7 Ways Technology Is Shaping The Future Of Customer Service In 2015
Technology! There have been multiple debates over this little word. Technology is shaping the future at a very rapid pace. Some say it’s a boon, some say bane. Either way, it has managed to create a huge difference in everybody’s life. Nobody can live without mobiles, television or even an air conditioner.
“Lets go invent tomorrow instead of worrying about what happened yesterday.” – Steve Jobs [1]
Companies are using technology to its fullest and through different mediums since it’s adding value to everything these days.
Here are the 7 ways technology is shaping the future of customer service in 2015:
Cell Phones
What is that comes to everyone’s mind when we say ‘technology’? Mobile phones!
As of 2015, there are 4.88 billion cell phone users in the world. [2] More than socializing, people believe in spending time on their phones because it comes with a lot of recreational options. Mainly, cell phones offer an easy way to attain information and interact with peers at point of sale and hence, all customer service channels are revolving around a mobile experience. The rise of mobile creates opportunities for more complete customer care, too.
75% of consumers think companies should make answers to all their common questions available via smartphones. – Synthetix [3]
Social Media
Customer service is considered to be fool proof when you are approachable to the whole wide audience. And what would speak better than ‘social media’. Though, how you use its power to the fullest, is debatable. Customer service is upped by listening on social media, not just posting to it. In the third quarter of 2012, the number of active Facebook users had surpassed 1 billion. [4]
Even though one-to-one approach is more reliable and social media reaches out to each and every soul, it might just get missed. There is no good way to quantify it. Yet, it’s definitely one of most leading aspect of technology which is shaping the future of customer service. Social media could either make or break a brand. Customers could blindly judge by ‘likes’ but then its the only way to make it to the top. Technology could be brutal in that way!
Companies delivering customer support through social media achieve superior gains – 7.5% vs. 2.9%.~ Aberdeen Group Social Customer Care Report [5]
Videos and Chats
How do you increase credibility? By turning intangible into tangible. 63% of online consumers said they were more likely to return to a website that offers live chat. ~ Forrester Making Proactive Chat Work [6]
Video representation has made the service industry a little bit more identifiable. This results in gaining attention of potential customers, and keeping the acquired customers delighted and updated. Videos let you visualize an idea that any business is trying to put forward and it creates a sense of emotional understanding.
Tracking Data
What do you do with the data that you collect at various touch points? You make the most of it. It’s surprising how different means of data analysis are coming up and they are, most definitely, helping firms keep a track of sales/brand/service. This has a strong advantage. Such software could be made accessible by all employees to keep a track of the customers they encounter at different point of times. This makes the interaction with the customer faster, leading to convenience and customer empowerment.
“Being on par in terms of price and quality only gets you into the game. Service wins the game.” ~ Tony Allesandra [7]
Celebrity Endorsements
Branding is taking new shapes and reaching new heights. Celebrities tend to captivate customers, existing and potential, which can be good for sales.
Endorsements could be delivered through various technological means. It’s mostly through Twitter/Websites/YouTube and other media sources. Celebrities give a sense of connectivity and work towards the motto of ‘customer retention’. They tend to create trust between customers which, in turn, gives a good impression of services.
Self-Service
Companies don’t need to get involved in each and every aspect of customer service, these days. There is a solution available to every issue, digitally. The number of touch points go down and it reduces the defection rate. It also results in an efficient experience for the customer and that could easily result into a competitive advantage.
Technology empowers customers in a way that they are able to handle their own problems without much effort.
40% of approximately 3,000 consumers in a global survey said they prefer self-service to human contact for their future contact with companies – The Real Self-Service Economy Report [8]
Predictability
Technology is making every process about a hundred times easier. Conditions of value chain has become more fool proof. This is leading to a more fool proof customer service. Any mishaps can be countered within a snaps time and it is all thanks to technology.
“What new technology does is create new opportunities to do a job that customers want done.” – Tim O’Reilly [9]
In the end, technology is taking over and it has gained a whole new dimension. This, if handled wisely, could turn into a major advantage or it could go down in flames. Hence, it would be wise to carefully use technology.
Reference
[1] http://technologyatanyage.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Steve-Jobs-quote.jpg
[2] http://www.statista.com/statistics/274774/forecast-of-mobile-phone-users-worldwide/
[4] http://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/
[6] http://www.business2community.com/customer-experience/13-startling-customer-service-statistics-01047281#cwcxywGOmVg6xo51.99
[7] http://www.forbes.com/sites/ekaterinawalter/2014/03/04/40-eye-opening-customer-service-quotes/
[9] http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_technology.html#fCZCKfObze0fSjHl.99
About Author: Deeksha Chaturvedi is a content creator working with SoftwareSuggest. She is passionate about marketing and graphics. Her writing depicts true essence of knowledge gained through academics and experiences. Her hobbies are to dance and socialize. She dreams of becoming a very successful business woman. Follow her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deeksha.chaturvedi.7 and on Google+. : https://plus.google.com/u/0/114547707509548939749.
