Assuming you already make some decent profit, and have traffic. Would it be profitable to implement a "Live chat" link on your page to "convince" them to buy your product or another merchant?
Only one way to find out. ... Put one in. But my feeling is that the time you put into chatting to your visitors, and the sales coming in from it will be far less than what a minimum-wage worker makes.
Thanks for the reply Perry, I think I'm defintely going to try this, I even have a software that can popup a chat box automatically and "force the chat". The minimum-wage worker thing, is exactly what I was afraid of. Maybe it'll be better to put a "non-stealing" save-a-sale script on my site.
if i saw this on a website and was questioning a sale, it might sway me, even a ticket system would be good (if it was in an accessible place). so yes it would be a good idea
Perry Rose is right. Every site is different so there is no definitive answer. Like every aspect of an e-commerce site, you have to test. As an example, I tested Live Chat on one of my very busy sites. The results? Nothing in terms of interaction with potential customers. For a 60 day period not one person activated the chat, and "pushing" a chat to them makes them run like the wind. People don't like knowing you're watching them! But, the real time information you can gather is great for tweaking you're site by getting a better understanding of consumer behavior. It has helped me target specific areas of my site that needed attention and increase time-on-site, uncover cross-linking tactics for relevant products, reduce my bounce rate in some areas, and even helped with some shopping cart abandonment. I continue to use it as a tool but don't use it for contact (you won't see a button for it), only for data gathering for later analysis and action. In terms of being able to "sell" a potential customer I've found our 800 number a MUCH better solution. A good 20% of my sales are through the Toll Free number since it is more personal and provides a better opportunity to not only sell, but upsell a potential customer... and it's a whole lot less expensive!
I think as long as you provide 24 hour email reply support the customers are happy. Most of those Live Support scripts have AI built into them,so that you don't actually have to be there talking to the person. IMHO I lost all integrity with the flash support script, because you have a fake person talking to you. I recommend 24 hour email support. Good Luck
Nice thread. For a change. ~ I think I know why you want to do this. Get them at the heat of the moment, make a sale right then and there. But chat rooms aren't all that great. For starters, most do not want to talk to a salesperson. My opinion, of course. I thought about installing a chat room, but I quickly changed my mind. As an author of e-books and soft cover books on dating and sexual health advice for singles, and also on marketing / advertising, I knew I would get a lot of people coming in looking for free advice, and questions up the ass. I knew I would have been putting in a lot of time online before making a sale. My reply to you is a good example. I will be putting in at least 10 minutes in this post. For an old guru like me, time is money. .. As it should be for you, amateur, or not. Plus, I was going to have it open for chat between the hours of 7-10 PM. But many can't do it then. And many times I wasn't able to be at the computer at that time. On top of that, I didn't want to be tied down to my computer during that time, and make, maybe, one or two sales, if any at all. I'm now considering putting up a message or blog type board where they can ask their questions, voice their opinions, and I can answer them within, say, 12 hours. But, of course, that is not at the heat of the moment. You may want to try that also, as an experiment. But, hey, it may be different for you. I'm not trying to be negative but to just give you things to think about. The chat may work. Just keep track of the amount of time you put in it takes to get one sale.