What Is Live Chat Support Outsourcing? (+ When and How to Use It)

Live chat is one of the most important support channels you can develop today. In fact, 41% of all modern customers prefer it over phone or email help.

And while there are still companies that rely on in-house teams to manage these real-time chats, most organizations prefer to take the external route, and for good reason.

This article will dive much deeper into what live chat support outsourcing is. We’ll first cover the benefits of the practice and who it’s best suited for. Then we’ll outline the provider vetting process to help you choose an outsourcing partner that’ll actually meet your needs.

Key takeaways

• Outsourcing is all about using third-party providers to handle your customer interactions.
• Live chat outsourcing can be a cost-effective way to provide 24/7 multilingual support.
• Finding a reliable outsourcing partner requires doing a bit of research on your own.
• Outsourcing can be particularly useful for businesses in retail, healthcare, and finance.

What Is Live Chat Support Outsourcing?

Live chat support has long been the norm in customer care. Unlike phone support, which is limited to one person at a time, or email support, where messages can end up in spam and take a while, live chats offer real-time, text-based, one-on-one support via a simple website widget.

They also differ from automated chatbots, whose responses aren’t really helpful in most cases and can even end up negatively affecting your business’s reputation.

And while you could have an in-house team behind this vital support function, most companies choose to team up with external providers whose agents can run live chats in your company’s name.

This is often done through legacy offshore business process outsourcing (BPO) providers and gig-based platforms. There is, however, a third approach here, and that is to use an agentic workforce delivery platform like ShyftOff offers.

Why Businesses Choose to Outsource Live Chat

Companies go the outsourcing route for a variety of reasons, but in most cases, it all boils down to this:

• Having round-the-clock availability: Handing the baton to a dedicated live chat provider enables your business to offer 24/7 support with much faster response times.
• Saving on operational expenses: Outsourcing means you don’t have to deal with the costs of renting brick-and-mortar support centers or training your own staff.
• Offering multilingual support: Using third-party support lets you provide live chat in multiple languages that would otherwise require training countless employees from around the globe, or risk impacting your CSAT scores by omitting it.
• Enjoying unparalleled scalability: Say your eCommerce website is being swarmed by shoppers asking questions during a sale event. When outsourcing, that’s not an issue as providers can easily allocate more agents to your business during peak hours.

When Does Live Chat Outsourcing Make Sense?

Not every business needs to outsource its live chat support. For instance, enterprises that already have international teams might not need to rely on third-party providers. The same goes for businesses that don’t encounter large volumes of customer support tickets, as well as those that want to stick to their own platforms.

That being said, outsourcing can still be beneficial if you want:

• To offer round-the-clock support without employing an extensive global staff
• To have fast response times without hiring a full-time team
• An automated way of dealing with repetitive questions

Pros and Cons of Outsourcing Live Chat Support

With the whys and whens out of the way, let’s see where the practice shines the most and where it might fall short:

Pros:

• Cost-effective solution for offering 24/7 support
• Multilingual live chat without training multiple speakers
• Scalable model with seamless peak-hour ramping up

Cons:

• Potential brand inconsistencies due to third-party agents
• Varying support quality due to the sheer scale

One thing to keep in mind is that not all outsourcing providers are equal. Teaming up with the right one doesn’t just enable you to offer 24/7 multilingual support that’s easy to scale up in times of need; it also removes potential drawbacks from the equation.

Key Features to Look for in a Live Chat Outsourcing Partner

You can’t just pick any outsourcing provider and call it a day. If you want to reap the benefits of this approach, you’ll have to find one that ticks all the right boxes. That includes:

• Trained chat agents: A reliable outsourcing company or solution should have a thorough vetting process and provide you with agents who are well-versed in customer interactions and support processes.
• Fast onboarding: Transitioning to an outsourcing model typically takes a few months. Platforms like ShyftOff are designed to scale in as little as two weeks. It’s important to go with a provider that can quickly get you up to speed with their platform and tools. 
• Familiarity with common tools: The provider’s agents should be able to adapt to any particular platform you’re using, be it LiveChat, Zendesk, or a custom CCaaS.
• Brand voice alignment: You should also look for a third-party live chat partner whose agents can match your company’s style and convey your brand message exactly as you intended.
• Transparent reporting: You should assess the provider’s performance-tracking tools to make sure you’re getting insights into agents’ response times and resolution rates.

It’s also worth investigating the provider’s security and compliance features. While they’re not always required, some businesses, especially those in healthcare and finance, have to follow certain rules. By extension, so do their outsourcing partners.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Taking the outsourcing route doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be all set. In fact, many businesses that do so make mistakes, with these being the most common:

• Going with the cheapest available partner: While outsourcing is all about providing cost-efficient support, a cheap provider can end up costing more in the long run.
• Skipping the onboarding process: Not having the agents learn about your business and how you handle things can impact both brand consistency and CSAT scores.
• Disregarding agent performance reports: Ignoring insights into response times and FCR is a quick way to lose customers.

If you’re ready to pull the trigger, start by assessing the provider’s track record and language support. Only then should you get into pricing and scalability, or dive into brand alignment.

Use Case Examples: Industries That Benefit From Live Chat Outsourcing

While outsourcing live chat support gives you an overall edge regardless of niche, some industries can benefit more than others:

• eCommerce: AI-based chatbots may be able to handle repetitive questions, but turning those interactions into purchases is something only a human can do. In that sense, retailers that opt to outsource can effectively deal with both overwhelming surges during sale events and cart abandonment issues.
• SaaS: Outsourcing also makes handling product help inquiries a breeze, whether you’re dealing with an influx of account setup-related questions or password reset requests.
• Healthcare: 24/7 support and reduced wait times also help keep CSAT scores rock-solid, as patients can get answers anytime and anywhere. Moreover, certified outsourcing providers also help when juggling patient confidentiality and HIPAA compliance.
• Finance and banking: With GDPR and PCI-DSS standards being the norm, compliance matters just as much for institutions in the financial sector. Fortunately, high-quality outsourcing partners can help with that while also making sure chats are tightly secured.

How ShyftOff Handles Live Chat Differently

ShyftOff isn’t your run-of-the-mill BPO or WFM software; it’s a fully-fledged Agentic Workforce Delivery Platform that automates every aspect of workforce operations.

For starters, unlike inflexible BPOs that rely solely on dedicated but costly W2s, ShyftOff’s platform takes more of a GigCX approach. This means that, unlike WFM tools, ShyftOff also sources and manages a massive pool of on-demand agents for you.

You also get access to a workforce that is thoroughly familiar with American culture and communication norms. These well-versed agents can easily align with your brand’s voice and match your customers’ style, ensuring live chat conversations are as friendly as they are helpful.

ShyftOff’s dashboard is also super easy to use. On it, accessing certified agents and scaling staffing up or down based on needs becomes a breeze. It also provides in-depth insights into agent performance.

Last but not least, ShyftOff relies on usage-based pricing. That means you’re only billed for the time agents spend actively answering your customers’ live chat questions.

Final Thoughts: Is Live Chat Outsourcing Right for You?

Outsourcing may not be the be-all and end-all solution. However, it’s still a cost-effective way for businesses to offer an easily scalable, round-the-clock live chat support in multiple languages.

That said, going this route also requires understanding your business needs and doing a bit of research into outsourcing providers, as choosing solely based on cost won’t do you any good.

If you’re all settled on that front, you should check out what ShyftOff has to offer and take your live chat support to another level.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is outsourcing more affordable than training in-house teams?

In most cases, yes. Going with a third-party live chat support provider lets you skip on recruitment and overhead expenses. As a result, you don't have to worry about the overhead costs of hiring this support internally.

What is the difference between chatbots and live chat?

The former are powered by AI-based bots that can only handle FAQs. Meanwhile, the latter relies on human agents who can understand nuance and manage complex cases. 

What are the most important agent skills to assess?

While speed and efficiency are the obvious answers here, keeping your company’s CSAT scores high takes more than just that. It requires employing an empathetic support team that actually understands your customers and their needs.

Which business sizes can benefit the most from outsourcing?

Letting dedicated third-party providers handle your live chat support can be advantageous for any business. That said, startups that need enterprise-grade coverage and SMBs with fluctuating support demand tend to gain the most, particularly when using platforms like ShyftOff that offer true elastic scalability rather than fixed-capacity live chat solutions.