Mobile Customer Engagement eCommerce Highlights 2016 tyntec-Ovum Survey

May 2016

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Contents

About the survey Key Findings

Need for Speed Voice & E-mail Waning Single Service Number for Both Voice & SMS Chat Apps Demographics Matter eCommerce eCommerce v. Brick & Mortar Use Cases

Conclusions & Recommendations

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About the Survey: Who We Reached

Ovum surveyed 1,000

Respondents from the U.S. (500) and Germany (500)

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Key Findings

Need for Speed: Speed and expertise are key to customer engagement Voice & E-mail Waning: Mobile messaging channels such as SMS and chat apps gain Single Service Number for Both Voice & SMS: Strong preference for two-way SMS Chat Apps: Consumers’ openness for brand engagement rising Demographics Matter: Channel preferences for (adult) millennials Use Cases: Mapping channels to use cases is important eCommerce: Driving new mobile use cases eCommerce v. Brick & Mortar: Both lacking mobile messaging engagement

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Need for Speed

According to survey findings, the most important priorities for consumers are getting through to an agent quickly (80%), and the speed with which their inquiry is resolved (74%).

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Speed and expertise are key to customer engagement

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Voice & E-mail Waning

The survey results reveal that while 18% of respondents already interact with their customer service agents via a chat app, 50% would be open to being contacted in this way. Consumer interest for being contacted by service providers via chat apps grows from 50% to 65% when we look at consumers using two or more apps.

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Mobile messaging channels such as SMS and chat apps gain

All respondents Respondents using 2 or more apps

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Voice & E-mail Waning (Continued)

56% of respondents across the US and Germany said they would like to send an SMS to their service providers’ customer service agents using the same number that they would use to call them, yet only 41% are able to.

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Respondents wanting to use SMS for customer service

Respondents currently using SMS for customer service

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Single Service Number for Both Voice & SMS

The main reasons why 56% of respondents would like to send an SMS to their customer service agents using the same number they use to call them are because they expect SMS to be less time-consuming (44%) and more convenient (42%) than alternative communications forms.

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Strong preference for two-way SMS

Chat Apps

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A key perceived benefit for consumers when interacting with their service providers on chat apps is more rapid resolution of problems (53%).

Consumers’ openness for brand engagement via chat apps rising

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Demographics Matter

When segmented by age, the survey reveals a significant difference in channel preferences between millennials and people over 45, with the increases of 16% for SMS and 12% for chat apps among millennials.

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Age 16-34 Age 45+

Overall Channel Preference

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eCommerce

45% of respondents said that the customer service agents of their eCommerce provider definitely used mobile communications effectively, with 40% indicating the same level for their bank or financial services provider.

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Driving new mobile use cases

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eCommerce v. Brick & Mortar

eCommerce providers use more emails and web chats, compared to brick & mortar stores. However, both are lacking mobile messaging such as SMS and chat apps.

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E-Commerce providers Retailers

Mobile engagement gap

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Use Cases

The strengths of each channels should be mapped against use cases and the lifecycle of the customer’s relationship (availability of opt-ins, etc.). 53% of respondents prefer to send an SMS (rather than call) to request or change an appointment.

Mapping channels to use cases is important

Conclusion

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Consumers’ mobile devices are increasingly being used as a portal to customer service agents, via traditional services such as voice, email, and SMS, as well as emerging technologies such as chat apps, app-based push notifications, and web chat. However, there’s a significant gap between consumers’ openness to mobile messaging engagement and what brands currently provide. Strong demands are shown for using chat apps and a single number for both voice & two-way SMS. eCommerce providers performed better than their brick & mortar counterparts in terms of the overall mobile engagement; however both were lacking mobile messaging engagements such as SMS and chat apps. The use of chat apps will broaden the range of interactions with the customer as the chat app evolves from messaging to features such as location sharing and payments. Mobile messaging will be integral in helping brands engage consumers–especially for the millennial demographics where the demand for fast two-way interaction is high.

Recommendations

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Brands will have to apply consumers’ changing communications behaviors into their existing customer engagement strategies. Brands’ focus on developing their own app as a main channel is misguided, since many consumers are using multiple third-party chat apps, making it less likely they will use a dedicated app to communicate with just one company. Communications channels should be mapped against the lifecycle of the customer’s relationship and use cases. Mobile messaging is key to meeting the speed and functionality desired by today’s consumers. Strengths of each mobile channels should be matched with the type of interaction needed. e.g. two-way SMS for time-critical comm such as scheduling; chat apps for sending rich media. A business operating in a single market may be better able to negotiate connectivity via a local mobile operator and a popular chat app in that market. But companies that operate on a regional or global level should reduce the complexity and costs by working with a service provider that can connect them to multiple operators and chat apps.

Our contact details For more information, please contact: press@tyntec.com Germany: +49 89 202 451 202 US: +1 415 527 0903 UK: +44 207 436 0283 Singapore: +65 6478 3020 www.tyntec.com

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Germany Offices: tyntec GmbH Hofmannstrasse 25-27 81379 Munich tyntec GmbH Semerteichstrasse 54-56 44141 Dortmund

UK Offices: tyntec Ltd. 11 Hope Street Douglas IM1 1AQ Isle of Man tyntec GmbH 6 St Andrew Street London EC4A 3AE

Singapore Office: tyntec Pte Ltd 51 Goldhill Plaza #11-01/02 Singapore 308900

US Office: tyntec Inc. 555 California Street Suite 4925 San Francisco