Tuesday, December 11, 2018

How Direct Messaging Creates an Incredible Customer Experience

Corie McHugh
November 29, 2018

3 minute read

Adapted advice from the Experience This! podcast with Joey Coleman and Dan Gingiss.

Have you ever had that automated experience where you explain the problem then get transferred to someone else and have the joy of repeating the same problem? In episode 36 of Experience This!, a customer experience podcast series, hosts and CX experts Joey Coleman and Dan Gingiss explain the benefits that direct messaging and automation will play in the future of customer service.

The future of customer service

Dan and Joey begin their discussion by examining the book, Message Me, by Joshua March, CEO of Conversocial, one of the leading digital customer care platforms. According to March, direct messaging is going to become “the future of customer service.” Messaging is the first customer care channel that breaks the equation between customer experience and cost. It is simple and convenient for customers to use and a great way to get help. It also gives businesses a low cost to serve their clients. Because of this, companies are beginning to invest into direct messaging as the primary customer service channel.

Benefits of direct messaging

Why take service at your business into the era of messaging and AI? First, messages are private, which keeps complaints out of the public eye, something brands love. Second, they are persistent, which consumers love, because they don’t have to repeat their problem or account information to multiple agents. According to March, “Messaging output has completely blown up from the customer perspective. They really become the dominant way that consumers interact with each other and communicate with each other. If you can deliver live chat to a customer, it’s highly efficient from an agent perspective, and it’s also a great experience. It often gets better customer satisfaction ratings than any other service channel including phone calls.”

Customer expectations

Because of how quickly live chats came onto the customer service scene, the expectations of response times in social media have gone way down. Being put on hold for 45 minutes just doesn’t cut it anymore. Customers need to know they’ll get a response quickly. March discusses, “Gone are the days of waiting on hold. Gone are the days of being 100% engaged in a web chat and nothing else. Now, you can order a coffee, talk to a friend and have your service issue resolved all at the same time.” The airline companies lead the way, where Dan says he’s personally received direct messages back in three minutes or less. This puts great pressure on other companies to quickly respond, because customer experience continues to be measured against whatever experience your customer had with the last brand they interacted with.

Give your customers an incredible and effortless experience by leaning in to the power of messaging, which really isn’t possible in any other channel. To learn more how direct messaging can create a fulfilling customer experience and other CX lessons from Episode 36 of Experience This!, listen to the full episode. And, find more episodes of Experience This! at smartercx.com/experience-this.

Corie McHugh
Corie McHugh is originally from New Orleans, studied English & Theater at Florida State University, and she received her Masters in Theater Education from NYU. She has a passion for the arts and has worked in the education world for over twelve years. In her free time, she enjoys managing social media, writing, cheering on the Saints, and spending time with her two year old son.