After surveying 523 customer support decision-makers, Forrester research found that embracing conversational support is business-critical. This research confirmed the companies that leverage the power of conversational support can successfully drive customer retention. Moreover, they reported an increase in customer satisfaction and business efficiency.
In this article, we summarize the key research findings. The full report is available for a free download on our resource page.
Why delivering messenger-based support is business-critical?
The pandemic clearly created sharp shifts in customer communication habits. Users constantly explore and demand personalized digital-based solutions. The companies have to be agile, innovate, and implement trending solutions fast to stay competitive.
Forrester research shows that nearly 7 in 10 (69%) decision-makers believe the strongest customer relationships are built through personalized, messenger-based support experiences. Consequently, nearly half of them (47%) plan to introduce new digital channels, such as chat, to accomplish their business objectives.
But before we jumped to the benefits of embracing conversation support, let’s remind ourselves what reasons should be leading this change. Here are the three key findings:
- Dramatic change: the pandemic has only amplified the need for brands to deliver messenger-based experiences and mostly through chat. As a result of the pandemic, chat is ranked as the second most used communication channel among customers.
- Customer personalization: only 37% of customer support leaders are satisfied with their current digital solutions. Moreover, less than half believe they can deliver personalized support experiences at scale with their current solutions.
- Business Growth: scaling conversational support drives key objectives, including customer retention, business efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
The benefits of conversational support solutions
According to research, 69% of support leaders believe the strongest customer relationships are built through personalized support experiences.
One way to achieve support excellence is to empower agents to switch to conversational support methods and equip them with the right tools. With everything set in place, companies can expect the following benefits:
- Customer retention (60%)
- Increased business efficiency and ROI (54%)
- Staying relevant and competitive (71%)
Where to start with the conversational support investments?
Let’s face it, companies have to modernize their digital solutions if they want to stay relevant in the modern business world. However, driving this important and dramatic change is not an easy task.
Here is what Forrester analysts recommend:
- Increase operational agility to keep pace with changing customer engagement preferences
- Invest in AI and machine learning (ML) to deliver better customer experiences
- Start planning how your workforce will evolve
- Invest in new training and metrics for agent success
To read details and know-how, click to download the full report.