LivePerson
Company: LivePerson, New York, NY
Company Description: LivePerson is a provider of online engagement solutions that facilitate real-time assistance and expert advice.Connecting businesses and experts with consumers seeking help on the Web, LivePerson's hosted software platform creates more relevant, compelling and personalized online experiences. More than 8,000 companiesrely on LivePerson to maximize the impact of the online channel.
Nomination Category: Solution Provider Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Customer Service or Call Center Training Practice of the Year
Nomination Title: LivePerson Training Team - Helping companies seamlessly integrate live chat into the call center for optimal results in service and sales
Tell the story about what this nominated organization has achieved since the beginning of July last year (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
Founded in 1995 and publicly traded for 10 years, LivePerson, Inc. is now
recognized as the market leader in intelligent, real-time online customer
engagement for sales and service.
While LivePerson customers typically enjoy a 20- 25% uplift in online sales
conversions and a 40% increase in average order value, it is not always the
software alone that brings these results. The way in which chats are handled
is extremely important in generating positive results for a business’ online
channel. For this reason, LivePerson provides chat agent training for our
customers as part of the live chat implementation process. As Barry Lamm,
Director of the Center of Excellence has said, “Chat agents are the secret
sauce of the LivePerson deployment.”
LivePerson offers remote trainings to all new customers. A product overview
along with best practices for using live chat is offered over a conference
call demo to the new call center team. The training team also offers on-site
training sessions, typically to our Enterprise customers, where they will
often travel half way around the world to provide this 2 ½ day workshop.
Within this training, LivePerson teaches agents the most effective ways of
answering chats, what phrases to use, and how to handle difficult situations.
It is here that our trainers teach the S.U.R.A. chat model, which helps agents
who have engaged in a chat understand how to: Set the Tone, Understand your
Client, Relay the Solution, Achieve the Sale/Service Query.
Chat agents are often sceptical about moving from solely telephone
interactions in the call center. In response to this familar obstacle,
LivePerson trainers help the call center manager establish motivational
initiatives.
They instill rewards programs, for example, and bring attention to the
call center’s ‘chat of the week’ to shed light on an agent who closed a sale
or demonstrated great customer service. LivePerson helps the call center
become excited about live chat.
To overcome the difficulty of training agents who are not familiar with the
technology, LivePerson also trains the manager to analyze chat transcripts so
he/she is able to deliver feedback to the chat team going forward. The
LivePerson trainer helps agents understand how responses can come across
differently over chat than they can over the phone and helps them with most
effective wording. LivePerson also helps our customer select the best
candidates for chat agents by offering useful criteria regarding skills that
are most necessary when conducting chats.
Results
This year a number of LivePerson customers have achieved phenomenal results in
their call center due to LivePerson training methods, for example:
• By using the LivePerson S.U.R.A. method, customer, Crate & Barrel’s agents
obtained a customer satisfaction score of 100% just one week after deployment.
•Likewise using the steps of S.U.R.A. and LivePerson training tactics, Omni
Hotels & Resorts have been able to accomplish the following with their live
chat platform:
-High Customer Satisfaction Ratings Customers satisfaction rating scores
(CSAT) have risen to 87 percent. Customers are happy that they are able to
engage with a chat agent as the need arises, or as they have questions on
hotel and vacation packages, meetings and events.
-Increased Conversion Rates: Omni chatters convert at a higher rate than self-
servers (non-chatters.) Chats typically convert at 18 percent versus 3 percent
for non-chatters.
-Within the Meetings & Events pages, RFP completion increased fifty percent
within the first month of deployment and half of those are converting to
prospective business.
-Boost in Average Order Value The typical average order value from a “chatter”
is $430, versus a “non-chatter” who spends $398 on average.
Please contact me for more results! erieger@liveperson.com
The LivePerson training team should be recognized, as they are not responsible
for training one call center, but they customize live chat training programs
for over 8,000 customers.
The team trains agents from a number of different backgrounds from every
industry. They strive to make sure live chat is working for each company and
that all members of the call center are enabled to succeed with live chat for
sales and service.
List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
Omni Hotel Press Release:
http://liveperson.investorroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=278
Omni Hotel Case Study:
http://www.solutions.liveperson.com/docs/casestudies/ENT_Omni_CaseStudy_061510.pdf
http://www.internetretailer.com/2010/10/01/texting-talk?p=1
Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader of this nominated company:
Anita Casanovas, COE and Manager, heads up the training team, organizes off-
site trainings and oversees that all companies are receiving appropriate
training materials.