Why Asynchronous Communication Channels Are Redefining Customer Engagement
Customer expectations around communication with businesses have fundamentally changed. Speed is still important, but flexibility now matters much more, and consumers now consumers want interactions that fit around their schedules, not ones that require them to wait on hold or remain glued to a live chat window.
The global dominance of messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger reflects this shift, with more than three billion people using asynchronous messaging channels each month. In the UK alone, 90% of online adults used WhatsApp last year, while 58% engaged via Facebook Messenger.
While these platforms were historically reserved for personal conversations, that balance is shifting. Increasingly, organisations are meeting customers on the same channels they use daily to speak with friends and family. Since the launch of WhatsApp Business in 2018, adoption has accelerated, with 175 million people now contacting a business via WhatsApp every day.
So, why are customers preferring to use these types of channels to communicate with businesses, and how will asynchronous messaging apps like WhatsApp excel in Customer Experience (CX)?
Turning queue frustration into convenience
Usually, the first port of call for customers if they can’t resolve their own issue through self-service is to call into the contact centre. As a result, call volumes can be high, and at peak times, queues can quickly build, and customers can find themselves waiting a long time to speak to an agent.
Asynchronous messaging introduces a more customer-centric alternative: if customers are queuing, they can opt to be deflected to an alternative channel. As a result, customers who ‘positively abandon’ the queue can get on with their day, safe in the knowledge that the interaction will start soon. Deflecting to a messaging platform ensures the customer receives the support they need, rather than being told by a business to check the website for answers or call back at a later time.
The right channel, at the right time
More than 1.3 trillion online instant messages are sent in the UK each year. Offering CX through familiar messaging platforms means organisations are aligning support channels with established customer behaviour.
Customers don’t need to download or sign up for a new app to receive support, and conversations with a brand can take place in the same place as chats with friends and family. The familiarity of using the common messaging apps is a benefit for customers as they’re able to navigate them with ease.
Multimedia files
For customers seeking support, sharing images, video, or audio can be crucial to identifying an issue. For example, taking a photo that identifies an error code or warning light and sharing it with an agent can dramatically cut interaction time, as the issue will be quickly identified.
Multimedia can be valuable across many industries, and the ability to share files simply and without additional fees can elevate CX to overcome common frustrations in diagnosing issues, which can frustrate agents and consumers alike.
AI-powered conversational channels
Artificial Intelligence (AI) further enhances the efficiency and scalability of asynchronous channels.
In some cases, AI will be able to speak with a customer first, and if it is unable to resolve a query, it can then place them in a queue to speak with a human agent. AI will be able to capture enough information for the human agent to understand the customer’s enquiry before reaching out to support them, without having to go back and forth gathering the basic details needed to progress a conversation.
Asynchronous conversational channels in CX
Messaging apps will go from strength to strength as customers look to interact with brands in the same ways as with friends and family. While customers with urgent or emotionally sensitive enquiries may still prefer voice or real-time chat, the most effective CX strategies will not treat asynchronous conversational channels as a secondary form of communication, and instead make them a core part of future customer communication.
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