Live chat is one of the most frictionless support options you can provide. However, building and managing an in-house live chat support team can be a nightmare. It can be expensive, labor-intensive, and outright frustrating, and for many organizations, it’s not worth the hassle.

That’s why many businesses outsource chat support, allowing them to offer top-quality chat support services without the headache.

Ready to outsource live chat support? If so, here’s everything you need to know.

Do Live Chat Support Services Even Matter?

Live chat support services are vitally important to consumers. While modern customers appreciate self-service and email-based support options, they often want to speak to a real person.

So when you offer responsive, high-quality live chat support services, you stand out from your competitors. Over time, you’ll develop a reputation for doing right by your customers, and consumers will be more loyal to your brand. That’s because they can get the help they need when they need it.

However, as a business leader, you must balance what’s best for your customers with what’s best for your company. That’s where live chat outsourcing enters the fold.

The Magic of Live Chat Outsourcing

When you outsource live chat support, you can unlock benefits such as:

Cost Reductions

Hiring a full-time team for customer support is expensive, but outsourcing offers a more cost-effective solution. You get access to a dedicated team of professionals for a fraction of the cost of an in-house team. You also save on training and infrastructure costs.

But the savings don’t stop there. You’ll also avoid auxiliary expenses such as recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and benefits payments. Instead, you can enjoy predictable, manageable costs while your outsourced services provider focuses on the complex back-end of running a support center.

Enhanced Availability

The internet never sleeps, and neither should your customer service. Thankfully, outsourcing live chat means you can expand your support coverage significantly. If your outsourcing partner also offers chatbot services, you can provide 24/7 support to your loyal customers.

Moving beyond traditional business hours and offering true year-round coverage will take your support to the next level. No matter what challenge someone is facing or when they try to reach out, they’ll have access to timely, reliable support.

Expert Handling

When you outsource, you’re not just hiring a service; you’re tapping into a pool of experts. These are individuals trained specifically in customer support, meaning they’re adept at handling inquiries, complaints, and everything in between. The best outsourcing partners realize they are an extension of your brand and train their staff accordingly.

That said, not all outsourcing partners are created equal. This means you should carefully evaluate prospective partners to ensure their staff lives up to your unwavering standards. The best teams will make your customers feel valued and appreciated. They’ll also exhibit a strong knowledge of your products and services, allowing them to provide consistent support.

More Time

When you outsource live chat, you and your team will free up countless hours each week. You can redistribute these resources to more dynamic tasks and focus on core business activities.

Instead of being bogged down by customer queries, you can concentrate on growth and innovation. Imagine what you can achieve with all that extra time and resources!

Scalability

One of the biggest challenges to using an in-house live chat is scalability. As your needs evolve, you’ll have to recruit, hire, and train new support staff. Bring them in too early, and you’ll contend with bloated wage expenses. Wait too long, and your existing team will be drowning in support requests while the new hires get up to speed.

Outsourcing live chat resolves both of these issues. Your provider can deliver scalable, flexible support that aligns with your current needs. As demand for support increases, they can allocate additional resources to your customers.

Potential Challenges and How to Avoid Them

Outsourcing live chat isn’t without its challenges. Here are a few hurdles you might encounter and how to mitigate them:

Lack of Personal Touch

Outsourced teams might not have the same level of understanding of your business as in-house teams. To combat this, ensure your outsourcing partner is well-versed in your products, services, and brand voice.

One way to ensure that services are personalized is to choose a nearshore partner. Nearshore teams are located in close proximity to your base of operations. This means that they better understand the expectations of U.S. consumers and are working from a similar time zone.

It’s also easier to maintain oversight of nearshore teams — you can keep a close eye on support quality and quickly remedy any issues that arise.

Quality Concerns

The quality of service might be another concern with outsourcing teams. One cause of quality issues is the difference in time zones. When your customers connect with agents halfway around the world, there are bound to be a few quality concerns.

Regularly reviewing chat transcripts and providing feedback can help maintain high standards. Also, you should ask plenty of questions about your provider’s quality control protocols. Their process for ensuring support quality should inspire nothing but confidence.

Security and Privacy

Sharing customer data with an external team can raise security and privacy concerns. This is particularly problematic if you operate in a tightly regulated sector like finance or healthcare.

For this reason, it’s crucial to ensure that your outsourcing partner adheres to strict data protection policies and complies with relevant laws. You should also find out whether they work with other clients in your industry. If they aren’t partnering with businesses in similar sectors, they may struggle to meet your needs.

Choosing the Right Live Chat Outsourcing Partner

Live chat outsourcing can be a true game-changer for your organization. From a logistics perspective, outsourcing eliminates the hassles of building, training, and maintaining an internal support team. It also yields measurable cost savings, freeing up capital to pursue other opportunities.

As you start your search for a live chat outsourcing partner, make sure to ask plenty of questions and investigate thoroughly. Choose a multifaceted provider with a proven track record of success. Doing so will unlock significant benefits for your business, your staff, and your customers.