Live Chat Increase Sales!

By:Danny Wirken

Selling used to be so much harder than it is, but more effective! In the early days of trading, people faced each other, convinced each other, exchanged wares and were all happy about the transaction. Some would fail but most did not. Why? Because those who bought something had help in finding what they wanted. The one who sold, responded immediately to inquiries and challenges. In the end, both buyer and seller are happy.

Letters came in handy for many sellers, especially those who had a lot to say and a lot to show. But then, let’s face it – this phenomenon also gave birth to the term “junk mail.” Sales people did less talk and spent less on personal appearances but very few of these letters got favorable responses, or any attention at all. Why? You guessed it – no personal touch. The recipient of the letter did not have anyone there to answer questions.

When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, little did he anticipate the power of reaching people so far away with the sound of the voice. To people who sell, this was a goldmine. Dial any number and offer your products. This provided a bigger market, yet it also increased the chances of rejection. The basic flaw here is obvious – the cold calls are shots in the dark. There is no initial interest on the part of the person called.

If the prospective customer made the call, then it’s a different story altogether. There is the interest and a sale can be pursued. There is something lacking though – the visuals to show your products.

Enter the age of the Internet. Letters became emails. Phone calls became chats.

But wait, there’s more! This new technology gave the selling person more ammunition in the form of reports, histories, profiles and the ability to engage in conversation and use visuals at the same time.

Yes, chats convert more visitors into customers.

In buying, people are driven by want. A lot are driven by need. Consider your web-store as an actual store – where people can come in, take a look and buy. Note: they come to you, hence, there is interest in what you offer.

Put in the personalized service that a salesperson presents through live chat. After a little talk, your visitor starts deciding to buy. A little more nudge, and their in – hook, line and sinker. If your salesperson is good enough, that customer will come back for more.

Your Customer Service Representatives (CSR) is converted a talking box that can lead your visitors to what they need (better yet, to what they want). And, viola, a visitor becomes a customer!

Many online stores have implemented this live chat system into their web-stores and the result is definitely positive. Higher sales figures come from the increased conversion rate of visitors to customer. Before chatting was involved, 98% of visitors leave the online stores without making any purchase. That 2% does sound very dismal. After incorporating the live chat sales support system, some web-stores reported up to 25% conversion rates.

So think, wouldn’t you rather be making $25 instead of just $2?

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