The Customer Service Benchmark results from eDigitalResearch found that, of the 2,000 consumers surveyed, 31% were currently using live chat, and 73% of those rated their satisfaction with the channel as high. 67% said they found live chat easy to use.

Further analysis revealed that customer service touchpoints rated poorly for satisfaction also scored poorly for ease of use. Only 45% of consumers said they were satisfied with phone as a touchpoint; just 26% of them found it easy to use.

“The latest Customer Service Benchmark results suggest that the easier a company makes it for a customer to contact them, the more satisfied they are likely to be,” said Derek Eccleston, global commercial officer at eDigitalResearch. “Brands who are managing their live chat well are making live chat easy to find on their website, clearly signalling to users when their customer service team are available and how long they may have to wait, as well as allowing them to talk openly and honestly about their issues, queries or complaints.”