We live in the future.
What seemed like science fiction just a few years ago?
It’s coming.
It’s happening.
It’s REAL.
The thing is, your customers already have the future right in their pockets. You do too. We all do.
Heck…you might even be reading this blog post on it.
It’s on your mobile device. In it, really…and also across the connected universe of devices and networks and servers everywhere.
Though you (and all your customers) may think it is, the device in your pocket is no longer your phone. It is a whole lot more. Especially as both Apple and Google have announced extended use of messaging tools on the device, the device formerly known as your phone is now your virtual assistant.
Why?
BOTS.
The ever-evolving and growing connected framework of bots is massive, and it’s going to have an incredible impact on customer engagement. The first movers in this space could be the customer engagement leaders for the next 25 years.
Let me say that again…. The first movers in this space could be the customer engagement leaders for the next 25 years. That’s how powerful fast action will be.
With an initial focus on marketing and sales, bots connect across messaging clients to deliver relevant offers. Because of the incredible volume to which they connect, the more a consumer accesses specific sites and information, the more targeted the offers can be, the more helpful the bots can be for the consumer. And as a result, for the organization.
But, what started in marketing and sales is now evolving into customer engagement right in front of our eyes. The notion of extending the connected SaaS world on mobile devices across the text-based medium is evolving. And the time to understand what’s going is right now.
Mash-up of Bots and Messaging and Apps
The bots in this story connect sets of apps and automate the buy, any evaluation, and even escalation of issues. The frameworks for bots allow anyone and everyone to automate. And, they allow a new format for sale, market, and purchase of goods.
Perhaps most importantly, the mash-up of bots and messaging and apps will enable more powerful insight and action than we’ve ever seen before.
Throw in the quickly expanding use of voice interfaces, and we could very well be seeing the future of conversation.
Here’s what’s to expect—and in the very near term—as a result of this burgeoning space:
More Automation
Bots are a tool for easier automation; there are thousands of them that connect to a growing volume of apps and sites and systems.
Regardless of what we may hear, apps are not gone, they are evolving. Apps today require more automation from third parties. Pulling all of this together, this is where a messaging gateway makes a massive difference. With this is place, you can capitalize on external frameworks with thousands of connected BOTS working together to help the customer…through automation.
More Context
This is where the personal virtual assistant—what you used to call your phone—converges everything: With all these connections pulled together, the view into the customer becomes clearer with every single action, no matter the interaction. It’s beneficial intelligence that creates a more impactful customer record—all the information the customer could possible need to access, and a more complete picture of what customer intent is. In a word? This is context.
The best part? The more the customer accesses, the more intelligence can be applied. When this happens, you deliver…
A Better Experience
With all of the above, the customer can satisfy their intent on their own terms with their device. In this world, customer service becomes the pivot point for escalation on the shrinking chance this new automation can’t address the customer intent. But, there’s a mashup waiting to happen here, too! Imagine the virtual assistant—continually informed by the connected bots—adding context and value in a conversation with the agent during a call or email or chat!
Better Engagement
Take all this intelligence and add a voice interface on top of the messaging. Now what happens?
“Human” conversations that are informed and driven by connected bots. The virtual assistant on the device formerly known as your phone will be able to use the frameworks available seamlessly to help purchase, evaluate, and even get service. And to the end-user, it is all a conversation via Voice based UX.
And because every single interaction adds more context and more intelligence? More context begets a better experience begets better customer engagement.
The best part of all of this? Any of the above does not seem so far away.
So yeah. We live in the future. What seemed like science fiction just a few years ago? It’s coming. It’s happening. It’s REAL.
And, the next customer engagement leaders are already on it.
*****
Thanks to Matt Pyke, Sr. Director of Product Management at Verint, for sharing his insights in this blog. We'll get him share more in the near future. (BTW- You can often find Matt leading a pack of cyclists in Northern California).
