Do you ever wonder what the future of customer service will look like? With technological advancements and the rise of the gig economy, it takes time to predict precisely what's in store. However, experts believe that one trend will become increasingly important: omnichannel support.
With the rise of online shopping and social media's popularity, customers expect more seamless and personalized support across multiple channels. Companies realize that they need to adapt to this trend to stay competitive.
So what exactly is omnichannel customer support, and how will it shape the future of customer service? In this article, we'll explore the basics of omnichannel customer support and make predictions for the future of customer service in 2023. Whether you're a customer looking for the best help or a company trying to stay ahead of the game, this article is for you.
1. Social Media Demands Will Boost
Do you know that 54% of people have a more favorable opinion of a brand when they respond to customer queries or concerns on social media? That is a lot. Additionally, since many consumers enjoy receiving comments on social media, customer support specialists will keep adjusting to accommodate this need.
Businesses won't just rely on social media for advertisements in the future. The new viral promotions will focus on active social listening and quick replies to client questions and problems.
What impact has such publicity had? Happy clients begin to spread the word, additional clients start to like and comment, and the business gains free exposure to new prospects who spend 144 minutes daily on social media and messaging platforms. Meeting customers where they spend more than two hours daily—on social media—will become standard practice in the future.
2. Customer Support Across All Channels Will Become Standard
Nowadays, consumers interact with brands using a variety of channels. In actuality, 67% employ three or more channels. While some of your consumers are researching your services on social media, others may decide whether or not they want to use them after reading reviews on online review sites.
Additionally, these clients wish for channel changes to be smooth. They want to interact with your brand smoothly.
Therefore, it is no surprise that a survey by Adobe reveals that businesses that offer excellent omnichannel consumer experiences see 10% annual growth and a 25% boost in conversion rates.
Why Is Omnichannel Customer Service Successful?
Your company can do away with communication silos that could compromise the integrity of your brand by offering omnichannel customer service. For instance, a consumer could talk about a problem on your website. If unsatisfied, they might speak once again on social media. An omnichannel experience enables you to pull the prior customer engagement from your website, social platforms, email, and more into one screen rather than having the customer repeat what they said during their web chat. In other words, you pick up where clients left off in the conversation, which improves their experience.
3. AI And Bots Will Support Customer Support Specialists
AI can now decipher feelings in open texts thanks to recent advancements in machine learning-based NLP. For instance, AI can automatically create a service request from a negative customer review on a review website. Customer care representatives could turn negative feedback into pleasant experiences by acting quickly.
Also, bots? When they can't, for example, when the customer support specialist is asleep or unavailable, they can still function. Additionally, they enhance client self-service and cut costs for business owners. How? by offering a simple, consistent way of handling similar consumer requests.
Bots and AI will continue to advance. Customer support specialists, however, are concerned that their position may need to be updated. Will parts in customer service become obsolete? Naturally not. They will remain valuable as always, adjust to technological advancements, assume roles related to customer success, and support customers in using the goods or services they sell.
4. Customer Service Will Evolve Towards Greater Personalization
Businesses receive a lot of personal data from consumers. They anticipate that firms will use their data to offer personalized experiences in exchange. This is supported by research from Epsilon, which found that 80% of customers desire individualized services.
Long into the future, customized assistance will remain popular, especially as customer support tools advance in intelligence. Customer care representatives will be able to access a customer's most recent engagements thanks to improvements in these support systems, giving their interactions with them a more personalized touch. Online and offline interactions differ significantly in terms of personalization.
By knowing and displaying a customer's preferences based on their browsing history, support workers can tailor a customer's online experience. Offline, this might be a customer support specialist that converses with clients via live audio messages instead of impersonal, automated communications. A hotel wake-up call is one illustration.
Offering individualized services sounds like a smart move. However, how does it affect your revenue?
Econsultancy reports that 80% of businesses have improved since introducing personalization. Additionally, companies adopting advanced personalization claim a $20 return on every dollar invested.
5. Customer Service Experts Will Be In Great Demand
Customer support specialists will evolve their roles to adapt to new platforms and channels. They can develop skills and carve out unique niches within the field, like social media support or onboarding. Social media specialists need deep platform knowledge and communication skills while onboarding specialists must have strong organization and communication skills. With the proper training and experience, customer support specialists can excel in specific areas, leading to more fulfilling careers while helping companies meet customer needs.
Wrapping Up
Client service has a bright future, particularly for business owners who wish to leverage technology to increase revenue and client retention. Greater efficiency is provided through technological development and specialized customer service teams. This frees up business owners' time to concentrate on their customers while allowing them to worry less about routine administrative responsibilities.
Even when you can't be reached, the team of expertly trained customer support specialists at Wow Customer Support is committed to giving your clients a satisfying experience. We take care of taking calls and setting up appointments so you can concentrate on expanding your marketing reach, giving your customers excellent service, and eventually growing your business.
