So do you guys think it is worth having live help if you wont be available 24/7 assisting the customers?

It really sounds unprofessional to go like to the live help interface and you get operator offline please leave a message...

Any opinions

If it is consistently offline, then I think it is a waste. If you set up certain hours to be online and also keep to those hours, it can be a very good tool for customer support if you can't be there 24/7. You need to make it clear to your customers if it is only for certain hours.

I would put up hours you can provide fast live support to them, then the other hours request they send in a email or ticket. I hate it when I go to a host's website and all I see is the button showing offline status.

AS the other 2 respondants have said if it's cleraly stated on your site what hours live help is available at then you won't have any disappointed customers as they will know when help will be available. The key thing is to keep to those hours and make sure you are available.

If you have the service there and don't use it at all and it continually has a "Operator offline" message then it looks very unprofessional. I've ignored a lot of hosting companies for that one reason.

There are a lot of webmasters of hosting sites that seem to think that the live support chat system is for when they are bored and have nothing else to do. Thats not the case. It's there for when the customer has nothing else to do but ask for help. Webmasters forget that.

I suppose the key point to this is to setup any pages that display the support logo to display nothing when offline OR display a blank image. That way nothing is being offered which is not available and the customer will be none the wiser.

-Turboz

Originally posted by joephill It really sounds unprofessional to go like to the live help interface and you get operator offline please leave a message...

I think you have said it yourself.

It is very unprofessional, and more than that, it is frustrating. The last thing you want to is frustrate potential customers before they have even signed up ... or atleast annoy them once they have already become a customer and can't get help.

It's okay if to have live help even if you're not online 24/7. The idea is to maintain a level of consistency with your online status. If you end up being "hit-or-miss", your plan to have live help will backfire.

However, if you explicitly define exactly when you will be available everyday and deliver on that promise, then people know when to expect you around and communicate accordingly.

Time and time again, I see hosting websites (large and small) with offline live chat messages which leads me to think: Hmmm, they couldn't even leave it *on* while doing tickets?!

Roj

I believe it is ok to offer Live Chat even if you are not available 24/7. As others have said just make sure you clearly state when if is available and that it is not 24/7. If you can't be available or staff the live chat much of the time during regular busienss hours, however, then I would not offer live chat.

Replace the offline image with one that matches your background, that way if you are not available, then the potential client does not get a bad impression =P

Originally posted by emzec
Replace the offline image with one that matches your background, that way if you are not available, then the potential client does not get a bad impression =P

:) good idea

Replace the offline image with one that matches your background, that way if you are not available, then the potential client does not get a bad impression =P

That's what I do :D

Originally posted by emzec
Replace the offline image with one that matches your background, that way if you are not available, then the potential client does not get a bad impression =P

Sorry but didn't I already cover this when I said:

Originally posted by Turboz
I suppose the key point to this is to setup any pages that display the support logo to display nothing when offline OR display a blank image. That way nothing is being offered which is not available and the customer will be none the wiser.

-Turboz

Anyone care to tell me what a "Good idea" I had? eh? well?

I do like the way my google topic has been copied twice recently aswell.

Good old Turboz, all the ideas and none of the credit (as usual).

-Turboz.

What a good idea Turboz ;) Well... what happens if you have a potential customer that comes on your website at 8am and then at 11pm (perhaps live support image is there at 8am but it's missing at 11pm)... guess what he'd be thinking...

I would recommend putting up a custom live chat graphic that says something neautral along the lines of:

"Questions? Ask Us"

If you're not online, then the prospect will be able to simply leave a message. They won't get frustrated because you're not promising them a 24/7 live rep, but rather a quick way to contact you.

Boris

Interesting topic. When I go to a site there are a couple of things that bug me... Live Help that is off line when you want to ask questions and then keen sales reps popping up message boxes on your screen every time you visit a site. "How can I help you?". If I want to ask a question they are not there and when I dont want to ask they jump all over me. LOL.

I dont think its a big deal at all. If you are not on they can simply message you via the chat message or email.

Originally posted by AdWatcher-Boris
I would recommend putting up a custom live chat graphic that says something neautral along the lines of:

"Questions? Ask Us"

If you're not online, then the prospect will be able to simply leave a message. They won't get frustrated because you're not promising them a 24/7 live rep, but rather a quick way to contact you.

Boris

Now thats an idea I really like!

-Turboz