LiveChat “Canned Messages” for Alliance Time
More and more, online businesses are finding live chat communication to be a time-saving, cost-effective solution for helping customers fast. But consistency of tone and message is key. With that in mind, Alliance Time asked me to script a series of “canned” messages for their Sales and Customer Service staffers to use during chats. In addition, the project called for a guide to the effective use of these messages. Here are samples of both…
Excerpt from the Communication Guide:
Preface
Two representatives initiate a chat. One leaves the customer satisfied and smiling; ready to recommend the company to his or her friends. The other ends on a negative note.
What’s the difference between them? Attitude, and the ability to communicate it.
When chatting, customers expect encouragement, respect, insight, timeliness and friendliness; a combination that should be seen in the attitude of each exchange. Companies expect consistency. Satisfying both means expressing a certain attitude – with consistency of content and tone across the board.
But how should messages be worded?
When should they be used?
What are the strategies at play?
Hopefully, this guide will provide you with answers. Designed to follow the natural progression of a live chat, it is separated into common categories for quick reference – from Introductions and Probing Sales Questions to Building Trust and more. There you’ll find a philosophy and sample messages for each, all representing the best practices in both sales and customer service.
Some categories, you’ll notice, are better suited for the Sales Department (marked by the word “Sales”). Others were written with Customer Service in mind, but there’s one thing that they all have in common: the right attitude.
Please read the philosophy of each category, study its insight into the worlds of sales and customer service, and let the attitude found in the sample messages guide you. In the end, you’ll leave customers satisfied, smiling – and full of friendly referrals.
Sample Messages from the “Empathy” Section of the LiveChat Script:
- I can understand your frustration with [ISSUE]. I assure you that I’ll do my absolute best to help…
- I would be frustrated as well if that happened to me. I assure you that I’ll do my best get this cleared up for you…
- I know you want to get this resolved as soon as possible (that’s what I would want). So, I’ll do my absolute best to get it done for you quickly.