Nowadays, websites implement live chat and chatbots to communicate with customers 24/7. With such features, customers can ask a website about their products and services no matter where they are or even what time it is. In fact, according to a study by LTVPlus, 79% of businesses say that features such as live chat have positively impacted their sales, revenue, and customer retention.
Despite the widespread benefits of live chat, a new customer service tool is seeing an increase in popularity. This customer service tool is known as live video chat. According to Hubspot, customer preference for video support has increased by 70%. This is thanks to live video chat’s ability to provide in-depth assistance and an even more personalized customer experience.
But just as there are some live chat best practices to keep in mind when working with clients, live video chat also has a few best practices that you need to put into practice when assisting customers. Here are the five best practices to keep in mind when assisting clients via live video chat.
Best Live Video Chat Practices to Keep in Mind
1. Use High-Quality Equipment
When assisting clients via video chat, one of the best practices you need to keep in mind is using high-quality headsets and webcams. With high-quality equipment, assisting clients will become easier. This can significantly increase customer satisfaction, benefiting a business in the long run.
Using headsets, in particular, is especially important if you’re working in a crowded area. By using a headset, you can minimize the amount of background noise heard during client interactions. As a result of the minimized noise, both parties will be able to hear one another clearly. This allows for a smoother flow of communication, providing seamless video chat support to customers in need.
Additionally, webcams also assist greatly in client interactions via video chat. When you allow the customer to see you, it provides a more human aspect to the customer service provided. It also lets the customer connect to you on a personal level and vice versa. Thanks to this, clients will feel taken care of and appreciated, making it more likely for them to remain loyal to your business.
2. Avoid Using Windows as Backgrounds
One mistake video chat agents sometimes make while assisting website visitors is using a window as a background. Often, this mistake is observed among those who are working remotely. While windows can add natural light to your environment, using them as a backlight can create a silhouette effect. This could be distracting for the client, which in turn negatively affects the quality of the video chat.
Instead of positioning yourself directly in front of a window, you should sit in front of a wall when interacting with clients through video chat. That way, you will be well-lit enough to be seen by the client while avoiding any distractions when providing live video chat support at the same time. It also creates a more professional environment, showing that you are dedicated to assisting clients and their needs.
On the other hand, you can also put shades in front of your windows. That way, should you need to sit in front of a window, the natural light seeping in can be toned down while creating a professional backdrop at the same time.
3. Prioritize Client Security and Privacy
Putting client security and privacy first is a common live chat customer services best practice. However, this best practice can apply to live video chat as well.
When you are assisting clients face to face, sometimes you'll have to look at or take note of the customer information. Should this information be leaked, it could compromise the customer. Apart from that, it would also cause your business’ customer trust to go down. This would not only make it harder to retain customer loyalty, but it would negatively impact your business as well.
To that end, putting the client's security and privacy first is an important practice that businesses must remember when using live video chat as a customer service tool. To accomplish this, business website owners should ensure that their live video chat tool has end-to-end encryption. With such a security measure, customer data transmitted via live video chat can be safeguarded. This prevents data leaks that can compromise customer information.
Additionally, business websites should also take care to ensure that their video chat support team is up-to-date on current regulations regarding customer privacy and data protection. By doing so, your team can also avoid any incidents resulting in customer data being leaked.
By ensuring that your business website is safe and secure, companies can quickly build customer trust. This would go a long way in helping you retain customer loyalty, making them likely to return to avail of your products and services. Apart from that, your business will also gain a reputation for stellar customer service, which could help attract new clients to your side.
4. Personalize Your Interactions
One of the live chat best practices that can be carried on to live video chat is personalizing your interactions with customers. Personalizing interactions can go a long way in gaining a customer’s patronage and loyalty. In fact, according to an article by Forbes Advisor, 46% of customers are more likely to buy more from a business provided they receive a personalized experience.
Using live video chat as your customer service tool already helps business websites provide personalized interaction to their clients. However, there are other ways that allow you to personalize each interaction further. For instance, refer to the client by name as much as possible. That way, you could start forming a connection with the client that will gradually build the relationship as the interaction continues.
Another way business websites can offer personalized interaction to customers is by properly training your customer service team. By teaching your team to properly use the customer data available, they can provide fast solutions to the customers that they cater to. It also allows you to tailor your responses according to the customer’s specific needs.
By personalizing every customer interaction by video calling, you’re adding a sorely needed human element to your discussions. As a result, clients will feel more comfortable and taken care of when they’re interacting with you. This greatly assists your website’s conversion rate and your business’ overall profits in the process.
5. Work in a Quiet Space
If live video chat is your business website’s main customer support tool, the final best practice you need to keep in mind is that you should work in a quiet space as much as possible. By working in a quiet space, you can avoid distractions that prevent you from properly assisting the client. In addition, working in a quiet space also helps you focus more on the customer and their needs.
By applying this practice while providing live video chat support, the client’s need for assistance can be met much faster. This would result in increased customer satisfaction, driving up your business’ customer loyalty and website conversion rates.
If you want to change how your website provides customer service, consider turning to PageAlive. PageAlive is a live video chat solution that allows websites to connect more effectively with customers by adding a human touch to every interaction. Get started on your improved customer service journey with PageAlive by requesting a demo today!
