How Live Chat Can Help Drive Conversion

18/09/2017 | Share:

With warm and friendly live chat you can help drive conversion by engaging with potential customers in real time while they browse your ecommerce website.

However it’s also worth noting, if live chat is not used appropriately it can have the opposite effect on an ecommerce site’s conversion rate. Therefore in this blog we take a look at the best time to reach out to a website visitor and what to do if a potential customer is shy.

Can I help you?

Let’s imagine you step in to a bricks and mortar store and before you’ve had chance to get through the door, the shop assistant jumps right in front of you and say’s “How can I help you today?”

Not that this happens a lot, but if it did I’m sure you would feel uncomfortable and not willing to make a purchase.

The equivalent situation can occur with an ecommerce store. A visitor will land on a webpage and before they’ve even had chance to read the product title and description, the live chat box will instantly pop up and ask “Can I help you with something?”

As with high street shoppers, ecommerce customers are looking for high quality retail experiences, therefore any live chat functionality needs to feel natural and valuable to the situation.

How to make live chats valuable

Meaningful conversations with your potential customers will help drive conversion; and by meaningful we don’t suggest anything too deep or personal, just polite and correctly spelt content which will ask what the customer is looking for, what type of problem they are having and how your product is the solution.

44% of customers said that having a live chat specialist available during an online purchase was one of the most important features a company can offer. Linkedin

When is the best time to approach a potential customer?

By understating how long a visitor typically spends on your website you will be able to determine the best time to reach out. For example if a potential customer spends a couple of minutes reading a product page, after a minute instead of asking if they need any generic help, maybe ask if they are ok with the sizes or if they have used your products before?

Don’t forget to personalise

By introducing yourself and asking the name of your website visitor you will be able to build rapport. This will then allow you to personalise your messages and create a more human shopping experience for your potential customer.

Friendly interactions with your potential customer will not only help close a sale but also encourage your customer to come back to your website.

63% of customers said they were more likely to return to a website that offers live chat as opposed to one that doesn’t. Linkedin

What if a potential customer does want to engage with live chat?

Firstly don’t ever be offended or see it as a failure of live chat. Some customers will know exactly what they are looking for or may not be a position to buy and don’t want to waste your time. However if they haven’t purchased anything via your website before, the appearance of live chat will act as a way to create trust and set you apart from other websites which don’t offer the facility.

So there you have it, by offering live chat on your website you will be to help drive conversion by creating trust and rapport with potential customers who choose to visit your ecommerce site.