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Last Updated on June 4, 2022 by coffeepo
What is the best online chat job website to find clients?
Telecommuting is growing a strong fanbase: 99% of workers want to continue to work-from-home even after the pandemic.
And one of the most in-demand remote jobs right now is customer service.
Remote customer service allows you to:
- Come from diverse backgrounds (biology is one of the top 10 educational backgrounds of customer service representatives)
- Be more productive (remote agents accomplish 13% more requests than office-based agents), and of course
- Have a better work-life-balance (80% of remote employees experience less work-related stress).
However, if you don’t enjoy being on the phone or video call the entire day, or live in a not-so-quiet neighborhood, you can always consider being an online chat agent, instead.
What is an Online Chat Agent?
Online chat agents are customer support representatives who assist customers via text-based discussions, typically through Facebook messenger or the company’s website chat platform. There are also live chat operators who provide both call and chat support.
Although the term virtual assistant is interchangeably used, online chat agents only work to help the customer. Meanwhile, virtual assistants may also provide customer support and set meetings or deadlines, among other things.
You can earn about USD $8-15/hr as an agent, depending on your work hours, job position (part-time, full-time, contractor), and the company.
Online Chat Agent Qualifications
The requirements for an online chat agent aren’t as strict as other customer support jobs in the market—most companies don’t even require a certificate or diploma. However, they do look for the following qualities and skills:
- A good grasp of grammar, punctuation, and spelling
- Ability to write professionally and communicate clearly
- Can work under pressure and handle multiple conversations
- Can achieve a minimum of 35-40 words per minute (WPM) typing speed (note: this number varies per employer)
- Has a stable internet connection
Some companies will also require that you study the brand you will be handling, as well as the products they offer, to provide better customer service.
Best Job Websites for Online Chat Opportunities
There are tons of job sites online where you can find online chat positions. With the overwhelming number of platforms, it can be challenging to know where to start applying and which website can be trusted.
Not to worry! We’ve compiled a list of the top four job websites to begin your career as an online chat agent.
1. FlexJobs
Operating since 2007, FlexJobs offers up to 27,801 work-from-home opportunities under more than 50 career categories. Their most-popular and widely-searched WFH category is customer service, which has been in high demand over the past few months.
What makes FlexJobs really unique is their expert team of vetters who investigate jobs before posting. Thus, you are always assured of the job’s legitimacy and quality. FlexJobs also provides career coaches, online courses, and skill training webinars.
To use their platform, you will need to sign up for a membership. It starts at USD $6.95 for one-week access, with the highest membership tier at $361.40 per year.
2. Fiverr
Fiverr is a platform that focuses on freelance work. But unlike typical job posting sites such as UpWork and LinkedIn, the freelancers (“sellers”) are the ones posting their skills and abilities on the website—the companies (“buyers”) are the ones who initiate contact with the worker.
Fiverr allows you to directly communicate with clients and automatically collect client payments. You are paid according to “packages” or the services you offer, with most base packages starting at USD $5. The more upgrades and services you offer, the higher your package price.
To join Fiverr, all you need to do is to set up a profile and post your services. If you’re looking for online chat jobs, you can post under “Text Message Marketing,” “Community Management,” and “Customer Care.”
3. Upwork
Co-founded by one of the tech leads in Silicon Valley, UpWork specializes in providing remote work opportunities across the world, with over 141,154 jobs and 70 categories of work to choose from.
As one of the most popular outsourcing platforms, there are endless work opportunities for you to choose from. Plus, UpWork makes job hunting easier by highlighting work that matches your recent searches—they even send you an email once a new opportunity opens. Once you land a job, you can communicate directly with your client and send invoices right from the platform.
As an online chat agent, you can start your search with “Social Media Manager” or “Virtual Assistant”. However, we must warn you that there are possible scams on the site, so be sure to only apply for jobs with a “Verified” status.
Signing up for UpWork is free. However, they deduct a commission from your payments, depending on how much you’ve earned on the platform:
- First $500: 20%
- First $500-10,000: 10%.
- More than USD $10,000: 5%.
4. Freelancer
Linking over 50,954,076 freelancers to employers and projects in over 247 countries, Freelancer is one of the largest freelancing and outsourcing marketplaces.
What sets Freelancer apart from platforms like Fiverr and FlexJobs is that the freelancer bids for a project they want to participate in. Once a client accepts the bid, the freelancer and client communicate and share files through the Freelancer platform, which is also available on mobile. Payment is made through Freelancer’s Milestone Payments system, making it safe and secure for both freelancers and clients.
To join Freelancer, you need to pay for a membership plan, starting at $0.99/month. This allows you to include up to 30 skills in your profile and bid for 15 projects per month. The more work you take on—or the more expensive your membership—the more skills you can list and projects you can bid for.
Conclusion
Online chat jobs are extremely flexible, providing a lot of freedom with your work hours and location. If you want to find chat agent opportunities online, you can start your journey with these popular websites:
- FlexJobs
- Fiverr
- Upwork
- Freelancer
Now go out there and start earning!
