5 Popular Types of Customer-Facing Technology
People expect technology to do a lot more for them than they used to. If they turn on Netflix to continue binging a show, they expect the app to know where they left off. When they want to ask a company a question, they expect to have multiple ways online to do it and to get a quick reply.
Customer experience is very much tied to technology. Businesses need to adopt customer-facing tools that make the process of inquiring about, buying, and using their products and services as effortless as possible.
The more AI infiltrates the apps and websites we use, the more people will expect technology to do things for them. This puts the onus on businesses to keep up by adopting modern business solutions, or they may get left behind by their competitors.
Studies show that “customer-centric” businesses are 60% more profitable than those that aren’t. In today’s world, being customer focused relies on the digital systems you put in place.
You don’t have to make big or expensive upgrades to improve a customer’s digital experience with your business. Here are several customer-facing tech tools you can consider, some of which are very low-cost to implement.
Digital Tools That Can Improve Customer Experience
1. AI-Powered Chatbot
When customers come to your website and have a question, it’s often the speed of getting an answer that will determine whether they purchase or not. People want an answer fast, but it doesn’t always have to be from a live person.
In fact, 68% of consumers are fine using chatbots, and actually like them because they can get a fast answer from a bot. As long as the chatbot is smart and gives them the info they need, many people would rather have a non-live agent experience.
AI-powered chatbot apps are available from several subscription services and can act as a type of 24-7 customer support rep for you. If well-trained, they can answer many common questions and improve response times for customers and prospects.
2. SMS Notification Option
Have you noticed that you get more texts from businesses now than you likely did a few years ago? Companies are skipping the bloated email inbox and notifying people via SMS of things like payment receipts, shipping details, upcoming appointments, and sale notices.
Consumers appreciate that they get important updates immediately, rather than needing to sift through their email inboxes for them. They can also always opt out if they don’t want to receive them any longer.
Consider looking into a service that allows you to easily automate service and purchase-related texts to improve customer service.
3. Cloud-based Surveys/Forms
Many companies send out annual customer satisfaction surveys or new customer paperwork. If you’re still sending these by email with a Word or Excel attachment, then there is a way you can greatly improve the experience of your customer.
Use an online survey/forms tool, such as Survey Monkey or Microsoft Forms. These tools enable you to put your form online and then send a link to your customers to fill it out.
Customers can fill out the form online from any device, and they’re done. No need to save a document and then attach it to an email to send back. You get the responses as soon as they click “submit” on the form.
If you have Microsoft 365, then you already get MS Forms for free!
4. Implement a VoIP Phone System
When customers have to sit on hold or go through an endless automated voicemail system to reach someone, it can be very frustrating for them. If it’s a prospect that wants to ask you a question, they may just call someone else if they can’t easily reach you.
If you haven’t implemented VoIP, then you may want to consider it. It’s more than just a phone system. A system like UD Voice VoIP integrates calling across all devices and allows employees to smoothly transfer calls from a computer or desk phone to a mobile device.
Some of the customer experience-enhancing features are:
- Ring groups, so a call can be picked up by the first available person
- Call forwarding
- Auto-attendant to quickly route calls
- Mobile VoIP
- Video calling
- Voicemail to email and text
5. Customer Support Through Facebook Messenger
Facebook is one of the biggest social media platforms in the world. People often look up companies on the app and want to reach out to ask questions. Rather than having questions get lost as responses to posts, you can enable the Facebook Messenger app for your page.
Offering customer support through Facebook Messenger makes it easy for customers and prospects to reach out when they may finally have some free time in the evening to research new products and services.
Offering this capability for people that want to contact you is the mark of a modern business that is in tune with making the customer journey as easy as possible. You can also use chatbots on Messenger to give that 24/7 experience.
Upgrade Your Customer Experience with Help from Unbound Digital
Don’t get left behind by your competitors. Customers are expecting better digital experiences. We can help your Tri-Cities business upgrade its customer-facing systems to improve retention and growth.
Contact us today to get started! Call 423-467-7777 or reach us online.