We have entered the era of instant communication, where emerging communication technologies can significantly enhance customer experience.
While these technologies are set to improve the way businesses engage with their customers, they can also be detrimental to a brand if not deployed correctly. Read on to learn about technology trends in the customer communication space, the evolution of bots (Hint: the dumber bots of today are said to be more effective than their smarter predecessors) and get a checklist to help you design a conversational chatbot.
Top 5 Customer Communications Trends in 2018
It’s no surprise that ‘emerging technologies’ tops the list of the top five customer communication trends in 2018, and that digital communication technologies are paving the way for enhanced customer experiences. A ‘unified customer journey’ is the next trend; one that is forcing organizations to map all the vital customer touchpoints. Then comes ‘transactional communications’ – a great touchpoint that promotes high customer engagement. Interestingly, the fourth trend is ‘print’, which is still a preferred medium for some customers. The fifth trend? Read on to find out…
- Publisher: MarTechSeries
- Access: Public
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Bots 2.0 - After three years of overpromising and underdelivering what's next?
This article published on Forbes.com, claims that dumb bots are proving to be more effective than smart bots. While the “current global bot market is expected to reach $1.23 billion by 2025 (paywall)” the bots of 2018 are very different to the earlier predecessors that disrupted various industries two years ago. But earlier bots failed to live up to expectations – a classic case of “overpromising and undelivering”. Today’s bots – identified as ‘Bots 2.0’ – are said to be “dumber, narrower and better.” Sound like a contradiction in terms? Read on to discover why smart bots failed and why dumb bots are better at gathering information and escalating issues, delivering better personalized interactions and solutions, as well as solving problems.
- Publisher: Forbes
- Access: Public
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The Do’s and Don’ts of designing chatbot conversations
Research conducted by Oracle predicts that “80 percent of brands will be using chatbots for customer interactions by 2020”. Chatbots are set to raise the bar in customer communication and customer engagement in various industries. Enabling what is referred to as ‘conversational commerce,’ chatbots have the ability to guide customers along their online purchase journey… but, this articles notes that a ‘clear conversational commerce strategy’ is required to achieve this and ultimately, to provide a better customer experience. Read on to discover the technology that drives chatbot conversations and how a conversational chatbot is designed. The article concludes with a handy checklist for designing a conversational chatbot.
- Publisher: customer THINK
- Access: Public
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Alison Treadaway
Vice President, Marketing, Striata, a Doxim Company
She joined the Striata in 2002, and served as Managing Director of the African region for 13 years. Prior to this, Alison’s experience in Internet-related solutions included marketing and sales positions at Internet Solutions and Dimension Data.
Alison has 24 years of experience in the ICT sector. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Languages, WITS) and a Post-graduate Diploma in Business Administration (WITS Business School).
Read more of Alison's blog posts here or connect with her on the following social channels:
