Customers today have high expectations when it comes to convenience, speed, and personalization from brands. Integrating an effective live chat plugin for WordPress can fulfill these expectations and more. With numerous WordPress chat plugins available, it can be overwhelming to choose the right one. To help you get started, this guide will cover the basics of WordPress chat plugins, their benefits, and how to evaluate them. By the end, you’ll have all the information you need to implement a WP live chat on your website.
What is WordPress live chat?
WordPress live chat functions as an instant messaging system for your WordPress site. It enables your customer-facing teams, such as service agents and salespeople, to engage in real-time conversations with website visitors. By utilizing a WordPress chat plugin like Zendesk Support for WordPress, you can provide prompt support to your users. While WordPress live chat can be integrated natively or via API with other essential tools like CRMs, knowledge bases, chatbots, and automation platforms, it’s not a mandatory requirement. You have the flexibility to manually implement live chat WordPress plugins using code or opt for pre-built plugins that are easy to configure, even for non-developers.
Benefits of Using a Live Chat Plugin:
- Real-Time Customer Support: Live chat allows you to offer real-time support to your website visitors. It enables them to ask questions, seek assistance, or get information instantly without having to wait for an email response or make a phone call. This immediate support can lead to increased customer satisfaction and a better user experience.
- Improved Conversion Rates: Live chat has been shown to positively impact conversion rates. By providing instant assistance and addressing any concerns or doubts, you can help visitors make purchasing decisions or complete desired actions on your website. The ability to engage with customers in real-time can significantly increase conversion rates and boost sales.
- Increased Customer Engagement: Live chat provides an interactive platform for engaging with your website visitors. It allows you to proactively reach out to visitors, initiate conversations, and offer personalized assistance. By engaging customers and addressing their needs promptly, you can build a stronger connection and foster a positive relationship with your audience.
- Cost-Efficient Customer Support: Live chat can be a cost-effective customer support solution compared to traditional methods like phone support. It enables your support agents to handle multiple chat conversations simultaneously, reducing the need for a large support team. This efficiency can result in cost savings while still providing quality customer service.
- Time-Saving for Customers: Live chat allows visitors to quickly get the information they need without having to navigate through your website or wait for an email response. It saves them time and effort, providing a convenient and efficient way to interact with your business.
- Valuable Customer Insights: Many live chat plugins offer features like chat transcripts and visitor tracking. These insights provide valuable data about customer preferences, pain points, and common queries. Analyzing this information can help you improve your products, services, and overall customer experience.
- Integration with CRM and Support Tools: Some live chat plugins integrate with customer relationship management (CRM) systems and support tools. This integration allows you to capture chat transcripts, collect customer data, and sync it with your CRM for better lead management and customer relationship tracking.
- Mobile-Friendly Communication: With the increasing use of mobile devices, having a live chat plugin that is mobile-responsive is crucial. It enables visitors to engage in chat conversations easily, regardless of the device they are using, providing a seamless experience across different platforms.
- Enhanced Competitive Advantage: Offering live chat support can set you apart from competitors who rely solely on traditional customer support channels. It demonstrates your commitment to customer service and can give you a competitive edge in the market.
- Improved Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: Live chat’s immediate assistance and personalized interaction can lead to higher customer satisfaction levels. Satisfied customers are more likely to become repeat customers and recommend your business to others, contributing to customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth.
Top Live Chat Plugins for WordPress in 2023:
1. LiveChat
⭐ Best for: Personalized chat boxes, agent ratings, and a sleek, user-friendly dashboard.
☁️ Customizable chat box: Absolutely! You have full control over the design and appearance.
⏳ Chat history: Yes, you can access the complete chat history for reference and follow-up.
🔥 Free conversations per month: Unfortunately, the free version doesn’t offer any free conversations (premium solution).
💳 Price: Premium plans start at $20 per month for a single user. Plus, enjoy a 30% discount on your first payment.
LiveChat is an incredibly useful live chat solution that lives up to its name by providing an easy-to-use experience for both website visitors/customers and you (your agents). For customers, LiveChat presents a pleasant chat box at the bottom of the page, always visible and accessible with a single click. After the conversation, customers can leave feedback and rate their experience with your agent. They can even share their positive experience on social media using the embedded share buttons within the chat box.
However, what sets LiveChat apart from other WordPress live chat plugins are the numerous impressive features it offers to you and your support agents. Here are some notable features:
- The ability to engage customers proactively, taking the initiative to start conversations and increase the chances of a positive experience.
- Customizable chat window to match your website’s branding.
- A single dashboard to manage all conversations, even if you have LiveChat set up on multiple sites.
- Colorful circles indicating the waiting time for each customer interaction, allowing you to respond faster.
- Complete chat history to access previous conversations.
- LiveChat provides a 14-day free trial for new users, and by signing up through their exclusive offer, you can get a 30-day extension.
Integrating LiveChat with your WordPress site is straightforward using their dedicated plugin. The chat window is user-friendly and simple. However, it’s worth noting that pricing may vary depending on the number of agents on your team.
2. Sendinblue
⭐ Best for: A comprehensive solution for customer communication across multiple channels, including live chat.
☁️ Customizable chat box: Yes, you have the flexibility to customize the chat box according to your preferences.
⏳ Chat history: Not specified.
🔥 Free conversations per month: Not specified.
💳 Price: Chat-enabled plans start at $25 per month.
While it may not be classified as a dedicated WordPress chat plugin, Sendinblue offers similar functionality and is easily integratable with your website. By inserting a simple embed code provided by Sendinblue into your site’s footer (via WordPress Customizer), you can unlock the live chat feature.
To summarize: Although not specifically designed as a WordPress chat plugin, Sendinblue is worth considering as it provides a versatile solution for website owners seeking a multi-purpose tool capable of handling more than just live chat. Sendinblue is renowned for its email marketing tools that rival those of industry giants. However, its key strength lies in the ability to replace several other tools, all within a single package. With Sendinblue, you can seamlessly:
- Send email newsletters and broadcasts
- Set up email marketing automation
- Utilize Sendinblue’s SMTP for email sending
- Manage and optimize Facebook ads
- Create impactful landing pages
- Send SMS messages
- And, of course, engage in live chat conversations.
3. Olark
⭐ Best for: A sophisticated live chat solution that seamlessly integrates with various aspects of your business, such as CRM, help desk, and sales.
☁️ Customizable chat box: Yes, you have the ability to customize the chat box to align with your brand and preferences.
⏳ Chat history: Yes, you can access the complete chat history and detailed transcripts of conversations.
🔥 Free conversations per month: 20 free conversations are included.
💳 Price: Premium plans start at $29 per month.
Olark is a comprehensive live chat solution that, while not specifically designed as a WordPress chat plugin, can be easily integrated with your WordPress website using a convenient widget. By obtaining a code snippet from Olark, you can embed it wherever you choose on your site. It’s a straightforward process.
What sets Olark apart are its advanced features:
● Chat reports that provide insights on chat frequency, operator responsiveness, and customer satisfaction.
● Integration with popular CRMs like Salesforce, Highrise, Nutshell, and more.
● The ability to set rules to hide/show the chat box, automatically send messages, and assign chats to specific departments.
● Helpdesk integration with platforms such as Groove, Desk.com, Zendesk, and others.
● Operators can be grouped by teams, such as sales and support.
● Search functionality within chat history and detailed transcripts.
● Visibility of visitors’ shopping carts, enabling more informed responses and faster sales closure.
● White-label feature that allows you to remove Olark’s branding.
Each chat conversation box provides a comprehensive overview of the customer’s activity on your site, including the pages they visited and their actions. After the conversation, customers can leave feedback and ratings. Olark offers a wide range of features, making it an excellent choice, particularly for those with more advanced live chat requirements.
4. JivoChat
⭐ Best for: Connecting all communication channels and managing them from a unified dashboard, with a focus on closing deals.
☁️ Customizable chat box: Yes, the chat box can be customized according to your preferences.
⏳ Chat history: Yes, conversation history is available.
🔥 Free conversations per month: Unlimited conversations are offered.
💳 Price: Starts from $19 per agent, per month, with the ability to use it on multiple sites. The Enterprise Plan is available for more than ten agents, and a fourteen-day trial is offered for premium plans.
JivoChat provides a convenient solution for connecting with your online visitors in real time. It offers multiple communication channels such as live chat, email, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, Apple Business Chat, and phone calls, all accessible from a single dashboard. The powerful web-based app runs smoothly in the background and pops up on both desktop and mobile devices when needed, opening in the same window as your website.
JivoChat functions as a built-in CRM, allowing you to quickly gather information about your site visitors and engage with them instantly. Additionally, JivoChat automatically loads conversation history for repeat chats. It seamlessly integrates with existing CRMs, eliminating the need to share passwords with staff. It also integrates well with popular platforms like Slack, WordPress, Shopify, and more.
JivoChat offers an impressive array of features that provide insights into visitor behavior and enable timely action:
● Chatbots are available to handle routine queries not only on your website but also on messengers and social media.
● Features such as timely notifications, canned responses, message sneak peeks, and customizable templates for FAQs enhance agent efficiency.
● Statuses, tags, deals, comments, and color-coded chats help agents respond quickly to customer inquiries.
● Agents can handle multiple chats simultaneously.
● Real-time visitor tracking and smart triggers allow proactive initiation of conversations.
● Offline contact forms collect visitor details for later follow-up.
● The customizable chat widget supports 25 languages and offers two-way translation for chats with non-native speakers.
● Jivo enables making or receiving calls by connecting your phone.
● Integration with Google Analytics allows lead generation, source identification, feedback collection, and tracking of employee responses and response time.
JivoChat has a free forever plan with unlimited chats over any number of websites. With the options to respond over both chat and messenger, as well as chat with any number of team members simultaneously, it can very well replace your team communication app. It’s no wonder that it’s increasingly becoming one of the more popular WordPress live chat plugins available on the market today.
5. Chaport
⭐ Best for: automating sales and support with chatbots.
☁️ Customizable chat box: YES
⏳ Chat history: YES
🔥 Free conversations per month: unlimited
💳 Price: free forever plan and two paid plans starting at $19 per agent, with pricing scaling based on the number of operators. Premium plans offer a 14-day free trial.
Chaport is a messaging platform that combines live chats and chatbot services to promote customer self-service. By creating a knowledge base for your website and activating an FAQ bot in the chat widget, common questions can be answered automatically, allowing agents to focus on more complex chats. It stands out for its user-friendly interface, making it one of the most accessible WordPress live chat plugins. Creating a chatbot doesn’t require coding knowledge. Simply add a new bot, write a scenario, and specify triggers. If needed, visitors can be transferred to a live chat.
Chaport offers additional features to ensure excellent 24/7 service:
● Install the chat widget on multiple websites and receive chats in the Chaport app.
● Visitor monitoring and typing insights for faster responses.
● Collect basic visitor information through chat forms before or during chatbot conversations.
● Integration with related apps through Zapier, allowing for automated workflows with 3000+ integrations.
● Customizable chatbot design to match your website and reinforce brand recognition.
● Use rule-based auto invitations and automatic messages on checkout pages to encourage visitors to close deals.
● Group chats and chat transfer for coordinated responses.
● Receive notifications when chats are initiated and utilize autoresponders during off-time.
● Analytics and reports, including on-demand reports that show engagement rates, response time, and more.
6. Zendesk Chat (formerly Zopim Live Chat)
⭐ Best for: attractive and professional chat boxes with minimal restrictions for free users.
☁️ Customizable chat box: YES
⏳ Chat history: 14 days with free plans; unlimited for premium plans
🔥 Free conversations per month: unlimited
💳 Price: premium plans start at $19 per month.
Zendesk Chat is a highly popular live chat service for WordPress users. It can be easily installed through a dedicated WordPress plugin available for free from the official repository.
One of the standout features of Zendesk Chat is its stylish and customizable chat boxes. With a wide range of beautiful layouts and themes to choose from, you can create a professional-looking chat box that matches your website’s design. To respond to visitor messages, you can access the external Zendesk Dashboard. If you prefer to manage chats on the go, you can also install a dedicated Android or iPhone app. The dashboard provides essential metrics that allow you to review chat performance, track chat history, and gain real-time insights about your visitors.
With a free subscription, one chat agent can handle unlimited chats, albeit one at a time. For smaller websites, this live chat plugin may be sufficient. However, if you want to upgrade and access additional features, premium plans start at $19 per month. These features include chat triggers, which allow you to set conditions for the chat box to automatically launch, such as when a visitor remains on a page for over a minute.
7. Tidio Live Chat
⭐ Best for: one click installation, and direct emails sent to offline chat users.
☁️ Customizable chat box: YES
⏳ Chat history: unlimited
🔥 Free conversations per month: unlimited
💳 Price: premium plans start at $20 per month.
Tidio Live Chat is a user-friendly WordPress live chat plugin that offers seamless installation with just one click. Once activated, you’re ready to start using it. The chat boxes come in three customizable designs, allowing you to fully align them with your brand’s colors and style. Chats are managed through this tab, conveniently accessed directly from your WordPress dashboard. You can also handle chats using dedicated desktop, iOS, or Android apps for added flexibility.
If you’re unable to engage in a chat for any reason, offline messages are automatically sent to your inbox, ensuring that you don’t miss any important inquiries. Likewise, if a visitor leaves the chat, you can continue the conversation via email.
The free version of Tidio Live Chat allows one agent to handle one chat at a time, without any other limitations. This makes it an excellent choice for small business owners who manage their businesses independently. Additional agents can be added starting from $19 per month, which also unlocks benefits like unlimited concurrent chats and automatic messages.
8. Live Chat Unlimited
⭐ Best for: no monthly fees, and chats handled from the WordPress dashboard.
☁️ Customizable chat box: YES
⏳ Chat history: unlimited
🔥 Free conversations per month: none (premium plugin)
💳 Price: one-off $75 fee.
If you’re tired of dealing with monthly fees associated with live chat plugins, then Live Chat Unlimited is the perfect solution for you. Available for a one-time fee of $75 on CodeCanyon, this plugin allows you to handle all your chats directly from the WordPress dashboard, making it incredibly convenient, especially if you spend most of your day logged in.
One of the standout features of Live Chat Unlimited is its simplicity. Unlike other WordPress live chat plugins that bombard you with overwhelming design options, Live Chat Unlimited keeps it straightforward. The chat boxes are simple yet effective, offering a choice between just two colors for customization.
With Live Chat Unlimited, you have the ability to handle an unlimited number of conversations simultaneously, and multiple operators can collaborate to respond to the same query. Even if all operators are offline, the chat box seamlessly transforms into a contact form, allowing visitors to email their questions directly.
How to Choose a Live Chat Plugin for WordPress:
- Feature Set: Assess the features offered by different live chat plugins. Look for features such as proactive chat invitations, chat customization options, chat history, file sharing, mobile responsiveness, and integration with other tools like CRM or email marketing software. Determine which features are essential for your website.
- Ease of Use: Consider the user-friendliness of the plugin. A good live chat plugin should be easy to install, configure, and manage. It should have a user-friendly interface for both the website owner and the visitors engaging in chat.
- Customization Options: Evaluate the level of customization available with the plugin. Look for options to match the chat widget’s appearance with your website’s design and branding. Consider if you can add custom messages, images, or colors to the chat widget.
- Performance and Reliability: Check the performance of the live chat plugin. Ensure that it doesn’t significantly slow down your website’s loading speed. Look for plugins that have good ratings and positive reviews from other users to ensure reliability and stability.
- Integration Capabilities: Consider the integration capabilities of the live chat plugin. Check if it can integrate with your existing tools, such as email marketing services, CRM platforms, or analytics tools. Integration can streamline your workflow and provide a better user experience.
- Mobile Responsiveness: Ensure that the live chat plugin is mobile responsive and works well on different devices and screen sizes. Many users access websites through mobile devices, so having a responsive chat widget is essential.
- Support and Updates: Evaluate the level of support provided by the plugin’s developer. Check if they offer documentation, tutorials, or a knowledge base to help you set up and troubleshoot the plugin. Additionally, look for plugins that receive regular updates to ensure compatibility with the latest WordPress versions and security patches.
- Pricing: Consider your budget and compare the pricing plans of different live chat plugins. Some plugins offer a free version with limited features, while others have premium plans with additional functionality. Choose a plugin that provides good value for the features you need.
- User Reviews and Ratings: Read reviews and ratings from other users to gauge their experiences with the plugin. This can provide valuable insights into its performance, reliability, and overall user satisfaction.
- Trial or Demo Version: If possible, try out a trial or demo version of the live chat plugin before making a final decision. This will allow you to assess its functionality, ease of use, and compatibility with your website.
Conclusion:
By incorporating a live chat plugin into your website, you can establish a direct and immediate line of communication with your customers, enhance their online experience, and build stronger relationships. It’s a valuable tool that can positively impact your customer support efforts and contribute to the growth and success of your business in today’s digital age.
Q: Can live chat plugins be integrated with other business tools? A: Yes, integration capabilities vary depending on the specific live chat plugin, but many offer integrations with popular customer relationship management (CRM) systems, help desk software, email marketing tools, and more. This integration allows businesses to streamline their workflows and centralize customer data.
Learn more about WordPress blog plugins here.
FAQs on Live Chat Plugins:
Are live chat plugins secure?
Live chat plugins prioritize security and data protection. They typically use encryption protocols to secure conversations and may offer features like visitor IP masking and data anonymization to safeguard user privacy. It’s important to choose a reputable live chat plugin provider and ensure that they comply with data protection regulations.
Can live chat plugins be used on mobile devices?
Yes, most live chat plugins offer mobile compatibility. They may provide dedicated mobile apps for iOS and Android devices, allowing businesses and their agents to respond to chat messages even while on the go.
Are there limitations to the number of conversations or agents in live chat plugins?
The limitations on the number of conversations or agents can vary depending on the specific live chat plugin and pricing plan you choose. Free plans may have restrictions, while premium plans often offer more extensive features and scalability options for larger teams and higher chat volumes.
How can I measure the effectiveness of live chat plugins?
Many live chat plugins provide analytics and reporting features to measure key performance indicators such as chat volume, response times, customer satisfaction ratings, and more. These insights can help you assess the effectiveness of your live chat support and make improvements as needed.
