No matter how seamless their journey is, some customers will always want to communicate directly with a company. There is no avoiding it.
So, which of the many possible channels should companies choose? Live chat, smartphone messaging, or perhaps even the metaverse. The options are plentiful.
Yet, choosing the ideal channel that fits shifting customer expectations, aligns with primary contact drivers, and integrates easily into the existing contact center ecosystem is no picnic in the park. There are many considerations to think through.
Critical Considerations Choosing the Right CX Channel
To get started, here is a set of questions to assess when considering a new CX channel:
- How can customers access the channel?
- Can we track if the customer has viewed the previous message/communication?
- Can we integrate calling to escalate the interaction?
- What technical and cost barriers exist to integrating the channel into the broader contact center ecosystem?
- How will we store a record of the conversation?
- How will the handling times across our top contact reasons differ from other channels?
- Is it attractive for digital natives and high-value customers?
Another is to identify which everyday customer queries suit the channel. Doing so will enable operations to build a better CX strategy that predicts intent and leads customers down the ideal contact route.
Such a strategy aligns with the “paradox of choice principle,” which dictates that resolution rates often suffer when customers choose channels themselves. Instead, resolution lifts when companies assess the most effective route for customers and guide them accordingly.
Amazon does this well, using its website to recommend the optimal contact method for various queries while highlighting all other options on the very same webpage. As a result, it does not force customers down particular paths, but it subtly encourages the customer to choose the channel most conducive to the optimum CX and business outcomes.
Yet, when selecting channels, it is best not to follow competitors and digital CX leaders like Amazon blindly. After all, misconceptions regarding the implementation of digital channels are rife.
An example is the notion that adding new channels will not impact overall contact volumes. Instead, adding another mode of communication will encourage more customers to reach out. While this may increase engagement, it will test service levels.
To avoid such issues, network, stalk the competition for what is working, and partner with an experienced vendor that can inform the ideal pilot. Such a program may include CRM-powered AI solutions to automate more elementary queries and lessen the enhanced load.
A Chatty, Social Future
It is easy to overlook the final bullet point in the list above. Yet, it is critical to assess the growth potential of the prospective channel. After all, businesses must ensure that their investments move with the times.
A recent Kustomer study investigated how customer channel preferences will likely shift in the near future. In doing so, it discovered that CX professionals believe live chat (79%), social media (72%), and SMS (56%) will become more popular in the next three years.
The leading CRM vendor underlined the significance of these results within its report. It stated:
It’s important to be mindful of shifting consumer preferences. You might just find that the channels that consumers increasingly prefer also will enable your agents to be more efficient.
Live chat is often an excellent example, allowing agents to respond to concurrent queries, while many customers enjoy the low wait times it is well known for. It is often AI-assisted, which also has an appeal, offering a self-service option that suits the modern autonomous customer.
Social is perhaps more intriguing as new channels come to the fore. First, it was Facebook and Twitter, then Instagram. Yet, the motive for customers to use these communication modes to drive urgency to their issues publicly has not changed.
As such, social – alongside live chat – remains a prominent CX channel option, especially as vendors showcase significant success stories. Yet, one size does not fit all. Go back to the considerations above. Think closely about the characteristics of the media, the possible customer access strategy, and the potential customer segments to address.
Sure, the future is likely social and chatty for most, but maybe not everyone. After all, there may exist a disparity between a channel, these considerations, and the queries contact centers fend. Consider this, address the paradox of choice principle, and avoid an “omnishambles”.
Connect Each Channel With a CRM
An “omnishambles” is often the result of companies making ineffective channel choices. Yet, it is also a consequence of poor implementation. Indeed, a channel installation comes with many significant people, process, and technology considerations. Acknowledging this is critical for it to be “efficient and effective”.
One such technology consideration is integrations. Unfortunately, when projects go full throttle, these often fall to the wayside, leaving channels isolated from one another. As a result, many of the following issues are all too familiar:
- A failure to track a customer’s entire interaction history
- A hassle to shift customers across channels and keep the conversation’s context
- A struggle to add new technologies to the contact center ecosystem – especially AI – which feeds from omnichannel data
Creating an omnichannel system that circumvents these problems is crucial to both agent and customer experience. As Kustomer notes in the aforementioned report:
Digital-first consumers want to converse with your business at every stage of the funnel, and the easier you can make it for them to do so on the platform of their choice, the more likely they are to exhibit loyalty.
Such a system hinges on integrating channels with a back-end CRM, threading together customer interaction history, campaign data, and customer insights into a single holistic view. Not only does this make contact handling much easier for agents, but it also informs proactive and personalization strategies, which may also run through the new channel.
Indeed, many more insights become available to improve operational intelligence. Meanwhile, a true CRM-enabled omnichannel system allows customers to choose their preferred channel and escalate queries how and when they want.
As such, companies can create a contextual, singular messaging experience for customers and agents that paves the way for enhanced CX.
Partner With Kustomer
Kustomer, now part of Meta, powers excellent omnichannel CX with a CRM that provides complete visibility, seamless cross-channel communication, and intelligent “no-code automation”.
To discover more and learn how Kustomer is helping companies deliver seamless CX across many channels, read its whitepaper: 5 Steps to an Efficient and Effective CX Strategy
Alternatively, for those itching to uncover more, visit: www.kustomer.com
