Should You Use Intercom Chat? (AB Test Result)

📝 Removing Live Chat Bubble: A Surprising Increase in Conversations

Are you tired of chat bubbles cluttering up your interface and obstructing important elements? You're not alone. In fact, we at Atlas felt the same way and decided to do something about it. We removed our live chat bubble and replaced it with a link to live chat in our navigation. The result? A surprising 62% increase in new chat conversations.

🤔 Why We Removed the Chat Bubble

When we first added Intercom to Atlas, it seemed like the startup thing to do. However, we quickly found the chat bubble to be annoying and obstructive. It cluttered up our interface and at times even blocked important elements. In a moment of desperation, we created a hide chat bubble option in our settings. While it allowed us to hide the bubble for ourselves, we knew we hadn't solved the problem. We had just hidden it from ourselves.

💡 The Test

We decided to do a test. We removed the live chat bubble and replaced it with a link to live chat in our navigation. If users clicked that link, they were taken to a page where they could begin a new live chat by clicking a button. We were hoping that the link in the navigation would result in roughly the same amount of new conversations.

📈 The Results

To our surprise, the navigation link performed way better than the chat bubble. We had a 62% increase in new conversations. This felt like a win. We like live chat, but we hate chat bubbles. And if we hate them, maybe users hate them too. Maybe users have developed a chat bubble blindness for that annoying pimple in the bottom of the screen.

🤔 Pros and Cons

Pros

- Increased new chat conversations

- Cleaner interface without chat bubble clutter

- Improved user experience

Cons

- Users may not immediately notice the live chat link in the navigation

- Some users may prefer the convenience of the chat bubble

📌 Highlights

- Removing live chat bubble led to a 62% increase in new chat conversations

- Chat bubbles can clutter up interfaces and obstruct important elements

- A link to live chat in the navigation can be a cleaner and more effective solution

❓ FAQ

Q: Will Atlas ever bring back the chat bubble?

A: No, we have no plans to bring back the chat bubble.

Q: Will other companies see the same increase in conversations if they remove the chat bubble?

A: We can't say for sure, but it's worth testing to see if it works for your company.

Q: What other solutions are there for live chat besides a chat bubble?

A: A link to live chat in the navigation, a chat widget in the corner of the screen, or a chat button in the header or footer are all options to consider.

Resources:

- [Intercom](https://www.intercom.com/)

- [VOC AI Chatbot](https://www.voc.ai/product/ai-chatbot) (an AI chatbot that can automatically reduce large amounts of work on customer services)