Must-Know Live Chat Statistics 2024
Live chat statistics might change your view on implementing a live chat support system. In fact, did you know that live chat support is increasing in popularity every year?
It seems like every business is looking for ways to optimize the customer journey when it comes to must-have customer service features.
As you might already know, online customer support is an important part of running an online business. For some businesses, it can mean the difference between a customer paying for your product and walking away.
That's why it is important to know about some live chat statistics in 2024.
In this blog post, you'll see some interesting, some obvious, some surprising facts about live chat. Keep scrolling.
Customers Opinion on Live Chat
Waiting for email responses or holding on the line is so outdated. Live chat allows customers to get the help they need in a matter of minutes, and they love it. Proof?
Here you are:
- Inc. reported in The Power Of Live Chat article that 44% of online consumers believe that live chat is an important website feature.
- In addition, according to another report on live chat, 60% of younger consumers — those 18-34 —“regularly use live chat for customer service.”
- About 90% of customers consider a quick reaction from support to their inquiry critical when using live chat, according to Hubspot's Customer Service Stats.
- One of the reasons that half of the customers (51%) favor live chat is their ability to multitask while reaching out to a company via live chat. The Importance of Live Chat by Invesp
Surprised? We are not.
Thankfully businesses are aware of the call on live chat.
It is stated in Comm100’s 2019 Live Chat Benchmark Report that, “Facing rising demand for personalized, meaningful interactions and seamless, ‘every-channel’ experiences, organizations are rolling up their sleeves to meet and exceed customer expectations.”
- In 2023, about 85% of businesses were expected to opt for live chat support. 7 Live Chat Statistics You Can’t Miss by Software Advice
- The live chat support market was expected to reach around $987 million in 2023. (Live Chat Stats
- In the same list above, you can see that 81% of customer service departments plan on investing in live chat support more in the future.
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Ultimate Guide To The Future Of Marketing On The Metaverse
If you are not in the 85%, the chances are you are on the wrong path.
- 42% of businesses think that consumers prefer phone support.
- 14% of businesses think consumers prefer email.
- 9% of businesses think consumers prefer social media.
Businesses are working hard to get the necessary help to their customers. However, while they are rushing, they miss an essential point. Fast doesn’t always mean satisfactory for customers.
You must be wondering why the customer satisfaction rate is lower with lower wait time. Because consumers value high-quality support more than speed, and shorter wait time affects quality in most cases.
- 95% say they would prefer slower support if it meant the quality of help was higher.
Mobile Live Chat Statistics
Considering that more than half of the web traffic comes from mobile, it is important to keep an eye on mobile live chat statistics as well.
- Live chat engagement is higher (1.7%) on desktops than on mobiles (1.4%). Still, mobile chatters are 6.1 times more likely to convert compared to mobile non-chatters.
- 62% of customers expect the availability of live chat on mobile devices, and 82% would use it if available. Live Chat Statistics
- According to comm100's guide to live chat article, when it comes to the initiation of live chat, about 51.68% of those were from mobile devices.
Now that we know why we need live chat and how it should be done, keep reading to see what to avoid as there are things your customers will be annoyed rather than satisfied with.
- Support not being online despite live chat displaying as available.
- Being disconnected during a live chat.
- Effort required to start a live chat, mainly where there are pre-chat forms.
What happens if all goes wrong? Check out the statistics that show the consequences when live chat doesn’t meet the customer expectations:
- 38% of customers are most frustrated by poor user experience on live chat.
- 29% of customers find scripted, impersonal responses the most frustrating.
- 38% of businesses say their users find their scripted responses most frustrating.
- Almost 50% of customers rate long wait times as the most frustrating part of a live chat — they don’t want to be in a queue.
- 19% of businesses say their customers are most frustrated by long wait times.
- According to Zendesk Customer Experience Trends Report 2020, more than 70% of consumers believe that companies should collaborate on their behalf so that they don’t have to repeat information to different representatives.
- In the same report, it is stated that nearly 70% of customers are irritated when their call is transferred from department to department.
Live Chat-Phone Support Comparison
The live chat support:
- Makes it easy for your customers to talk to you.
- Brings down customer wait times by 80%.
- Appeals to customers of all ages.
- Reduces your cost-per-interaction.
Now let’s see the live chat and phone support comparison statistics.
- Companies with chat support pay roughly 15 to 33% less than those with phone support.
- In 2021, customer service using phone support dropped by 7%.
- 42% of customers prefer live chat over phone conversations because they don’t have to wait on hold for an agent.
Live Chat Conversion Statistics
Does excellent live chat support mean high profit? for sure!
- Approximately 63% of people spending $250-500 monthly online will most likely purchase from companies offering live chat.
- According to Global State of Customer Service Report of Microsoft, 90% of Americans use customer service as a factor in deciding whether or not to do business with a company.
- In the same report, it is stated that 58% of American consumers will switch companies because of poor customer service.
- Also, nearly three out of five consumers report that good customer service is vital to feel loyalty toward a brand.
- If the company’s customer service is excellent, 78% of consumers will do business with a company again after a mistake. State of the Connected Customer Report by Salesforce
- A good customer service experience heavily impacts recommendations. Consumers who rate a company’s service as “good” are 38% more likely to recommend that company.
- In Hubspot's research on acquisition, it is seen that 93% of customers will possibly make repeat purchases with companies offering excellent customer service.
- Customers that use live chat spend 60% more per purchase. Live Chat Statistics by Softwareadvice
- 79% of businesses say offering live chat has positively affected sales, revenue, and customer loyalty.
- 51% of customers buy again from a company if they offer live chat support.
- Also, 52% of consumers are likelier to remain loyal to a company that offers live chat support. Live Chat Software Statistics
- Having a live chat service increases a company’s conversion rate by 3.87%.
- 42.38% of customers report buying something owing to an excellent live chat session.
- Proactive chat leads to 105% ROI.
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The Impact of Pandemic on Support Services
Before we wrap up, let’s mention the elephant in the room. It’s evident that due to the pandemic the way businesses operate changed dramatically.
This change was initially led by changing customer behavior.
To adapt to new expectations, customer service teams revised their system. From personalizing customer experience to making customer support contactless, the pandemic has given rise to new trends in customer service.
- According to Benchmark Snapshot by Zendesk, the number of support tickets increased by 20% due to pandemic.
- In 2020, 64% of customers gave a chance to a new messaging channel to contact companies.
- Since 2020, the usage of automation to solve problems has increased by 25%.
- In Forbes's article on the effects of pandemic, we see that 74% of customer service leaders state that customers have become more empathetic due to the pandemic.
BONUS
- Cart abandonment statistics show that 53% of cart abandonment is because customers aren’t able to find answers to their queries.
- In a research on the benefits of live chat for businesses, 43% of businesses claim that they better understand their customers within one year of implementing live chat.
- According to Zendesk's Deployment Guide, an experienced live chat agent can handle 4-6 chats simultaneously.
- 59% of customers are more likely to make a purchase when their queries are resolved in under a minute. Making Proactive Chat Work report by Forrester
- With present technology, chatbots can resolve queries with up to 90% accuracy. Chatbot Statistics
- In an article on live chat statistics, it is seen that 74% of B2C companies and 85% of B2B companies use live chat for sales. However, only 31% of B2C companies and 54% of B2B companies use live chat for marketing purposes.
- 72% of customers expect the live chat agent to already know their contact details and purchase history. Live Chat Stats by thrivemyway
- 70% of consumers favor human agents over AI technology.
- The average company received 8,423 chat messages per month in 2020.
- About 66% of customers expect businesses to provide an instant response to their queries. Customer Service Stats to Know by HubSpot
- 21% of live chat support requests go unanswered. Live Chat Study by Super Office
Extra Bonus: If you are looking for a free live chat tool, here you have it. You can try Popupsmart's Live Chat Tool today to achieve the maximum customer satisfaction and increase your conversion rate.
Before you leave…
Chatbots, live chat, and text messaging are useful and must-have features on company websites of all sizes and sectors. You can provide a better client experience, smooth customer service, boost customer happiness, and increase conversions by effectively utilizing the tool across multiple company activities.
As more businesses go online, client expectations for 24-hour fast response will continue to climb. In addition, real-time dialogues using live chat will provide new chances for your company to better understand and serve while strengthening business/customer relations.
Do you use live chat? Do you think it works?
Meet me in the comments section below!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Live Chats Effective?
Live chat delivers 73% satisfaction, compared to 61% for email and 44% for the phone support. Thanks to live chat, not only will your customer satisfaction ratings rise, but so will your customer retention.
Is There a Free Live Chat Tool?
Some of the free live chat tools are:
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Smartsupp.
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Tidio.
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Chaport.
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EngageBay.
What is a Chatbot?
A chatbot is a computer software replicating and processing human speech, allowing people to communicate with digital gadgets as if they were talking to a real person.
Check These Out!
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12 Best Free Live Chat Software for Websites in 2024 with Reviews
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The Most Important Online Shopping Statistics You’ll Read Today
