When you need to get essential information to your customers quickly, then Critical Messaging is an excellent way to do this. By getting ahead of the problem and proactively communicating with your customers, dissatisfaction can be reduced along with inbound enquiries. This takes the pressure off your customer service team and allows them to focus on complex cases.
A well-handled problem can result in genuine brand advocates, but a badly handled one can irreparably damage your brand reputation and result in lost custom.
Critical messaging solutions can vary, using different channels according to the needs of the clients. However, they tend to be built on an initial SMS (text message) transmission. SMS messages, on average, achieve delivery and open rates of well over 90%, so with a suitably clear message, a huge number of customers can be reached and engaged extremely quickly and inexpensively.
The initial SMS will usually contain a call to action, a link, or rich media for an app-like experience, that enables customers to self-serve and take control of their problem resolution. This could be to make an engineer appointment or to arrange the collection of a defective product. This is much more resource efficient than waiting for inbound enquiries following a news story or even a proactive email campaign.
Customers are also given the option to engage via SMS or social media to ask questions: this is far more cost-effective than prompting calls, as agents can typically handle four text conversations at one time, and customers are more accepting of slower response rates via SMS or social chat (via your brand’s Facebook page, for example) than on the phone.
When you compare the self-serve option to staffing up your customer service department or securing outsourced seats to handle a massive spike in demand, it is both cheaper and quicker, reaching customers more effectively and delivering the required results with minimum human involvement. This is more likely to result in more satisfied customers, despite the obvious initial bad news about their purchase.
