What Is LiveHelp?
LiveHelp is a pilot project that enables website visitors to ask remotely-located Website Specialists for help finding online legal information and resources, and for help completing intake forms online. Through an online chat, the Website Specialist is able to immediately provide the visitor with links to the appropriate information or to escort the visitor to relevant resources on the site. This allows users to more effectively utilize resources available on the internet by helping them find the materials they need.
Who Uses It?
LiveHelp was launched in the spring of 2006 as a pilot project of Pro Bono Net, Montana Legal Services Association and Iowa Legal Aid. Any visitor to either MontanaLawHelp.org or IowaLegalAid.org can use LiveHelp to aid them in finding the information they need. Visitors who use the LiveHelp chat and those who use only the website have the same general profiles with respect to the kind of help they are seeking, both in terms of the service sought and the substantive area of legal need.
How Is It Staffed?
A wide variety of people work to staff the LiveHelp project, including VISTA volunteers, paralegals, interns, attorneys and other willing staff members. Montana Legal Services Association operates their program with ten Website Specialist, each of whom work approximately four hours per week, providing a total of forty hours each week monitoring requests for help on MontanaLawHelp.org. Iowa Legal Aid operates their project with four staff members, who all together monitor IowaLegalAid.org’s help requests for approximately thirty hours per week.
In order to easily answer users questions, it is important that the LiveHelp Website Specialists have a solid understanding of the content and layout of the website. The greater the familiarity with the resources the website provides, the faster the Specialist will be able to assist the visitor.
Technology of LiveHelp
LiveHelp has been implemented using LivePerson’s Timpani software (http://www.liveperson.com). To use LiveHelp the visitor does not need to install any software or plug-ins. They simply need an Internet connection and a Java/JavaScript enabled web browser. This software meets all current guidelines for compliance with Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C.-794d) and ADA Guidelines. The LivePerson software is designed to work with standard assistive technology hardware (such as specialty keyboards and Braille readers) as well as operating system technologies (such as stickykeys and mousekeys.)
What are Other Versions of Website Chat Folks Could Use?
One alternative to the software mentioned above is a free web-based chat facility called Gabbly (http://www.gabbly.com). In addition to being free, this program is also easy to use and easy to embedded into any website. Originally developed to allow website visitors to chat with one another, this program provides a basic resource similar to LivePerson’s Timpari software.
Gabbly operates by opening a moveable chat window that floats within the target website. While surfing around the website the Gabbly chat window will remain open and active. The main difference between Gabbly and LivePerson’s Timpari software is that with Gabbly every chat is public. Anyone viewing the website can join and contribute to the live chat at any time—whether a staff member is present to help or not.
More Information and Contact Resources
There is every reason to believe that the LiveHelp feature can easily be integrated into other environments, such as other legal aid programs and governmental and social service organizations. If you would like to see a demonstration or request more information, please contact one of the following people:
