implemented live chat for personalized, real-time client communication.
Read more: Learn how Bella Sante boosted sales by $66K and increased lead generation using Tidio.
8. Increase in lead generation
Live chat serves as an excellent tool for capturing leads. That’s because by engaging visitors proactively, you can collect contact information and understand the prospect’s needs before they leave your website. This allows you to nurture these leads more effectively through targeted follow-ups.
Moreover, the convenience of chat often encourages visitors who might be hesitant to fill out a form to engage with your business, expanding your pool of potential customers. And we found that live chat can automatically convert about 4% of your visitors into leads.
Procosmet experienced these live chat advantages. The company improved lead generations by 500% per month. This is because of the user-friendly interface of chat automations asking visitors for contact details and offering newsletter subscriptions.
Our goal has always been to develop a healthy community and thanks to Tidio, we are getting closer, enriching our databases with healthy and interested new contacts, every day.
Read more: Learn more about the brand in this Procosmet case study and discover the benefits it enjoys thanks to Tidio live chat.
9. Boost in conversions
Live chat solutions can significantly increase your website’s conversion rate by providing immediate assistance to potential customers. When visitors have questions or concerns about your products or services, having a real-time chat option allows them to get instant answers. In turn, this reduces the hesitation and increases the likelihood of completing a purchase or signing up for a service.
The immediate interaction can be the difference between a bounce and a conversion, making live chat a powerful tool for improving your bottom line. In fact, a study shows that websites that use live chat have a 20% increase in conversions.
Here’s a real-life example of a business that achieved higher conversion rates thanks to using live chat.
Ad Hoc Atelier emphasizes the personalization of products and communication, which is why increasing customer engagement was so important for the brand. The live chat widget enabled the company to replicate the in-store experience of an assistant coming over when you walk into a physical store.
Live chat is the best solution because you can talk to the consumer at the exact moment they want to buy your product or customize it.
Read more: Discover how Tidio helped Ad Hoc Atelier boost engagement, increase conversions, and slash cart abandonment rates.
10. Boost in sales
Live chat is an essential customer service tool, but it can also directly impact your revenue by providing opportunities for upselling and cross-selling. For example, live chat agents can recommend complementary products, suggest upgrades, or inform customers about ongoing promotions during the chat conversations. This is one of the benefits of live chat for customers, that personalizes the approach and leads to higher average order values.
Additionally, by addressing customer concerns in real time, live chat functionality can enhance the sales process and guide customers through the funnel more effectively. As ICMI research shows, live chat leads to a 48% increase in revenue per chat hour.
One example of a company benefiting from live chat increasing sales is eye-oo. This multi-brand platform achieved a 25% increase in sales and €177K revenue growth. And the business states that’s thanks to the cart recovery features, improved customer service, and better insight into customer data.
By offering prompt and helpful assistance through Tidio's live chat and chat flows features, we have built trust with our customers.
Read more: Learn more about how Tidio helped eye-oo boost sales and revenue. Also, check out this article about the best live chat for sales with tips and techniques.
Benefits of live chat: summary
Let’s face it—
Implementing live chat is no longer just an option. It’s a necessity for businesses aiming to stay competitive and customer-centric.
Here’s a recap of the top benefits of having live chat on your website:
- Boost in conversion rates
- Improved customer satisfaction
- Boost in sales and revenue
- Increase in lead generation
- Increased agent productivity
- Quicker response times
- Better visitor engagement
- Drop in cart abandonment rate
- Better data collection
- Decrease of costs
As customer expectations continue to evolve, live chat stands out as a powerful tool that not only meets client needs but often exceeds them, fostering loyalty and driving growth. So, if you want to enhance your online presence and support experience, integrating live chat into the support strategy is a must.
Use live chat and improve your customer experience
