365?

Here is a perfect metaphor for you to envision and think about:

Paid Advertising, in all it’s guises (PPC, PPI, SEO, SEM), can get you to the front door…but when the customer rings the door bell…who’se going to answer and invite them in?

Meaning, all the ads and pay per clicking and SEM can be great and all, but if there isn’t a REAL live person monitoring that website 24/7/365 your site abandonment rate will continue to be sky high. I don’t care what kind of content is on the site. With the proper use of a 24/7 live chat agent, visitors can get on your site…get the information they need…and then get off.

Rule #1: No one wants to be on a website for longer than 5 minutes, unless they are on a site for Breaking News, XXX, etc. When it comes to gathering information like a new car or house paint, many businesses struggle with the cancer and scourge of site abandonment. The cure is having the right live chat technology on the site that is monitored 24 hours a day by a staff that is trained to answer just like you would answer when you are at work.

Here’s a little bit of reality. You have to figure that most people don’t visit a business’ website during the day, until they get home from work. Sometimes it’s even later than that, like after dinner time. By that time, most businesses have already closed for the evening and no one can even answer the telephone if someone calls in with questions.

So it becomes this sick rat race for some people to try to cut out sometime to fit their busy lives into the dealership’s schedule. That is a ridiculous way of doing business.

With 24/7 coverage on your site, you gain the upper hand of having the unique ability to interact with visitors at literally, the point of sale. But wait, it gets better.

Ever heard of ClickToTalk?

ClickToTalk technology enables the end user to bridge a direct phone conversation with the business via the website. Now having ClickToTalk technology is great and all, but afterhours if no one is there to answer that it’s pointless to have it in the first place. However, if you had agents answering the calls that come in afterhours, they can be transcribed and emailed to any recipient.

So you see, doing the proper follow through is imperative with your site’s visitors, in the daytime and even more importantly, afterhours!

Tags: 24/7 live chat, 24/7 online support, click to talk, clicktotalk, iclicktotalk, internet technology, Live Chat, livechat, livechatagent, online advertising, online customer service, online support, pay per click, pay per click advertising, PPC, SEM, SEO, Site Abandonment Rate, Social Media Posts, social networking, website functionality
Posted in: ClickToTalk Technology, Customer Service, Lead Conversion, Live Chat, SEO / SEM, Site Abandonment Rate, Social Media Posts |

Comments: 744 Comments

The Business of Doing Business Has Changed: Questions About Social Media, Live Chat Services, and The Future.

With less and less advertising revenue going towards all forms of Old Media and more going towards Social Media and SEO/SEM, business owners have had to adapt. I have a 2 part question:

1. Over the next 2 – 5 years, how much emphasis will any business put into their online presence?

2. If almost all your customers have visited your site at one point or another, how important would it be to have 24/7/365 online support?

Live chat support that could: Answer FAQ’s and relieve the phone burden on in house staff, book rooms, connect a ClickToTalk instant phone call between the end user and the hotel staff (while the customer is still surfing the site.), process realtime feedback on hotel experience, etc…

The business of business has changed. What will you do to evolve?

Tags: 24/7 live chat, 24/7 online support, click to talk, Customer Service, internet technology, Live Chat, live chat technology, livechat, livechatagent, online customer service, online support, Social Media Posts, technology, website functionality
Posted in: ClickToTalk Technology, Customer Service, Lead Conversion, Live Chat, Online Search, Social Media Posts |

Comments: 87 Comments

Google Wave: Got My Wave Finally!

Yes! After months of waiting and waiting and waiting, I finally got officially invited into Google Wave. Not sure why it has taken months for that but I’m very excited.

I’ve been messing around with Google Wave for a few minutes or so and it seem promising. It’s difficult to gauge the true power of it all when you really don’t have an entire network to share with. All of that will change in time. I have patience and friends that will be added.

Initially, I thought that it was too simplistic in its design, but after a few minutes of pondering it now makes sense WHY they have made it this way. Understanding Google is like looking at crystal ball sometimes and your sitting on the other side of the table without the foresight.

Google’s intent with Google Wave will no doubt be direct competition with Twitter and other similar networks. How this application will change the Social Media world has yet to be seen, but the possibilities are pretty much endless. Something that immediately came to mind was how can live chat companies integrate this new technology into their current program or software?

Good question, but answers are still illusive at best…

Tags: Google Wave, internet technology, Live Chat, livechat, livechatagent, Social Media Posts, technology, Twitter
Posted in: Google, Live Chat, Social Media Posts |

Comments: 7 Comments

Site Update: Issue has been resolved. You may proceed to ClickToTalk to me.

Whew! After many hours of testing and retesting our system. The issue has been resolved. This is the first and only time that this has happened. What was the issue? Well…if you just need to know:

It turns out there was a glitch in my VOIP phone from a power surge from a storm the night before.

I had to do some fancy foot work, but we’re up and running.

So feel free to connect with me now. No, I mean it, right now. Call me with the Click To Talk button. If you have any questions about: LiveChatAgent, ClickToTalk, Social Media, Social Netowrking, SEO, SEM, Google Analytics, Dashboards, Site Abandonment Rates, CRM systems, Online Marketing, Internet Search, Keywords, etc., feel free to contact me. I’ll be more than happy to answer your questions and/or lead you to the right direction for your business.

Tags: 24/7 live chat, click to talk, computer technology, Customer Service, iclicktotalk, Live Chat, live chat technology, livechat, livechatagent, online customer service, online support, search, search engine technology, SEM, SEO, update, web analytics, website, website functionality, website innovation, website update
Posted in: ClickToTalk Technology, Customer Service, Keywords, Lead Conversion, Live Chat, Online Search, SEO / SEM, Social Media Posts, Website Updates |

Comments: 95 Comments

Part I: Thoughts on the Web 2.0 Convention at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

The Web 2.0 Conference at the Jacob Javits Center in NYC is a fairly large tech conferences and convention that usually runs for 4 days. If it has to do with new emerging tech concepts or products…most likely it’s here. The first 2 days of this convention are for workshops, conferences and seminars. The main Expo Hall is closed to the general public until the last 2 days.

Part I: My personal experience attending the show today.

There were many facets of IT (Internet Technology) at the show. Much of the show was dedicated to the tangible aspects of the Internet: hardware for servers, data encryption security, self contained climate control server housing, social media analytics, phone and data infrastructure. So many companies from various sectors had booths with information, mini-presentations, etc. I did notice one important sector that was non-existent at the show; live chat companies. Live chat is rapidly becoming the true essential tool for websites as their competitive arsenal centerpiece. You would think that at an important Web 2.0 Convention in NYC, a livechat company would have a booth, but apparently not.

I must have spoken to 200-250 people today easily. Some conversations were surface, typical and frankly…fleeting. But others transcended the show itself and moved towards forging actual friendships. My perception of humanity always exceeds my amazement by the caliber of human beings that coagulate here.

People are either incredibly compassionate or ridiculously rude. I understand that people’s time is important to them, but almost knocking me over as I am talking to someone and NOT saying you’re sorry? Wow. I have a reactionary type of personality…if you treat me right, I treat you right. If the opposite happens…Vice versa.

But I digress…

I didn’t go to the show to meet people as if this was a Facebook reunion. I was there to see new technology and its perceived effects on the internet. I wanted to look into a crystal ball and see an overall view of what’s happening right now in the tech industry…and I did. I saw many, many pairs of thick eye-glasses and plenty propeller-heads spinning like one gigantic geek vortex. heh.

The 3 biggest concepts I took away from the show was:

1. Cloud Technology 2. Virtualization 3. Security

To be continued on Part II…

(Sidenote: I personally was not happy with the 200:1 Male-to-Female ratio, but hey I was there to network, not get some trim. heh.)

Tags: click to talk, cloud server, cloud technology, computer technology, data encryption technology, instant messenger services, live chat technology, livechat, livechatagent, search engine technology, Social Media Posts, social networking, technology, virtual desktop, virtualization, web 2.0, website, website innovation
Posted in: Conferences & Conventions, Live Blogging, Live Chat |