How Conversational

Business Can Help You

Get – and Stay – Closer
to Your Customers

It can be a struggle to grow your business at scale But wait, what exactly is “conversational business”?
while keeping customer experiences both authentic Conversational business is the use of messaging apps to
and actionable. Add to that the complexity of identifying deliver personalized experiences at scale through the use
where, when, and how people want to be contacted of chatbots as well as one-to-one human conversations.
by businesses across digital channels, and it’s easy to It’s a growing trend that is poised to become the new
see why so many enterprise companies fail to develop medium for interactive conversations, including where
a strategy for messaging channels. and how businesses engage with their customers.

But overlooking the power of messaging is a costly Where has this trend emerged from?
error, especially as conversations increasingly
This shift to a more conversational model has emerged
become a vehicle for building long-lasting customer
alongside several other trends like the use of AI technology
relationships in the digital world. Never was this more
and the broad adoption of predictive analysis. But at
evident than during the early days of the COVID-19
its core, conversational business is about connecting
pandemic when digital apps and messaging allowed
with customers where they want to connect, and that’s
people to connect with businesses while staying safe.
increasingly through messaging apps.

So, how do businesses seize the opportunities for

In fact, the most popular messaging apps in 2021
relationship-building that messaging can help drive?
represent 2.87 billion+ users worldwide.¹ Pair this with the
growing trend towards personalization in almost all aspects
By embracing a conversational approach to business
of our lives – from shopping to banking to healthcare and
and, by extension, delivering high quality customer
beyond – and the argument for embracing a conversational
experiences at scale.
approach to business becomes increasingly clear:
Messaging gives businesses the power to form stronger
bonds with customers and learn their preferences in order
to deliver and use non-intrusive, meaningful interactions
that can be both revenue-driving and cost-effective.

¹ Statista, 2021:
Number of mobile phone messaging apps users worldwide from 2018 to 2022
How to Create High Quality,
End-to-End Customer Journeys with Messaging
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital adoption by sending shock waves through
the world of work and online consumer behavior.

During quarantine, use of messaging spiked

across the globe. As users quickly acclimated to
digital exchanges that were safer, big brands took
notice. That’s why companies like Coca-Cola,
Walmart, Hilton Hotels, Sephora and IKEA have
already embraced this conversational approach
to doing business.²

And what’s driving some of the world’s most

recognizable brands to adopt this messaging
approach?

It’s simple:
People’s inboxes are overflowing with offers and
batch-and-blast email campaigns have become an
unfortunate norm. Messaging technology, on the
other hand, continues to improve thanks to greater
personalization, more human-sounding chat bots,
and AI getting better at unstructured exchanges.

This allows enterprises the opportunity to

quickly move beyond old ways of doing
business to get and stay close to consumers
at every step in the customer journey.
Today, conversational business solutions
allow companies to send the right message,
at the right time, and on the right channel to
customers, while effectively serving as the
glue that connects pre-sale experiences to
personalized updates to customer support
and beyond.

² The Economist, 2021:

“Will conversational commerce be the next big thing in online shopping?”

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Messaging can drive results at
every stage of the customer journey

Pre-sale

• Share product information

• Boost consumer engagement
• Offer personalized promotions

Purchase

• Facilitate convenient mobile orders

• Personalize product recommendations
• Send reorder reminders

Customer support

• Instantly answer customer questions

• Resolve customer issues
• Securely handle personal data

Fast-tracking digital transformation and economic recovery now means

forward-thinking brands are adjusting their strategies towards more
personalized, end-to-end customer journeys with messaging.

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 Minding The Gap
Messaging is increasingly bridging the communications
gap between brands and their customers. For example:

• 70% of customer interactions by 2022 will involve

emerging technologies such as machine learning,
chatbots, and mobile messaging.³

• Based on 2020 data, 68% of international adults

surveyed said "I prefer to message (e.g. chat app,
text) with a business when I need to contact them
now more than I did prior to the pandemic.⁴

• Based on 2020 data, Nearly 7 in 10 (68%) of

international adults said “I am more likely to do
business with/purchase from a company that I can
contact via messaging (e.g. via chat app, text) than
one that I cannot.”⁵

Offering Authentic Experiences

and Faster ROI
Messaging is ideally suited for supporting end-to-end
customer experiences – and moves at the speed of the
modern consumer, while providing a secure experience,
no matter where they are in the world. For example,
the best business messaging solution doesn’t require
a stable internet connection yet end-to-end encryption
always protects users’ sensitive data.

Messaging can also share rich media such as pictures,

videos, PDFs, audio files, and more, which resonates
with today’s modern consumers and makes it easier
for sales teams to answer product queries and provide
customer support in real-time.

³ Smarter with Gartner, 2020: “Top CX Trends for CIOs to Watch”

⁴ Business Messaging Research Study (Facebook Commissioned study of 8,214

adults ages 18 and older in U.S., Germany, the UK, India, Mexico, Brazil and
Indonesia), September 2020

⁵ Ibid

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Practical Implementation
Enterprises that are considering using a conversational business strategy should take
practical steps to better understand the technology and the use cases that could apply
to their business. Here are some specific use cases that apply across industries:

Deliver Live Customer Updates & Alerts Quickly Resolve Issues

Through 2-way conversations, companies can Issues related to payments, account balance, loyalty
instantly update customers and customers can follow points, or products can be resolved without a phone call.
up for clarification. This can be used for tracking a
shipment, back-in-stock alerts, and high quality offers. Gathering Customer Requirements
Chatbots can be set up to gather customer requirements
Make Purchases using automation and propose choices based on
Customers can request product information, then customer’s answers.
purchase or reorder items quickly via messaging.
Sending Reminders
Enhance Customer Experiences Customers can receive reminders via messaging about
Through AI-powered chatbots, businesses can products, payments, and more.
recommend items to shoppers based on previous
purchasing history. Sharing Important Documents
Companies can send important documents securely
through messaging for transactions or product support.

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Taking a more conversational approach to business
allows brands to meet consumers where they’re at
and create engaging, personalized experiences. At
the same time, it also helps realize cost efficiencies
within the organization – offering a win-win scenario
for both you and your customers.

It all starts with understanding where you’ll have the

greatest conversational impact with your customers,
then building complete experiences that will help
craft an end-to-end conversation.