February 13, 2018
Any business website would be incomplete today without live chat functionality. Even if you are attracting adequate traffic to your site, it is equally important to be able to sustain the interest of customers and equip them with all the relevant information while they are still on the site, in order to lead them towards a sale. Live chat helps you achieve just that – it makes possible instant communication with onsite visitors and enables prompt resolution of their questions.
So, if you are looking to drive conversions on your WordPress website, read on to find out which are the best live chat plugins available for WordPress and how to install them.
1. LiveChat – This is one of the most user-friendly chat solutions for both – your website visitors and agents alike. It allows you to take that first step towards engaging with the audience without having to wait for them to make the first move. For customers, the live chat widget is always in sight and hence support is just a click away.
Steps to install LiveChat on your WordPress site
i.) Go to the Plugins section in your WordPress Dashboard.
ii.) Click on the Add New button
iii.) Type LiveChat in the Search Tool available on the right
iv.) In the Search Results, you will find LiveChat – WP live chat software for WordPress plugin. Click on Install Now
v.) After the installation click on the “Activate” button
vi.) You will be taken to the plugins section of your WordPress. Click on the settings button available under LiveChat Plugin
vii.) On the Settings section choose Yes, I already have a LiveChat Account and provide your LiveChat email address. Or click on I want to create one if you don’t have a LiveChat account. Then click on Save changes.
viii.) After saving changes, you should see a message telling you that LiveChat has been successfully installed.
2. Zendesk Chat is a proactive live chat service that is easily installed thanks to a dedicated WordPress plugin. It comes with inbuilt triggers to boost chances of engagement and is also mobile optimised.
Steps to install Zendesk on your WordPress site
i.) Click plugins > Add New
ii.) Search for the Zopim app or upload the .zip file downloaded from the Zopim website and click Install Now
iii) After the plugin is installed, click Activate Plugin
iv) Select Zopim Widget > Account Setup
v) Enter your login credentials and click Link Up
To add the Zopim widget via the Appearance menu
- Select Appearance > Editor
- Paste your Zopim live chat script in the Footer section before the </body> tag.
- Click update file
3. Tidio live chat – this is perhaps the easiest live chat plugins to set up – all you need to do is activate and you are good to go. Chats can be handled through the chat tab accessed from the WordPress dashboard or by installing a dedicated app.
Steps to install Tidio on your WordPress site:
i.) In WordPress, go to the Plugins > Add New Section. Type “Tidio Live Chat” in the search field on the right of the screen and click on Install Now
ii.) When the installation is complete, go to Plugins > Installed Plugins and click “Activate”
iii.) Then click on Tidio Chat tab on your WordPress panel
iv.) In case you do not have an account on Tidio, click on “Integrate with your site”. Then you need to select the Go to Panel button
v.) Type in your name in the chat panel and click on Create your account. Doing this will enable you to use the mobile or desktop app and login through tidiochat.com as well.
4. Formilla Live Chat is a great option for those who have modest traffic figures and are looking to give live chat a try. The free package allows one agent one concurrent chat and up to 30 total chats a month. Most will need to upgrade though as 30 chats a month won’t nearly be enough for everyone.
Steps to install Formilla on your WordPress site
i.) Click on Plugins on the left-hand side of your WordPress Admin Panel and then click Add New
ii.)From the Add Plugins page search for Formilla to find the plugin. Then click on Install Now
iii.) You will get a message that the plugin has been installed. Next, click the Activate Plugin link
iv.) Locate Formilla Live Chat from your Plugins Page and click on “Get Started Link”
v.) From the chat menu, click the Sign-up link if you don’t currently have an account. This will open a second browser tab
vi.) Select the second tab and fill in the required details and click Create Account
vii.) Next, you need to copy the plugin ID you received when you signed up. This is shown to you upon creating your account and is also sent to the email address you registered with your Formilla Account
viii.) Go back to the WordPress Admin in the first browser tab and paste the Chat ID you copied from the previous step. Click on save settings and you have successfully installed and activated your Formilla Live Chat plugin.
5. Pure Chat is as attractive a live chat plugin as it is proficient. It includes analytics, proactive chat triggers and multi-chat management. You can schedule the times when the live chat function is online and when it is offline the widget converts into an opt-in form for any MailChimp email list.
Steps to install Pure Chat on your WordPress site:
It takes under 3 minutes to install and so it gets you set up quickly.
Once installed and activated you can use mobile or web apps to chat from anywhere. All you need is to ensure that your status is set to “available”
Customise the Chat widget to match your Company’s branding. Go to the Pure Chat account settings in the web version and change the text, colour image and position to exactly how you want it to appear.
At CommVersion, we can provide you with all the support to make your website a dynamic space that can quickly identify, nurture and convert visitors into potential leads and customers. Connect with us here and find out more about setting up live chat for your business website.