7 top live chat widgets for your website in 2024

Live chat widgets enable website visitors to communicate seamlessly with sales and customer support agents. In the intensely competitive world, timely resolution to customer queries helps businesses stand ahead. 

In this article, we explore the top live chat providers in the market with an exhaustive comparison of their features, pricing, and user reviews. Read on to learn what are the different benefits businesses can derive from investing in live chat software. 

What is a live chat widget?

A live chat widget is a pop-up window that appears on your website, allowing customers and visitors to interact with you directly. The chat window appears when a visitor lands on the site pages, welcomes them, and offers a wide range of assistance.

On the chat window, visitors can seek support and information through interactions with live agents or chatbots. Robust live chat tools also collect real-time information about the visitors, allow file sharing, and deliver multi-channel support. 

Top benefits of introducing a chat widget to your website

There are many benefits of adding a live chat widget to your website. For one, it opens up a new digital communication channel right at the center of your business: your webpage.

1. Boost conversions

The live chat feature helps deliver real-time support and information to website visitors. 

A research study by Microsoft shows that the average attention span for an adult is 8 seconds. 

So, it is important to offer the information they seek quickly to avoid abandonment and motivate them to purchase. Also, a Forrester study shows that around 53% of visitors abandon purchases if they do not find a quick response to a question. 

The live chat feature allows customers to resolve their concerns and make quick purchasing decisions. This improves the conversion rates for businesses. 

2. Elevate customer satisfaction levels

The live chat widget appears at the bottom when a visitor lands on the website. Knowing that the business agents are only a few clicks away makes them feel comfortable. 

The sense of attachment and comfort is the rationale behind why live chat holds the highest customer satisfaction level of 82%. Being readily available to solve their queries improves customer satisfaction levels, ultimately increasing retention and loyalty. 

Around 53% of visitors abandon purchases if they do not find a quick response to a question

3. Maximize business productivity

You can automate responses to frequently asked questions on a live chat functionality. 

A study by Aberdeen Group shows that companies that use live chat save about 50% of their operating costs. 

Live chat software solutions allow agents to handle more queries, reducing the need for additional staffing. Automation helps reduce agents' burnout and use their energy and time productively to perform core operations requiring human intelligence. 

Also, chat widgets help route the queries to the most qualified agent, reducing manual transfers and exhaustion. 

4. 24/7 customer support

Businesses can handle customer queries using chatbots and canned responses on live chat widgets even outside business hours. This helps offer timely assistance and gain a competitive edge. 

5. Personalized experience

The live chat feature can also collect data about web visitors and customers. For instance, you can customize your widget to collect emails, phone numbers, and more. 

Doing so lets you personalize the offerings based on location, and device. You can also prioritize queries from returning customers so you get to retain them for longer. 

➡️However, you must pay attention to protecting your customer data under data regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA, especially if you work in a highly regulated industry. Be careful to choose a secure live chat solution to add to your web.

6 crucial features of a live chat widget

While a live chat widget has several benefits, it is important to choose the right set of features to unleash their fullest potential. The following are some of the important ones. 

1. Easy setup

While choosing the live chat widget for your website, choose one that is easy to set up, has no code, and can be learned quickly. It helps save time and resources. 

2. White labeling

White labeling allows businesses to customize the live chat tools to match their branding guidelines and design elements. Doing so allows businesses to offer consistent customer service across all communication channels. 

3. Integration

You must invest in a live chat widget that integrates seamlessly with the sales, CRM, helpdesk, and marketing tools you currently use. This offers a comprehensive insight into the process and reduces the hassle of switching from one platform to another. 

4. Good UI/UX

The widget should have a simple, intuitive UI/UX as it serves as a medium for customer communication. You must be able to create tickets, route queries to the right agents, and tag chats internally. 

5. Automation and chatbot integration

Most live chat tools come with chatbot integration. Choosing them helps you automate responses to frequently asked questions and handle customer queries even when beyond standard business hours. 

The automation increases business efficiency and enables agents to handle more queries in a shorter duration. 

6. Analytics

Live chat tools must be able to offer analytics and actionable insights on the number of total inquiries, queries resolved, average resolution time, and more. Such insights help evaluate agent performance and offer critical feedback. They also help businesses make informed staffing decisions. 

7 best live chat widget providers

The top performing tools when it comes to chat widgets have above 4-star reviews. They're run and tested by numerous users across the world. Here's an overview of the best tools and their specific characteristics.

1. Rocket.Chat

Rocket. Chat is an open-source, secure platform that helps businesses streamline their communication with customers, team members, suppliers, and partners. It has robust security features with end-to-end encryption, customizable user permissions, two-factor authentication, and more. 

Rocket.Chat offers both on-premises as well as cloud deployment. So, it is appropriate for businesses that handle sensitive data, operating in industries such as defense, healthcare, and finance. It helps secure your internal and customer communications with industry-grade protection and prevent data losses. 

On top of that, Rocket.Chat also provides open API to customize the live chat functionality to match your business requirements. 

Key features

• End-to-end encryption
• File sharing
• Custom roles and access controls
• Two-factor authentication
• Audio and video conferencing
• Omnichannel integration

G2 score 

4.2★ out of 5

Pricing

• Community- $0/user/month
• Enterprise- $7/user/month (minimum of 25 users)