We’re excited to announce the launch of our newest product, Messenger. 

Messenger is the new and improved version of Webchat. We rewrote the application from the ground up in order to deliver better customer experiences.

We re-architected the code base to move from a chat-first approach (the original webchat was chat-only) to a multi-component digital interface. This updated architecture opens new doors for us to add new functionality, improve customer context, and introduce Smart Buttons, contextual on-page deep links, which we’ll talk about in an upcoming post.

Given that live chat is now just one of the many ways for a customer to get the information they need, we changed the name from Webchat to Messenger. Messenger allows knowledge and information to be delivered via chat, browsing or searching articles, email, phone, embedded journeys overviews, form submissions, custom websites, and more. Messenger is the digital interface that connects you with your customers.

As part of this update we added a number of new features and performance enhancements as well as resolved all known issues in the old Webchat product.

Features

Core User Experience

When a customer opens Messenger, they are now immediately routed to the home screen before having to provide their email address. This allows you to provide more information and communication channel options to your customers without adding any friction. Only when they start a chat conversation do we ask for some information so we can identify them early to provide a more personalized experience.

Updated Designs

In addition to the user workflow enhancements, we made a lot of interface design updates as we rebuilt Messenger. These include:

• ADA compliant color, navigation, and other updates
• Updated spacing, buttons, icons, scroll bars, lists, and more
• Added consistent hover states to all active buttons
• Migrated to a new font that is more legible at all text sizes
• Added new loading spinners and screens throughout the application
• Updated timestamps with relative ‘time since’ data that now automatically updates every minute. For example, Nov 1 2022 2:15pm (7m ago)
• In-chat component updates including new layouts for Article previews, Bot button interactions and ensuring selected buttons are sticky, updated chat text and bubble styling, updated composer styling, and more.

New Mobile Screen Optimization

We completely revamped how Messenger works when it is accessed on a mobile screen. We optimized the container so that it is easier to access and expand, but also easier to minimize and get out of the way when it’s not needed. 

Enhanced Chat Notifications 

We added new real-time chat message indicators for when a customer is not in the chat session, but needs to see there are new messages. This could be when Messenger is in a minimized state or even when the customer is on the home screen. 

Hours of Operations

When your chat is set to unavailable, the away message will now show on the home screen so customers still have the ability to get support via other methods provided.

Dynamic Container Sizing

Messenger is much more responsive in real time when it comes to browser size and zoom than Webchat was. Messenger will automatically resize to fix the browser size and will never go off the screen. A customer can also now zoom in to over 400% and the container resizes and is 100% usable at each state.

Updated User Workflows

We optimized the user experience across all core workflows as a customer navigates through chat, knowledge search, form submissions, and more. The navigation actions and language are now more intuitive and customers are less likely to get stuck on any screen.

Copy/Paste From Clipboard 

We added the ability for customers to copy and paste screenshots from their desktop into the Messenger composer to make it easier for customers to share images.

New file upload UI

We added a new file upload workflow to make it easier and more intuitive for customers to load one or multiple files at a time to a single message. Files can also be reviewed, and removed before sending the message for complete control. An updated file progress bar shows the upload process in real time before the message is sent.

Displaying Action Messages when Chats End 

We added action messages in the chat interface for when a chat is ended. Previously it just brought the customer to a rating screen but did not tell them that the chat was closed. We will be adding more action messages in the future. This could include when an agent joins the chat, when the customer goes inactive, when assignment has changed, and more.

Smart Buttons

Finally, Messenger comes with a powerful new feature called Smart Buttons. We will discuss the details of Smart Buttons in a separate post, but in short, they are power contextual elements that can be added to a screen that deeplink the customer to specific knowledge, bots, or forms within Messenger without leaving the current screen to provide faster, more contextual experiences.

Performance

Along with the new features included with Messenger, we also made a few performance, security, and reliability improvements. These improvements include:

• We updated our messaging protocol for increase speed and reliability
• We updated all internal libraries to the latest versions for increased performance and security
• We updated how we capture and store cookies in conjunction with the parent page to create a more seamless and reliable customer experience. This also reduces the risk for cross-site cookie blockers interfering with the cross-page chat experience.

Bug Fixes & Small Updates

• Added functionality to hide the welcome pop up bubble when the welcome text is blank in the configurator
• Updated the styling of buttons with long labels to be left aligned instead of center aligned to make it easier to read
• Fixed an issue where only Cases resolved as Completed would proactively end a chat session for a customer in Webchat. Cases resolved as Canceled or Deleted would not proactively end the chat, which caused customer confusion.
• Fixed a bug where ordered Lists within Article Previews sent by a Virtual Assistant did not properly render
• Fixed a bug where Knowledge Articles containing long links would extend the Article preview past the edge of the chat screen
• Fixed a bug where the typing indicator animation was broken when displayed between bot messages
• Fixed an issue where the Title set in the webchat configuration in CXMEngine was not reflected on the home screen of the webchat container
• Fixed an issue with dynamic container resizing where the chat container could go off the top of the screen when a customer changed their browser size while in an active conversation 
• Fixed a bug where Tokens used within Quick Replies sent from a CXMEngine user ignored line spacing when displayed in Webchat
• Fixed an issue where hyperlinks used in Quick Replies sent from a CXMEngine user had poor formatting when displayed in Webchat
• Fixed a bug where Article Previews in chat that contained anchor links displayed with broken URLs in Webchat
• Fixed an issue with download links for images that are uploaded to chat
• Fixed a bug where the hover text on the icon to open a Form in a new tab said, “Read Full Article”
• Fixed a bug where the Phone section on the Webchat home screen did not properly populate the phone number in click-to-call applications on desktop computers
• Fixed a bug where some customers would see a ‘Forgot Password’ prompt when trying to start a chat

If you would like to move from Webchat to Messenger please email us at product@ovationcxm.com.