Despite the growing popularity of internet shopping, most online shoppers still want to reach a living and breathing person when they have a question, problem or issue. A recent study found that a live voice is still the most preferred form of customer service among online Americans, writes MarketingCharts.

At the same time, the move to online also means that consumers are warming to the idea of other live customer service options. Two-thirds (67%) of US consumers say they would value the option of having both a live text chat and a live voice conversation to get the help they need when making online purchases, according to a survey by ATG (Art Technology Group, Inc).

Additional study findings:

  • Nearly 85% of consumers who browse, research, and buy products and services online want the choice of click to call or click to chat to get live sales or service assistance.
  • 70% of consumers rated click to call – defined as a direct connection with a live voice agent without having to go through an Interactive Voice Response system (IVR) – as “extremely useful” or “very useful.”
  • 68%of respondents reported that a reasonable price of a product or service is the main factor that drives them to visit one site over another.