Chatbox

Chatboxes were designed to revolutionize customer service fueled by the need to provide real-time, efficient, and personalized customer interaction on digital platforms. Moreover, statistics highlight their effectiveness in this field. Live chat, for example, boasts a customer satisfaction rate of 81.1%.

In this article, we are going to discuss the ins and outs of chatboxes, so you will know how to leverage them in your business. So, let’s unravel the world of chatboxes and discover the secrets of their unparalleled success.

The chatbox promotes real-time interaction, making it a convenient and efficient way for users to ask questions, request support, or gain more information about a service or product.

How does the chatbox work?

As you already know, a chatbox works as an intermediary platform for communication between a user and a system. Here’s a step-by-step rundown:

1. A user types a message into the text field of a chatbox on a website or app.
2. Once the user hits enter or clicks ‘send’, the system’s servers receive the text.
3. The servers then send the message to an application that processes the text.
4. This can involve automated systems or AI-powered chatbots that interpret the text to understand user intent, or it could be directed to a live agent.
5. The bot or live agent then prepares a response based on the user’s message. This might involve retrieving information from a database, triggering certain actions, or even generating text responses from scratch.
6. The prepared text response is sent back through the servers to the chatbox on the user’s screen.
7. The user can then read the response and type a new message to continue the conversation.

This whole process usually happens in real time and gives users the illusion of directly communicating with the AI bot or the agent.

Chatbox vs. chatbot: what’s the difference?

Although similarly used primarily to facilitate meaningful conversations with customers, chatboxes and chatbots are two different tools. Here’s a handy table showing the main differences.

	Chatbox	Chatbot
Definition	Users can communicate and engage with a website or mobile app using a chatbox in real-time or asynchronously.	Chatbots are AI-based software programs that interact with customers using human language. These interactions can take place via text or audio.
Purpose	In a website or app, it provides a small window or pop-up for communication.	Chatbot software simulates and processes human conversation, allowing humans to interact with digital devices like real people.
Interactivity	A chatbox relies on a live agent or an AI to respond to user queries. It’s not interactive.	Chatbot platforms are interactive by nature. In response to user inputs, it can perform actions and provide information.
Independence	Can’t function independently; it needs a chatbot or a human operator to interact with users.	Can function independently; once programmed, it does not need human intervention to interact with users.
Technology involved	Basic web technologies like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are usually incorporated into the graphical user interface of a website.	Uses natural language processing, machine learning, and AI algorithms to simulate interaction in human language..
User experience	Better for live experiences and real interactions with human agents.	Better for automated responses, high volume customer queries, and 24/7 availability.

Chatbox vs. live chat software

Chatbox and live chat software have the same objective of facilitating real-time online communication. However, they differ in many aspects including the nature of interaction, response times, and level of personalization and human intervention.

As you know, chatbox usually refers to a digital tool that offers customers an interface to reach out to a company’s customer support team. It predominantly uses predetermined scripts and artificial intelligence to handle customer inquiries.

Live chat software is a system that enables real-time communication between a business and its customers, usually through a company’s website or app. LiveAgent’s live chat software is an example of this kind of tool, offering features like a real-time typing view, chat histories, automatic messages, and chat routing. This software works to improve customer engagement, increase customer satisfaction, and streamline customer support processes.

7 key benefits of chatbox you may not know

To fully understand the importance of chatboxes, let’s discuss their 7 main benefits.

Chatbox best practices: Dos and Don’ts

Below, we will discuss some significant best practices for chat boxes.

Chatbox design and user interface

Clear communication with personalization

Customized responses and user-friendly chat prompts

Regular updates and maintenance

How to add a chatbox to your website?

Adding a chatbox to your website can be quite easy and accessible. Here is a quick guide to help you get started:

1. Create an account: Before you start, you will need to create an account for your business on a platform that provides a chatbox service, like LiveAgent.
2. Access settings: Once you’re logged in, navigate to the settings or dashboards section of the platform.
3. Choose a chatbox: You are usually presented with a variety of chat application styles and options. Select the one that fits best with your website’s aesthetics and functionality needs.

4. Customize your chatbox: After choosing a chatbox, customize its chat interface. This can include changing the colors to match your brand, setting up automatic responses, and more.
5. Add the chatbox to your website: Once you’ve customized your chatbox, you’ll need to generate a piece of code that will be inserted into your website’s HTML. This can usually be done with a simple copy-paste action.
6. Final testing: Ensure everything functions as expected by doing some tests. Check the chatbox’s appearance, response time, and overall interaction to confirm it’s working correctly.

The exact steps depend on the platform you are using. For a detailed, step-by-step process on how to add a chatbox to your website, refer to our step-by-step guide.

Increase engagement and sales with LiveAgent’s chatbox

LiveAgent is a reliable chatbox solution. Here are some ways it can help your business increase sales and customer engagement.

Real-time customer engagement

LiveAgent allows businesses to engage customers instantly and solve their queries in real time. You can configure proactive chat invitations which can boost customer satisfaction and ultimately lead to higher sales.

Automated messages

Automated canned messages can be set up to engage customers and guide them through the sales process. This is a convenient and easy way of guiding your customers through the purchasing process without the need for the intervention of human agents.

Customization

You can customize LiveAgent’s chatbox to reflect the brand’s aesthetics, helping to create personalized customer experiences that can positively influence relationships and improve sales.

Multilingual support

LiveAgent supports more than 40 languages, so you can easily provide support to your customers in their preferred language. This feature aids in connecting with a larger audience, increasing the chances of customer acquisition and sales.

Real-time typing view

This valuable feature allows you to see what the customer is typing in real time, helping your support agents provide quicker, more accurate responses.

Post-chat surveys

Customer reviews are crucial for customer success. LiveAgent’s post-chat surveys allow for collecting feedback and product or service improvements, contributing to a better customer experience and increased sales.

Chat routing

Live chat routing is crucial for your contact center’s efficiency and effectiveness. Using automated chat routing, the right support agent can be assigned to the right customer issue instantly. Moreover, performing such automated actions helps your agents save time on repetitive tasks. This can significantly increase customer satisfaction and the likelihood of purchase.

LiveAgent chatbox stands out due to its extensive feature set. To further examine this powerful solution, you can check out our live chat software review.

Real-life examples of implementing a chatbox

Now is the time to discuss real-life examples of companies implementing chatboxes and reaping the benefits.

Sli.do

Sli.do is an audience interaction platform that has successfully implemented live chat functionalities. By connecting with LiveAgent, Sli.do enhances its user engagement and interaction significantly. This integration has amplified the effectiveness of audience communication and added more value to Sli.do’s services.

Shopify

Shopify utilizes chatboxes to provide round-the-clock assistance to its customers. Whether it’s ironing out issues regarding a user’s online store or providing guidance on utilizing certain features, Shopify’s live chat support has been integral in enhancing its user experience.

Zappos

Zappos is another example where chatboxes have been successfully implemented. Zappos uses chatboxes to provide instant customer service, addressing queries about orders and products. Their excellent customer service is one of the reasons for their high customer satisfaction rate and improved chat experiences.

Apple

Apple support uses advanced chatboxes to assist their customers. Customers can access this support directly from Apple’s website or via their devices, offering a streamlined approach to user support.

Conclusion

The world of customer service, as we know it, has evolved drastically with the surfacing of chatboxes. These digital customer service aids offer the possibility of real-time, efficient, and personalized conversation with customers, critically improving communication between businesses and customers. From initiating proactive engagement and offering 24/7 service to accessing convenient information and scalability, the chatboxes offer a wide range of substantial advantages.

However, a brilliant chatbox needs to be embedded with some best practices. These include appealing, user-friendly design, clear and personalized communication, adaptive responses, frequent updates, and more.

To see how a chatbox can be beneficial for your company, consider LiveAgent’s 30-day free trial. This could be the key to unlocking the next level of customer service and, consequently, business growth for your company.