Key Skills to Look, Before Hire Freelance Live Chat Support Specialists. 

• Experience as a Live Chat Support Specialist or similar role. 
• Experience using desk software and remote support tools 
• Understanding of how CRM systems work 
• Excellent communication and problem-solving skills 
• Multi-tasking abilities 
• Patience when handling tough cases. 
• Good communication skills
• Problem-solving skills
• Detail-oriented 
• Positive attitude 
• Goal-oriented 

Roles and Responsibilities of Live Chat Support Specialists?

• Answering customer queries.
• Fixing customer problems 
• Proactive engagement 
• Co-browse with web visitors 
• Provide meaningful conversations vio soft skills 
• Upsell and cross-sell 
• Identify and report common pain points 
• Set and meet expectations 
• Cross between alternate service channels 
• Complete training 
• Help other agents 
• Manage chat queues and concurrent chats
• Meeting targets 
• Live chat admin 

What are the Interview questions for Live Chat Support Specialists?

1. What do you think are the key qualities that should be possessed by someone working in chat support?
2. Can you walk me through your experience in delivering customer support through chat?
3. What do you think are some of the most challenging issues that are faced in chat support? How would you handle them? 
4. With chat support often requiring multi-tasking, how do you ensure that you keep the conversation with the customer as the priority?
5. How do you maintain a positive tone and attitude over chat channels in situations where the customer is angry or frustated?
6. When working on chat platforms, what kind of tools do you use to make sure that you can be as efficient as possible while also delivering top-notch customer service?
7. Can you outline your approach to gathering feedback from customers through chat and how you’d approach dealing with negative feedback in a professional way?

How to Hire the Best Freelance Live Chat Support Specialists?

1. Determine your needs - you need to determine the level of support you need for a Live Chat Support Specialist including the support hours you needed, to make assumptions on how many tickets they need to receive for a day and determining how many clients your specialists will handle which give you the count of the specialists you will need to hire. 
2. Skills needed - You should have a clear understanding of the type of issues a live chat support specialist will handle and the skills necessary to do it. 
3. Advertise Job posts - you should advertise in the right places and platforms where people are looking for jobs. UpTecHunt is one of the popular sites you can look at. 
4. Access applicants - Take an assessment to determine whether the candidate is a good fit. This will be able to help you to shortlist the right specialist and move forward with them. 
5. Live Chat simulation assessment - this will measure a candidate’s ability to effectively handle many chats at once. 
6. Trial Shift and onboarding - evaluate the final candidates on the basis of a trial shift. You must see how they work and handle  customer queries. Once you have selected the right specialist, you may start the onboarding process. Just make sure that you equip them with the knowledge and training that they need to do their job successfully. 

What Challenges will you face when hiring Live Chat Support Specialists?

1. Time management - with several customers to assist, and strict timelines to adhere to, it can be challenging to Live Chat Support Specialists to ensure that all queries are resolved within time frames. 
2. Lack of Clarity - A customer’s descriptions of an issue may not always be clear and concise, making it difficult to understand their problem. 
3. Multiple requests - handling multiple requests from customers simultaneously can be overwhelming. 
4. Language Barriers - they can receive requests from customers with varying language proficiency levels. 
5. Stress - chat support can be stressful, especially when dealing with irate customers. 

How do you negotiate rates and terms with your freelance Live Chat Support Specialists?

1. Know your budget scope - You should have a clear idea of your budget and scope of the Live Chat Support Specialist work. This means knowing the services you need, what kind of chat support you want, how complex they are, and how they will deliver them. 
2. Do your research - once you have determined your budget and scope, you need to do some research on the Live Chat Support Specialist you are interested in. You should look for their specialties, strengths, and weaknesses, what their previous experiences and clients were, and lastly, what their reputation and feedback are. 
3. Be transparent and respectful - when dealing with a Live Chat Support Specialist, be transparent and respectful in presenting them their chat support and your expectations. Provide them with detailed role responsibilities and the required equipment for their chat support services. Also, don’t forget to explain to them your vision, goals and challenges, and ask for their service, suggestions, recommendations and questions. 
4. Negotiate the terms - After receiving a bid from the Live Chat Support Specialist, review it carefully and compare it with your budget and scope. When negotiating, focus on the value and quality of the work, not just the price. Consider factors such as the specialist's availability, experiences, turnaround time and communication style. 
5. Sign a contract - Once you have agreed on the discussed terms with the Live Chat Support Specialist, you need to sign a contract that outlines the scope, schedule, budget, payment terms, deliverables and expectations of the Live Chat Support Specialist works. The contract should also include clauses that cover contingencies, such as changes, delays, disputes, and cancellations. This will protect both parties from potential risks and liabilities and ensure a smooth and professional workflow. 
6. Maintain Communication -after contract signing, you need to maintain regular and clear communication with the Live Chat Support Specialist throughout the Live Chat Support Services.