Customer service and the customer experience are integral to the success of any business. Neither of which are an easy task. One way to keep customer satisfaction high and to help take some pressure off of customer support teams is to implement asynchronous messaging into customer service practices.
There will always be instances where a customer or prospective customer needs to contact your company, such as reporting an issue and asking for help with a solution or asking exploratory questions to learn more about your product or service.
Customer success teams are aware that many factors, such as the type of interaction, the time it takes to answer, and if a resolution was reached, will all play into the customer experience and influence the likelihood of creating a repeat customer or brand advocate. It is critical to equip CS teams with the tools and solutions to help resolve tickets quickly and consistently deliver an experience that delights your customers.
Why Brands Should Add Asynchronous Messaging in Customer Service
Asynchronous messaging simply means that the conversation or interaction is not happening in real-time and that both parties are not required to be active simultaneously for it to progress. One major benefit of asynchronous messaging for both customer service teams and for the customer is that it allows the freedom to respond at a time that fits into their schedule. Some examples of asynchronous messaging in customer service could be through emails or text messages.
Synchronous forms of communication, such as phone calls and live chat, will remain important pieces to a customer service strategy, but offering more solutions and other forms of communication are essential for companies to improve customer experience and satisfaction.
A recent study found that:
- 81% of customers reported that a positive customer service experience increases their likelihood to become a repeat customer
- 76% would switch to a competitor due to multiple instances of poor customer service experiences
- 61% would switch to a competitor after JUST ONE bad customer service experience
This reinforces the importance of customer service and customer experience for a brand.
By adopting forms of asynchronous messaging into customer service operations, customers gain the ability to contact a company when it is convenient for them and fits into their schedule. One drawback to traditional synchronous forms of communication is that it can often take effort in the form of either scheduling or waiting for the other party to become available. Asynchronous messaging allows the customer to initiate the interaction then continue working on other tasks while they wait for your customer service team to respond.
Implementing asynchronous messaging reduces the customer’s expectation for an immediate response, granting your CS team some breathing room while also keeping customers satisfied. By reducing the expectation that a response or resolution will occur instantly, customers are happy to wait a little longer for the response, which grants your team additional time to collect the data and provide the customer with an effective resolution. It is still important to respond in a timely manner, however.
The customer is also then given some breathing room by being able to read, react, and respond at their own pace without being pressured to keep the conversation moving or take up the company’s time. Asynchronous messaging also gives the customer the opportunity to ask additional questions as they arise without needing to start a new conversation each time.
How Brands Can Add Asynchronous Messaging in Customer Service
Over the past two years, the most common channel for customer service tickets to be received was through webform of email platforms, with social media/social messaging, and SMS forms of communication all gaining in popularity.
Asynchronous messaging for customer service can extend beyond just email or text messaging platforms.
One of the most effective ways to incorporate asynchronous messaging into your customer service experience and boost customer satisfaction is to empower them with the information and ability to resolve their own issues. According to the same study, 70% of customers expect a company to have a self-service knowledge base available to them.
A knowledge base typically includes an FAQ or troubleshooting guide to common issues that the customer service team receives. To take a knowledge base to the next level, brands can include asynchronous video messaging, such as on-demand video walkthroughs or how-to’s, that show the customer exactly what steps to take to reach a resolution to many common issues or questions, thus reducing the volume of customer inquiries.
This knowledge base can also be an incredible resource for customer service teams. Customers will inevitably run into the same issues or have the same questions. By creating a knowledge base, CS teams have responses and resolutions at the ready to quickly and effectively answer these customer questions. For many customers, this will feel like a more thoughtful response and improve customer engagement, experience, and satisfaction.
Asynchronous messaging provides brands with the ability to improve customer satisfaction and experience past just resolving issues as well. Brands can provide product updates, company news, and client milestones through asynchronous messaging.
How Zight (formerly CloudApp) Improves Asynchronous Messaging in Customer Service
Zight (formerly CloudApp) is a powerful, all-in-one visual communication platform that can greatly improve asynchronous messaging and communication. By combining webcam and screen recording features, users can deliver personalized video messages and annotated gifs and screenshots to easily and effectively convey information. Customer service teams can deliver an incredible and elevated customer experience through thoughtful and personalized asynchronous messaging.
A written message can often fall flat, especially when explaining a complex issue or steps to resolve a problem. Each person may interpret the information differently and large amounts of text can be difficult to process and follow. Customer service teams can leverage Zight (formerly CloudApp) to record and share video messages or GIFs to provide an additional layer of clarity, especially for complex or difficult processes.
A video message or an annotated GIF also adds personalization to the interaction. Even if it is just to answer a simple question rather than typing the answer, delivering a personalized message will improve customer retention and satisfaction because of the perceived level of additional effort that goes into a visual response as opposed to a written reply.
Schedule a demo to learn how your customer service team can boost customer engagement with Zight (formerly CloudApp)!