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Unlike previous generations, more than half of Millennials prefer chat support to phone support. Millennials are multi taskers, often juggling multiple chats at once, and are in constant communication with their peers, family – and yes, businesses. The slang they use in chat is unique to them, with abbreviations, emoticons, and a sense of humor that’s all theirs.
Millennials are the most connected group on social media, and are more likely to make a fuss and attack your brand publicly. Conversely – with good support they are also the most likely to give public, positive feedback on your brand. That’s why with millennials, it’s so important you do chat right!
Without further ado, here are the 10 rules your brand should never break when chatting with Millennials.
10 Rules To Keep When Chatting with Millennials
Be timely
Millennials have a deep appreciation of their time and don’t want to waste it. The last thing they want is to buy a product or service, and then be expected to spend hours waiting for a response for assistance.
Millennials have people to see, places to be, and things to do. More specifically, Pokémon to catch – your response time should be under 60 minutes on social media or quora and faster on your site. If it’s longer, expect a bad review.
Once you’re chatting with a Millennial, be short and to the point. Ensure that your agents are fast typists, aren’t juggling five chats at the same time or engaging in too much small talk.
Be available to chat via any device
Millennials own smartphones more than any other group at 77% and spend on average over 2 hours a day using them. They are digital nomads, many of them working from phones, tablets, or laptops from home and faraway countries.
For that reason, your live chat MUST be available across all devices. Furthermore, having a mobile app is a huge plus in making your chat support accessible.
Be available for chat 24/7
In our fast changing and interconnected world, millennials are no longer doing nine to five. They are working in faraway time-zones, and on their own schedule. Delete “working business hours” from your customer support lingo if you want to keep Millennials happy with your service.
Be Human
Millennials respect brands that have a personal touch. Chat support that jokes around, uses emoticons, and have a good time while keeping it professional is a good way to build your brand. It’s the kind of thing that can go viral on social media and sharing sites when done right.
Check out this story about an agent named Thor playing along with a customer. It ended up on top of Reddit’s popular “/funny” forum and became viral, doing wonders for Amazon’s customer service image.
Keep it real
You should hire Millennials to be part of your customer service team to avoid mistakes. A Baby Boomer using Millennial slang can be endearing. But misusing or overdoing it can be cringeworthy. It’s a fine line you’re walking, be careful.
Use video and images
Lead by the millennial code of communication, the world is becoming increasingly visual, and ever since Gmail switched text for icons, companies have been following with visual cues.
Don’t just verbally explain to your Millennial customers (or any age group in this case) what to do. Send a video, show images or best just connect with live video. Intelligent visual support is the future of customer service.
This cannot be emphasized enough. Studies show that 95% of Millennials expect your company to have a social media presence. If you aren’t available to connect on social media, you will lose Millennials.
They will go for support to other forums or businesses and soon you’ll find them with your competition. If you’re active on social media, Millennials will come, connect, and engage. Their friends will read their posts, and having an active and strong social media account can do wonders for your brand.
Don’t forward them to the FAQ
They read it already. When 70 percent of customers expect online self-service like help desk’s to be readily available – you can safely assume that Millennials have already tried it.
Millennials out-read former generations and are more technically aware. They’ve already tried the simple solutions, and you should keep this in mind and not talk down to them.
They came to chat. They want their problem resolved in chat!
Show a face and real name
Millennials are engaging and communicating with brands on a more personal and emotional level than previous generations. Most of their social activity is via chat, so a support session is a normal social interaction for them.
Upload a picture of your representative next to the chat. Show a name. Let them develop a relationship and it will pay dividends for future business.
Show them something extra
Millennials are tech savvy and curious about innovation. A true millennial is always happy to learn about new features, apps, or services. They’re early adopters and want to be the first to impress their fellow techies. Listen to them and find out what they are interested in. Don’t oversell — give them value and they’ll appreciate it.
Stay Relevant
The world is changing fast, and being able to make sure your business stays relevant with previous generations is more important than ever. These rules will help your brand chat with Millennials and deliver effective support, helping you deliver long term relationships with your customers.
