CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT
With Conversational AI , you can respond quickly and seamlessly to any number of consumers at once . This means building an engagement strategy around AI helps avoid a situation customers truly hate , which is waiting on hold .
Put simply , the longer your customer waits for you to engage , the more your relationship suffers . AI can scale conversations to make engagement with millions of consumers feel as timely and personalized as one-on-one interactions . Meaning your customers have more options for reaching out and getting answers quickly .
Because of this scale and efficiency , brands are using Conversational AI across all kinds of messaging channels , including WhatsApp , Facebook Messenger , iMessage , SMS , and more .
Chatbots are available anywhere , anytime to resolve issues quickly , and they also free up agents to focus on the most high-value parts of a conversation that need the human touch . They can even pull in human agents as needed when that ’ s the best next step , dancing a “ tango ” to meet customer needs without making the experience feel disjointed or broken .
As chatbots and the technologies supporting them evolve , they will take an increasing load off human agents . Besides just answering easy questions , AI can also help prioritize agent queues , signal agents on the right moments to step into automated conversations and assist them with the right content for each turn of the dialog .
26 CONTACT CENTER PIPELINE
This time and energy saved for agents can then be put towards more targeted customer conversations to improve customer-brand relationships . All customer conversations , no matter the channel , should be focused on quality connection to build customer engagement : and conversational AI helps deliver on that promise across all channels .
4. DIG INTO DATA ACROSS VOICE
AND MESSAGING TO GET TO KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS AND CONTINUALLY IMPROVE .
With so many interactions happening between brands and customers every moment of the day , brands have a wealth of data at their fingertips to learn from their successes and mistakes , then optimize customer engagement going forward .
All of this conversational data , drawn from both voice and messaging engagements in real time , can be used to identify trends and improve customer journeys . Using data to identify patterns in customer behavior can even help brands get out of the business of being reactive by delivering “ preventive care ” that identifies and fixes problems that harm customer engagement .
AS CHATBOTS AND THE TECHNOLOGIES SUPPORTING THEM EVOLVE , THEY WILL TAKE AN INCREASING LOAD OFF HUMAN AGENTS .
Conversational data is becoming even more important in a world that ’ s moving away from traditional data tracking methods , including website cookies . As regulations and consumer preferences drive the shift away from cookies , customer conversations open up opportunities to collect customer data in a new way – simply by asking for it .
Customer service and marketing teams tasked with getting to know their customers without cookies can turn to conversational data to figure out how to build loyalty and affinity among customers : while still respecting their right to privacy .
After all , it takes more than clicks and survey data to improve customer engagement . What better way than to analyze your customers ’ own words ?
... DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY ALLOWS BRANDS TO OFFER THE RIGHT SUPPORT TO THE CUSTOMER AT THE RIGHT TIME ...
With customer journeys typically spanning multiple departments and systems , and measurement tools like surveys offering only snapshot visibility into how the customer feels , this leaves obstacles in the way of understanding and engaging with customers .
However , insights from conversational data can be used to connect voice and messaging with other systems , like CRMs and business intelligence tools , to help bridge these gaps and silos .
This deeper understanding of the customer journey allows brands to offer the right support to the customer at the right time , while also piecing together the bigger picture of long-term customer engagement strategy .
TREATING CUSTOMERS LIKE PEOPLE
Bringing all of these concepts together , it becomes clear that creating real relationships with your customers means building an engagement strategy marked by continuity , connection , scalability , and understanding .
It ’ s about treating customers like human beings to be cared for rather than problems to be quickly addressed . It ’ s about providing holistic engagement rather than a hodgepodge of unrelated experiences .
Brands that understand these lessons will be well-positioned to benefit not only their bottom lines , but also the customers they serve . It ’ s a win-win for both sides of the conversation .
Nirali Amin is Vice President , Enterprise Solutions at
LivePerson , a global leader in customer engagement solutions . She helps brands deploy and optimize experiences on consumers ' preferred channels so they can hold conversations with millions of their customers as personally as they would with one .