More than half a billion people across Africa now subscribe to mobile services (almost doubling in the last two years), with the number expected to grow to 725 million by 2020.
This number is significant as it has a direct impact on customer service. Connectivity boosts the continent's population into becoming part of the "modern consumer", becoming more knowledgeable and certainly more selective when it comes to interaction with brands.
What Ocular Technologies has seen is that the fundamentals of exceptional service may not have differed in the past but the way in which this service is delivered definitely has. "The introduction of smartphones, and other connected mobile devices, has not changed the underlying tenets that comprise a great customer experience. But they have certainly changed how that experience is delivered. Consumers continue to express growing interest in mobile-friendly customer service channels like text, chat and messaging applications," affirms Chris O'Brien on Ocular Technologies' partner company Aspect's blog.
African businesses, just like organisations in the rest of the world, thus need to ensure that they deliver services in a way that meets the expectations of mobile-minded consumers. O'Brien shows a few ways how this can be done:
Deploy chatbots to mobile channels: Leveraging chatbots, she says, will enable your organisation to resolve basic inquiries more quickly, giving your agents more bandwidth to handle consumers with complex requests.
Focus on context and customer history: "Mobile-minded consumers can rapidly jump from channel to channel with the mere swipe of a finger as they engage with your organisation. But no matter how often, or how quickly, consumers switch channels, they still demand a consistent experience," says O'Brien. The key here is to keep it natural and in context, no one likes to repeat themselves.
Use a proactive outreach strategy: Smart devices have almost become an extension of people, that is, you'll be hard-pressed to find someone without their mobile device on them at all times. O'Brien points out that on-the-go consumers don't have time to wait and they cannot afford unwanted surprises. "Get ahead of issues, or delight consumers with an unexpected surprise, by reaching out proactively to provide customised information that may be critical for them," she suggests.
All those terms, such as cutting-edge, innovative technology and state-of-the-art, are as vital in a contact centre today as they are in the rest of the organisation. The solutions are available (contact Ocular Technologies to learn more) and employing them without delay is critical in engaging, satisfying, keeping and growing your share of the mobile-savvy African consumer.
Share