Think Differently About Messaging for CX, with RingCentral

A critical difference between today’s companies is the quality of customer experience they offer. Everyone knows the frustrations of trying to contact a vendor or service provider: emails get a standard “we’ll be back to you in 24 hours” message, a phone call means hours on hold, and social media messaging usually results in a please-email-us or check-our-website response.

Omni-service company Accenture’s research has shown that in the US alone, customers switching providers or companies costs businesses US$1.6 trillion every year. And in a digital age, a competitor’s products are usually only a click or tap away.

So, what are the possible solutions? Or rather, how can companies provide faster responses, at customers’ convenience, in ways that customers are happy with and that won’t cost them a small fortune?

The first consideration is to look at the various pros and cons of each channel: who uses what, and why? What quickly becomes apparent is that the two most popular channels are the oldest in terms of technology — voice and messaging. Those are statistics that see minimal variation across generations, with a notable increase in popularity in messaging when contacting vendors or service-providers over the last few years.

Voice communications might be potentially immediate; however, often picking up the phone and speaking to an operator isn’t convenient for customers. Plus, offering round-the-clock operators on standby often isn’t economically viable. Many companies like to provide live chat services if possible, perhaps as a compromise: conversations can be conducted while customers have access to a screen and can get them quick answers and instant support. Now, this method requires both agents and customers to be online at the same time — like voice comms, live web chat comes with a price tag, albeit a lower one, as agents can be answering several queries simultaneously.

With asynchronous communications, conversations can take place over much more extended periods. By mixing in ‘bots, humans, live chat and messaging, answers and support can be provided fast, at times and via channels that will contribute positively to customer experience.

Combining all those elements manually is complicated, but companies deploying RingCentral’s Engage Digital platform and Engage Messaging feature can deliver high-quality CX results. For example, simple queries can be cleared by bots — that frees up agents to concentrate on more complex questions. Plus, 24/7 front-line support is now an option even when there are no agents online.

The Engage Messaging feature offers familiar web page floating embedded elements, which is also  optimised for iOS and Android devices. Unlike “traditional” web-based help, the conversation history transfers seamlessly to messaging (and back). That means customers can start interacting on a web page via a computer, transfer to mobile if on the go and then back; all without having to repeat their credentials or state their query again. That facility alone removes much of the frustrating elements of today’s commonplace customer experiences.

Private messaging between end-users and organisations remains one of the most popular ways people like to communicate and get the answers they need. In that respect, the Engage Messaging feature  represents the next stage of evolution in the digital space.

Companies can now show that they are different from their competitors by being more responsive to their customers’ preferences and lifestyles. Creating a seamless mix of messaging, web, and ‘bot means organisations present their products in ways that are in line with each customer’s personal preferences.

Of course, Engage Messaging can be just the start of an entire omnichannel communications strategy from solutions provided by RingCentral. There isn’t space here to describe digital channels can be integrated, or how the data from each customer’s journey can be used to improve the ways that the whole business operates (but you can read more on these pages, as well as on the RingCentral site.

The Engage Digital platform is one of the best omnichannel comms products available in the world today, taking the customer experience to the next level. Find out more right here.