New research from global cloud communications platform Infobip reveals that chat apps such as WhatsApp are becoming crucial channels for customer communications, demonstrating the growing importance of conversational experiences. Infobip’s data shows an 80% and 62% increase in WhatsApp and rich communication services (RCS) interactions respectively in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.
Customers now have access to more channels and devices than ever before. Whether for marketing, support, or sales, they increasingly want conversational experiences with a business or brand on their preferred channel. But organizations may struggle to keep up with such preferences and provide the experience customers have come to expect without the right omnichannel communications in place.
To help businesses understand changing habits, Infobip analyzed more than 153 billion communications interactions on its platform from the first half of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.
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The analysis reveals several trends in customer communications. First, customer communications today are more digital than ever, with a 68% increase in interactions across all digital channels. Second, alongside the growth in chat app interactions, some 99% of customer support and chatbot interactions are now on WhatsApp.
However, while newer channels are gaining momentum, the data shows the continued growth of more traditional channels, such as SMS and email. Interactions on these channels increased by 75% and 91% respectively with Infobip seeing emerging uses around timely alerts and security solutions such as two-factor authentication.
Ivan Ostojić, Chief Business Officer at Infobip, said: “Our data reveals how conversational customer experiences are quickly becoming the new normal. Customers don’t want a one-way interaction with a brand. They want a conversation – whether for support, sales, or marketing. But, as our data shows, to meet customer needs, businesses and brands must first embed global real-time omnichannel communications. When omnichannel communications are in place, businesses can create meaningful relationships with their customers on their preferred channel at any point in their journey, helping boost loyalty and ultimately sales.”
Infobip is a global cloud communications platform that enables businesses to build connected experiences across all stages of the customer journey. Accessed through a single platform, Infobip’s omnichannel engagement, identity, user authentication and contact centre solutions help businesses and partners overcome the complexity of consumer communications to grow business and increase loyalty. With over a decade of industry experience, Infobip has expanded to 70+ offices globally. It offers natively built technology with the capacity to reach over seven billion mobile devices and ‘things’ in 6 continents connected directly to over 700 telecom networks. Infobip was established in 2006 and is led by its co-founders, CEO Silvio Kutić, Roberto Kutić and Izabel Jelenić
SOURCE: Businesswire