Meet SimpleChat: Live Chat From Your Phone

8/13/2015

Your customers have questions, but when they visit your website they often leave before asking them, which can hurt your business and impact sales.

Today we’re announcing SimpleChat, an easy to use service that gives you the power to answer questions in real-time via text message. It's a fast and easy way to provide amazing customer service on your website, from wherever you are, and on your own schedule.

We’re offering a special 14-day free trial of SimpleChat so you can get started today.

Try SimpleChat Free

How does it work? Your customers can ask questions through a live chat window located in the lower right hand corner of your website. You’ll get a text message on your phone when a customer wants to chat. If you’re available, you can start texting back while your customer responds from the chat window on your website.

SimpleChat is only $8/month after the 14-day free trial and is billed annually once your trial ends. At this time, SimpleChat only supports 10-digit North American phone numbers. Once enabled, SimpleChat settings are available directly from the Site Builder. The SimpleChat Help Article walks through installation and management.

SimpleChat Features

Chat securely - Built with security in mind so you’re protected against bots and spammers.
Simple Phone Management - Start and end chats directly from your phone via text.
Control Availability - Turn chat availability on and off so you don’t drop chats when you’re busy with something else.
Simultaneous Chats - Run up to 3 chats at a time.
Easy Setup - Get started in minutes and manage it all from the Site Builder.
Custom Branding - Change chat window colors and text to match your brand.

We know that running a website and business can be hard. SimpleChat was designed to give you the flexibility and freedom you need to answer your customers’ questions before they leave and help your business grow. Give it a try and tell us what you think in the comments!

8/13/2015 04:55:17 am

Already signed up for the trial! I also turned on SMS forwarding on my iPhone, so if I'm on my laptop I can reply to texts with Messages. :)

billy

9/8/2015 05:05:57 pm

i love you

Brandon Adams link

8/13/2015 06:42:18 am

I love the idea of non-branded live chat on a website, however those who are subscribed to a Weebly Business plan that pay $400+ yearly should have this service for free. Just a suggestion!

karan link

8/14/2015 01:45:47 am

Yes. You are correct. We are paying for business plan. So we must have a solution. Please make it free

Steven Walters link

8/18/2015 05:53:40 pm

I use the free tawk.to - it's free!! Simply embed it into your site via Weeblly's HTML button.

I think there are many good things about Weebly hence I run workshops based on it for usability alone - however, I think Weebly capitalises a bit too much on people with little know-how.

Weebly are getting increasingly expensive when other solutions out there are getting increasingly less expensive / free.

Joyce link

8/19/2015 07:43:32 am

I tried to,get this app and it said it wasn't available in the U.S.
What country are you in?

David

8/25/2015 03:20:21 pm

"however, I think Weebly capitalises a bit too much on people with little know-how."

You hit the nail on the head!

Who uses a store system that forces the user into 3 clicks per item just to delete? When you have a store with hundreds of items that require a global change, that's potentially THOUSANDS OF CLICKS just to update your catalog!

I was just discussing this with my partner the other day. Weebly is A+ in the setup and get running, but a Solid D- in the follow-thru and ongoing maintenance necessities :(

8/25/2015 03:24:58 pm

oh, and this Simple Chat is another perfect example...

Using it for a cpl days now and it's very hit and miss is connecting customers (timing out on "connecting" but the one thing I see missing is the Chat Transcript function... There is no option for the user or the agent to send a transcript of the conversation to the user. Such an obvious need that it not being included is wholly perplexing :(

Weebly

8/26/2015 06:51:13 am

We're working on making Simplechat, eCommerce, and all our features better than ever, and feedback like this helps us to know where people would like to see us focus. Thanks for your candor!

Luka

8/21/2015 06:01:59 am

YEAA. That MUST be include in Business plan!

Ambi link

9/1/2015 08:26:17 am

I AGREE!

Angela Richards link

9/3/2015 03:18:57 am

Agreed.

Sissorelle link

8/13/2015 08:59:22 am

Nice feature, not necessary for my particular website, but still awesome!

Joe Naminski

8/13/2015 10:19:59 am

Great addition! Any plans to add this to the weebly mobile apps?

AmaxDesigns.com link

8/13/2015 02:17:14 pm

There are some really fantastic features coming from Weebly lately. Thanks for another one :)

Sangonera.es link

8/13/2015 07:16:47 pm

Hey guys please check out my web page and tell me what do you think.

Max

8/13/2015 09:21:04 pm

Doesn't work outside of USA and Canada!

MultiGamerClub link

8/17/2015 03:10:28 am

Same thinking..

And its only a trial aswell.

Buy Premium Weebly Themes link

8/14/2015 01:50:14 am

Great idea! Perfect for folks on the go.

Luminous Themes | Premium Weebly Themes & Templates | www.luminousthemes.com

Noël link

8/14/2015 03:25:58 am

Nice feature. I had a chat option on my site before. It was close to free for a year. I think I got it through AppSumo. That said, I think the price's a bit high and I agree it should be free for Business-users. A well designed comment area for blog posts would be welcome as well, as this is an important way to interact with visitors as well. Many visitors got scared off by direct chat, but are eager to respond or ask questions in the blog comments. There is a lot to improve for Weebly I think. But it is definitely getting better week after week. That's why I stick to you guys. Keep all great features and improvements coming. Have a nice weekend you all!

Sandy Hamblett link

8/14/2015 10:26:04 am

Please extend it to England!

Trystan link

8/14/2015 11:04:56 am

Damn only american numbers :(
Bring it to Australia + i agree it should be free for paying users

I love weebly but Tictail is really winning the battle of site hosters as it has MORE for LE$$

Jacob

8/14/2015 11:11:36 am

Designer Platform availability is...?

Roberto link

8/17/2015 10:23:34 pm

Already spoke with support about this. It is not available for the designer platform. Therefore it cannot earn 5 stars. Maybe 4.

8/15/2015 12:30:33 am

Overall, partnering with SimpleChat is a very fine idea.

That being said, however, SimpleChat will NOT work for my dental office and many other busy businesses because it limits the business to interacting with the customer via a smartphone keyboard, while the customer on the other end is typing at 30-60 words per minute on a tablet or faster yet, on a full-size keyboard. This creates unnecessary lag for the customer and stress for the business rep trying to secure their business.

Weebly, thanks for partnering with SimpleChat, but please look into partnering with a chat provider that allows the business to chat via a full-size keyboard, unless you can convince SimpleChat to provide this feature.

The OTHER ISSUE with SimpleChat that decreases efficacy is that the customer MUST provide an e-mail address to start a chat and there is no wayfor the business to change that to "First Name"... Nobody wants to be added to another mailing list so requiring an e-mail address is a HUGE DETERRENT to customers reaching out via SimpleChat. Besides, what's more important for the rep to know? An e-mail address or how do properly address the customer?? This should be an easy fix; can you please look changing the required info be first name by default or give the business the ability to change it manually?

Victor

8/17/2015 12:39:41 am

Totally agree, check out tawk.to, it solves the two issues you mentioned.

Brian link

8/17/2015 09:24:29 am

+1. I've used Tawk.to on 2 of my sites now, works fine with Weebly and really takes the responsiveness of my business up a notch. Being based in Australia hasn't been an issue - SimpleChat is ruled out for me due to the lack of phone support for AU. Good to see Weebly taking account of the need, but take a global client view, please, not just US.

Sandy link

8/20/2015 03:50:41 am

Thanks for your post. I haven't tried the trial yet, and from reading the posts I don't think I will.

I agree with you that making the customer enter in an email address would be a major deterrent. I wouldn't do it if I were the customer.

Also, I drive a truck for my real job and would not be able to text back on my phone while driving. I won't pay $8 per month to play chat with people while I am at home on the computer, and still have to use my phone to reply.

Thanks everybody for your info!

Jeb

8/29/2015 09:45:12 am

If you set it up with google voice you would be able to use a full size keyboard or a smartphone

Pintas75 link

8/15/2015 09:40:43 am

This is a very good idea but Weebly needs to extend its availability to other countries also

Andrei

8/16/2015 12:41:31 am

Nice! I agree it would be great for it to be included in the Business Plan...

Christopher

8/16/2015 12:47:47 pm

Yes!!! Finally a live chat. Love this feature. A great way to interact with customers.

It would be nice though if in the near future times that when the publisher of the website is on the website editor that it could somehow chat from the website editor itself automatically with the editor knowing. Then revert back to texts when not using the editor. Customers wouldn't know the difference. Just more efficient as I'm one that is on there most of the time.

Also another feature that I'd love to see would be when someone enters their email address. You could create a survey page on your website or google forms e.c.t that allows the publisher to type in a html link in the settings part of the simple chat that automatically gets sent to the email address for customer feedback with a personalized invitation.

Another would be to be able to add fields other than just and email address required, maybe a first name, so when your In a chat you can address them by their name.

Lastly being able to create multiple agents allowing personal choice preference from the customer to be added for different departments set by the publisher.

Just a phew suggestions but loving the new feature ☺️

Christopher White

8/16/2015 01:43:19 pm

Ough. And I forgot, another feature that would be greate is if the publisher could add an option to enable Do Not Disturbe between desired hours. When enabled, and once those hours are set, chat will be unavailable not allowing the user or viewer to use simple chat as a method of contact.

Paul Nicolazzo link

8/17/2015 01:25:05 am

Good idea but not ready for use:
• need to be able to reply from PC as well as phone
• need to be able to set hours automatically and manually
• need to know who (name) we are replying to
• needs to work internationally and specify what languages
• need to be included in Business plan (along with all features); update cost when plan renews. I purchased a long-term business plan to avoid add on costs.

brad link

8/17/2015 02:11:58 am

I use zopim live chat, always free with less features. Works like a charm!

8/17/2015 06:56:26 am

Thank you everyone for your feedback and thoughts! We appreciate it!

stacy link

8/26/2015 05:57:46 pm

why i can not verify my own account? always erros, it says my mobile phone number is not valid. what is the problem?

8/27/2015 05:32:03 am

If you're having trouble verifying your account, please get in touch with our support team and they can help:

http://hc.weebly.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

sofia link

8/18/2015 08:47:00 pm

i know this is not the right place to ask this but i cnt contact your customer service and im having a hard time using my points to upgrde my plan pls help

8/19/2015 07:11:02 am

If you visit this page directly you'll be able to get in touch with our support team:

http://hc.weebly.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

In regards to your question about credits, these are automatically applied to any upgrade to Starter, Pro, or Business, so you don't need to do anything special in order to use them.

Tanveer Website link

8/18/2015 11:51:53 pm

wow that some new feature added by you weebly, thanks alot. I know by practice and research I have done is that if you don't have chat installed on your website then you loss lot of clients, so I always prefer to have chat on my website. And this is good inclusion you weebly.

Tamara Spicer link

8/19/2015 02:26:18 am

Can you say if/when it will be available to international customers? Also I have been a Pro member for 4 years and have asked for this and membership for as long, so when I add this feature (when available) to my account/website (which one?) how will I be billed?

8/19/2015 07:09:35 am

We don't yet have any information on whether this will be available for international customers, but thanks for letting us know that you'd like to use it!

Michael

8/19/2015 06:29:12 am

What about designers? I can't add it to any of my designer sites?

8/19/2015 07:07:53 am

It's not currently available for the Designer platform, but thanks for letting us know you'd like to be able to provide this to your clients!

Lana link

8/19/2015 06:37:59 am

I've just installed it, have not used the functionality yet, but can't it be a little larger, or placed in a more obvious place for the user?

Lana

8/19/2015 06:39:50 am

Actually, disregard this post. I wasn't seeing it correctly!

8/19/2015 07:04:57 am

Not a problem! We're taking into account everyone's great feedback and are working on improvements. Thanks for posting!

Michelle link

8/19/2015 11:43:25 am

This is a great new feature. I agree with other suggestions:
-Add free to top plan
-Be able to get customers first name
-Be able to designate times available
-Be able to insert active links
-Be able to also reply from PC

Thank you for all of your efforts on trying to continuously improve Weebly.

8/21/2015 06:00:53 am

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8/21/2015 02:43:08 pm

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Town Planner Brisbane link

8/23/2015 02:16:57 pm

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8/23/2015 06:18:05 pm

Don Simmons link

8/24/2015 08:52:56 am

Will I be signaled that a chat is requested if I have my site open in a tab on my browser, but I am in another tab reading another site?

8/25/2015 05:10:38 am

Yes, you'll get a notification to your phone even if you have your site open in a browser tab.

Andy Selway link

8/25/2015 03:46:23 am

I would use this if it were UK compatitble. Shame it's not.

8/27/2015 03:31:55 am

Good idea but not ready for use:
need to be able to insert acitiv links
• need to be able to reply from PC as well as phone
• need to be able to set hours automatically and manually
• need to know who (name) we are replying to
• needs to work internationally and specify what languages
• need to be included in Business plan (along with all features); update cost when plan renews. I purchased a long-term business plan to avoid add on costs.

WEEBLY, PLEASE REPLAY! We need this!!! The must we need to be include in bussines plan!!

8/27/2015 05:33:31 am

Thanks for your feedback!

We don't have any info right now on what features we're going to add to SimpleChat, but we appreciate the feedback and will take that into consideration for future updates.

Robert link

8/27/2015 10:25:07 am

On the whole, I love working with weebly but when I compared both SimpleChat and Tawk.to for my site, I couldn't find any reason to pay to use SimpleChat when Tawk.to is free.

The Body Shack Day Spa & Salon link

8/27/2015 11:47:31 am

I'm kind of curious about simple chat. Can you have different sections of the site that connects users with certain people on the receiving end? Or do they all goto only one person receiving chats?

8/28/2015 03:49:50 am

All chats will go to whichever phone numbers you've set up with it and are currently available. Check out our guide and video in our Help Center for more information on setting up SimpleChat:

http://hc.weebly.com/hc/en-us/articles/206542148-How-Does-SimpleChat-Work-

Wendy link

9/5/2015 07:38:10 am

When will it be available in Spain

9/6/2015 12:02:00 pm

We don't currently have any info on support for SimpleChat outside of North America, but thanks for letting us know you'd like to use it in Spain!

Hamish link

9/8/2015 10:59:06 am

Absolutely being dying for this SimpleChat functionality.

and now i see its only available in the US/Canada - NOT Australia. Comon' guys this is so disappointing. Please please make this happen! Cheers legends keep up the good work.

9/9/2015 12:53:13 am

Very Nice

Kae

9/10/2015 10:15:53 am

I saw that someone set up SMS forwarding to their laptop, but is there the possibility/option to have the messages mainly sent to the computer via instant messaging? I love that it's integrated to weebly already, but texting is a little difficult for our employees.

Comments are closed.

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