With all the talk of messaging apps and social media these days, one may wonder if omnichannel still plays a valuable role in customer experience. Conversational commerce is shifting the way brands interact with customers, making the mobile experience more optimized and appealing than ever. However, it’s for precisely this reason that omnichannel remains necessary, and even critical, to delivering great customer experiences. As customers expect service to improve and become increasingly more sophisticated, they also expect it to be more available. This means that brands should be optimizing their overall omnichannel strategy to meet this demand. Here are five specific reasons why omnichannel continues to matter in modern customer experience.
Conversational commerce is making it increasingly possible for customers to receive service and make purchases on a single channel. With that said, statistics show that some customers may still prefer switching channels for their own individual reasons. Google cited that 90% of people switch between devices to accomplish a goal, including their smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers. Whether it be a personal preference or a genuine need to switch channels (such as poor channel optimization), customers generally appreciate the flexibility of being able to switch when desired.
Giving customers choices is empowering and leads to long-term loyalty. When a brand is truly present across many channels, offering great service on the channel of a customer’s choice, it sends the message that the company has made an effort to appeal to customer tastes. For example, offering IVR options on a mobile service menu caters to customers on the go, providing FAQs on a brand website assists the customer conducting online research, and offering prioritized callbacks values the customer who prefers the voice channel.
Not every generation may prefer the same channel, or even feel comfortable with certain ones. For example, many studies have shown the great popularity of social media channels and messaging apps among millennial customers. Other studies indicate that older customers who are more accustomed to traditional phone calls may prefer voice over social media altogether.
Once a brand determines a specific customer’s preferred channel, any subsequent engagement should take place on that channel whenever possible. Situations may include reaching out to the customer for a follow-up on a service case, providing a feedback survey, or making targeted marketing offers. The customer will appreciate the company’s attentiveness to his or preferences and is more likely to engage with the brand.
Being an omnichannel brand means being omnipresent. In our highly connected modern world, customers expect 24/7 availability from businesses. Since it can be difficult to offer uninterrupted service on a single channel (unless the brand is well-staffed globally), omnichannel strategy offers an excellent solution to making brands accessible at all times.With the proliferation of channels at our fingertips these days, customer experiences are becoming richer, more efficient, and more appealing all the time. By engaging with customers through a truly optimized omnichannel strategy, brands can offer the very best experiences for sustained customer loyalty. As a global leader in cloud-based contact center software solutions for customer service and sales, Vocalcom chose to integrate Facebook Messenger, Telegram, WeChat, Viber, Kik, and conversational SMS into its cloud contact center platform to evolve into a premium conversational commerce platform. Learn more about Vocalcom contact center software solutions for creating great customer experiences.